November 21, 2008 Bush signs unemployment extension

WASHINGTON (AP) - The White House says President Bush signed into law a bill that Congress approved to keep unemployment checks flowing to jobless Americans through the holiday season.

Bush signed the bill at the White House just before boarding Marine I Friday morning for a short trip to Andrews Air Force Base and a flight to Lima, Peru, to attend the 21-nation Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum.

The Senate approved the bill following an earlier report Thursday saying that new claims by laid-off workers for jobless aid had reached a 16-year high and the number of people looking for work had surged past 10 million.

The White House had opposed broader legislation containing the benefits extension and urged passage of the new version.

(Copyright 2008 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)