When the story of Joe Biden’s four-year job market is all said and done, and written into the history books, it will be told with many superlatives. So much so, that skeptics will doubt (and possibly attempt to revise) the story. That’s because it’s almost too good to be true, certainly one we’ve never seen before. Frankly, Joe Biden built and sustained the strongest, healthiest, most resilient job market in American history.

And December’s Jobs Report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics – the last one of Joe Biden’s presidency – emphatically put the exclamation point at the end of this tale: 256,000 new jobs burst onto the market while the unemployment rate fell again to 4.1%.

Causes of a Strong Job Market

Those are the most visible and commonly referenced measurements, but by far not the whole story. For instance, there could be several reasons for a fall or rise in the employment rate: number of workers landing jobs rises while number of workers looking remains steady, number of workers landing jobs decreases or stays steady while the number of job losses decreases even further, and so on. Most permutations, we see, have at least one caveat.

Not so in December’s case, and most of the last four years, for that matter. While the civilian noninstitutional population (number of adults in the workforce) grew by 175,000, the civilian labor force grew by 243,000, which it achieved by an increase of 478,000 in the employed ranks an da decrease in unemployed persons by 235,000. (Those two numbers, 243 + 235, work out neatly to 478.)

The Difference Between a Good Market and a Great Market

Job markets, like anything else, are susceptible to variations and inconsistencies, frailties and foibles.

Not so with the job market over which Joe Biden presided for the last four years. The blockbuster months were many and powerful while the “off” months were few and actually positive against most historic backdrops.

The future didn’t just happen; it was created.

Witness the 17 million jobs created in the last four years, second highest notched by any president save Bill Clinton – and it took Clinton two terms to do it. Biden’s accomplishment was no accident. Rather, an extremely revved up start to Biden’s presidency saw the American Relief Act, the CHIPS and Science Act, and a climate bill that not only protects the environment but creates jobs as well. A potent mix of positive policy, skillful politics, firm resolve, and favorable conditions combined to write this chapter of history.

Not just jobs

Important to note here is that this job market was marked not only by the number of jobs but also their quality. Once again, wages rise every month this year, finishing the year 3.9% up from last year, considerably outpacing inflation.ee

What’s coming?

So Joe Biden saw it through to the end. He finished the race: 48 consecutive months with strong job creation and sustained low unemployment, more people working than ever before. He set all kinds of records which should do two things: (1) Validate, even for the most skeptical observer, that this was nothing less than remarkable, and (2) Hand over to the incoming president … the greatest job market in history. What Mr. Trump does with it will soon be clear to see against such a stark background.