As White House officials prepared for the final jobs report before the midterm elections due Friday morning, the last thing they wanted to see was a booming hiring number.   

  It’s the political paradox looming over the last major piece of economic data before Election Day — one that comes at a time that finds Democrats desperately trying to make up ground on the economy.   

  The U.S. economy added 261,000 jobs in October – more than the 200,000 jobs economists had forecast, but still landing at the upper end of the range White House officials had hoped to see by Friday, which was around 150,000-300,000. .   

  It was a “Goldilocks” result for the White House – a number that’s not too low, but not too high either.   

  Biden touted Friday’s jobs report, saying the new data “shows that our jobs recovery remains strong.”  He rejected Republican criticism that the economy is headed for recession as he continues to receive low marks from voters for his handling of inflation.   

  “One thing is clear: While comments from Republican leadership certainly seem to indicate they are rooting for a recession, the US economy continues to grow and add jobs even as gas prices continue to fall,” Biden said. in a statement, reiterating that inflation remains “our top economic challenge.”   

  That’s a far cry from just a year ago, when the U.S. economy added jobs each month at an impressive clip: More than 650,000 jobs in October and November, close to 600,000 in December, followed two months later by 714,000 new jobs in February.   

  President Joe Biden and his economic team have known for months that cooling the economy is a necessity to break the rampant price hikes that have given Republicans a significant advantage on the issue voters consistently cite as most important.   

  Biden and his top advisers have worked since the summer to outline their rationale for shifting from big job gains to an economic picture defined by “steady and steady” growth.   

  It’s a message meant to temper expectations after more than a year defined by the rapid pace of hiring, but also a goal officials see as necessary to protect much of the gains they regularly tout.   

  At its heart is Biden’s most significant economic success: A dramatic recovery in jobs from the economic crisis that led to the pandemic he entered on his first day in office.  More than 10 million jobs have been added since Biden’s inauguration and unemployment rose from 3.5% to 3.7% on Friday.   

  The combination of continued job gains and a return to quarterly growth is at the heart of Biden’s contention that, despite the gloomy national mood, the US economy is not and has not been on the precipice of a recession.   

  “Our economy is strong,” Biden told reporters last month.   

  The tight labor market, however, has exacerbated price hikes that have threatened Democrats’ hold on their House and Senate majorities.  That, in turn, has led the Federal Reserve to trigger four consecutive rate hikes, including the most recent move of three-quarters of a point this week.   

  Fed Chairman Jerome Powell, in his press conference after the policy announcement, pointed to a labor market that “is very, very strong” as a central reason why sharp interest rate hikes have not had a tangible effect on rising prices.   

  “So it might take time.  It may take determination.  It may take patience.  It’s likely to reduce inflation,” Powell said of the impact of the Fed’s actions.  “I think you see from our forecasts and others that it will take some time for inflation to come down.”   

  Biden has made it clear publicly — and to his team privately — that the Fed is an independent entity and will not face any political push from his administration as it deliberately tries to ease the US economy.   

  But White House officials are also well aware that the stated goal of a “soft landing” where the central bank manages to tighten economic conditions significantly to reduce inflation, but not enough to tip the economy into a painful recession.  needle on thread.   

  However, they see signs that it is a possible outcome.   

  “I think there’s a way to get that done while maintaining a very healthy labor market,” Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said in an interview with CNN.  “And I believe we are on that path.”   

  But that path includes officials seeking more modest jobs or clear signs of a “steady and stable” environment that would create more room for the Fed’s difficult work.