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By Doug Cunningham

The AFL-CIO says the U.S. economy is in freefall and is urging Congress to act with urgency to help working people hit the hardest by it. The AFL-CIO wants unemployment benefits extended immediately. With four dollar gas, millions of homes headed into foreclosure, and high numbers of long-term unemployed the labor federation says it’s shameful that Congress has not yet extended unemployment benefits. More than one and a half million Americans are suffering long-term joblessness. Thirty-seven percent of unemployed workers are now exhausting their regular state unemployment benefits without finding new work. That's a higher number than in the last recession.