As the Cabinet executives brought their optimism to a Harley-Davidson plant in suburban Milwaukee, consumer confidence took a tumble on the national front.
The Conference Board in New York reports Americans reacted with nervousness as the unemployment rate hit a nine-year-high in June.
Treasury Secretary John Snow, Commerce Secretary Don Evans and Labor Secretary Elaine Chao are on a "Jobs and Growth'' bus tour through Wisconsin and Minnesota.
Snow told about 200 Harley employees that while unemployment has been climbing in recent months, it's usually one of the last indicators to turn around during a recovery, but he conceded that the economy has not been growing fast enough to create new jobs.
Snow says the administration is confident that when the first wave of a $330 billion tax cut package begins to show up in Americans' pay checks, consumer spending will pick up.
