The Labor Department says the number of people applying for jobless aid rose 11,000 to a seasonally adjusted 276,000. The less-volatile four-week average rose 3,500 to 263,250.
U.S. employers added a robust 242,000 workers in February as retailers, restaurants and health care providers drove another solid month for the resilient American job market. The unemployment rate remained at a low 4.9 percent.
The Labor Department releases February data Friday and a FactSet survey of economists forecasts that employers added a solid 195,000 jobs last month, up from the 151,000 added in January.
While GOP task forces are talking about national security, jobs and health care, the House floor has largely been turned over to the obscure and the arcane.