I think it’s more complex than that (governments don’t create jobs). Governments can create an environment that encourages job development. For example, the rule of law enables businesses to create more jobs than they might otherwise. Government, of course, can also be a negative influence on jobs.
For example, there are USAF aircraft that don’t directly attack the enemy but these aircraft are called force multipliers because they substantially increase the effectiveness of actual war fighters. I’m talking about aircraft like tankers and command and control platforms.
In the same way, government can be very beneficial for business. Too much government is bad, but so is too little government, anarchy. That’s why a lot of countries are economic wrecks. It’s difficult to build businesses in areas where there’s no rule of law. Try to build a business in these countries, and someone ends up destroying or taking it. Some would argue that that someone in America IS government, and the end result is the same—a ruined economy, but I digress.
Good government indirectly creates real jobs, and getting government out of the way isn’t always a good thing. A governor who finds the right balance of government can indeed help businesses create more jobs, so I give Governor Rick Perry credit for that. He does seem to be trying to create the right government to help act as a business “force multiplier.”
Nobody is saying that the answer is no government.
It was very astute of the Texas legislature under Perry to create the Texas Emerging Technology Fund and the Texas Enterprise fund. Governor Perry is correct that these fund have contributed greatly to economic growth in the state.