Obama Jobs Plan: Congressional Progressive Caucus Asks President To Consider Two Proposals

The co-chairs of the Congressional Progressive Caucus issued a letter to President Barack Obama Thursday, asking him to consider two proposals as he prepares his new jobs plan, which he is set to unveil in a speech to a joint session of Congress next week.

Reps. Keith Ellison (D-Minn.) and Raul Grijalva (D-Ariz.) co-signed the letter, which asks Obama to consider enacting emergency jobs legislation and creating a National Infrastructure Development Bank:

Washington needs to invest in the country’s future by enacting significant emergency jobs legislation to put Americans back to work now. There is no shortage of work to be done in America, and no shortage of workers to do it. Young Americans in particular are facing a bleak economic reality. Many of them have mountains of college debt and no prospects for employment. We are squandering the talent, energy and hopes of a generation. We urge the Administration to make a good American job a reality for every young person.

In addition to addressing the immediate unemployment crisis, it’s also time to invest in long-term opportunities that create jobs and rebuild America. One option with broad support is creating a National Infrastructure Development Bank. The country’s infrastructure needs an estimated investment of $2.2 trillion. We should not delay these crucial investments, especially while millions of Americans are out of work. Rebuilding America -- without creating expensive new corporate tax loopholes -- will further boost our economy and create badly needed jobs.

The two proposals were chosen based on recent legislative efforts that would specifically spur hiring, according to Brad Bauman, executive director of the Congressional Progressive Caucus.

Though the Obama administration has yet to officially release details on what the jobs speech will entail, the Office of Management and Budget's mid-session review of the current economic climate gave a general description, HuffPost's Sam Stein reports.

The review says the package "could include a mix of tax cuts to create jobs and provide economic security to the middle class, innovative infrastructure ideas to put people back to work, and some measures specifically targeted at the long-term unemployed and other specific sectors of the economy that are in particular need."

This is not the first time progressives have reached out to Obama regarding his upcoming jobs speech. The caucus' letter comes one day after 67 major progressive organizations penned a letter to Obama asking him to "go big" with his jobs plan.

 

 

Comments

[duzacm]

11:28 PM on 09/04/2011

Lol,,,rotf....A what kind of Bank ? Has anyone ever told this Bone Head president that he and the rest of the democrat party have systemattically ruined the job market by failing to properly investigate the high number of regulations that are based on "popular Liberal opinions and Junk Science ?"

[fortressfountain]

01:25 PM on 09/04/2011

What have they all been doing for 3 years? Did they have their heads in the sand. They all helped the banking industry and wall street make money.

[duzacm]

11:29 PM on 09/04/2011

The government even owns it's own car industry. And no,,,not the ones made in Japan.

[MrUniteUs]

05:27 PM on 09/03/2011

Just take 80 billion of the remaining stimulus dollars and hire 2 million Americans
at $20,000. Their families, the business they support, the employees and their families,
would all benefit. Hiring would increase because of the increased consumer demeand.
Tax revenues would increased. Social cost associated with crime and unemployment
would decrease.

[nolookpass2]

02:38 AM on 09/03/2011

2.2 trillion dollars, that would put Obama as the biggest spending President in the History of the United States, he is already for the most money in the shortest time. We saw what spending can do and that has led to the first jobs report with zero dollars.
Bush cut taxes and had excellent job growth. With those same taxes in place the democrats pass health care legislation which will raise taxes and spend trillions which will force future tax increases or spending decreases net effect noone is spending money and noone is hiring.
You could have not had a more perfect storm to wreck the economy. One can only think that this might have been the plan all along for democrats. Make the country so devestated that they will almost accept anything including socialism. They have done nothing to unite but they have shouted racism, they have play the young against the old, and the rich against the poor. We sent alot of them home in 2010, we will finish the job in 2012. I did not think anyone could make George Bush look like an excellent president but he is looking like gold right now.

[MrUniteUs]

05:23 PM on 09/03/2011

Actually the stimulus spending was replaced with spending cuts in April of this year.
Prior to April we averaged 200,000 new jobs per month, post April just 35,000 a year.

Don't have to smart to no that spending cuts = job cuts.

The good news is that we are not losing 800,000 month like we were when Bush left office.

[zmanusmc]

02:16 AM on 09/03/2011

Thomas Jefferson said in 1802:
I believe that banking institutions are more dangerous to our liberties than standing armies. If the American people ever allow private banks to control the issue of their currency, first by inflation, then by deflation, the banks and corporations that will grow up around the banks will deprive
the people of all property - until their children wake-up homeless on the continent their fathers conquered.

He also said : I predict future happiness for Americans if they can prevent the government from wasting the labors of the people under the pretense of taking care of them.

So today we have one group of people who are working hard and paying taxes and another group of people who are receiving a lot of free stuff and mad at the hard working people because they want more free stuff and the people providing the free stuff cannot support the freeloaders anymore.

[ninthraphael]

07:56 AM on 09/02/2011

how jobs can be generated locally is a big question. remember that most manufacturing jobs are mostly outsourced to countries where these rich corporate overlords now operate for cheap labor and oversized profits. besides, they can easily stash their profits to an offshore banks where the government can not reach them. so why would they operate in american soil? we are looking for talibams and terrorists in our midst but the insatiable hunger of the capitalists for more profit is gravely insiduous and devastating than any terrorists group combined. it is very rare now to find "made in USA" merchandise. go to walmart and target and do your own research and you will see the problem...want to be a real patriot and a true nationalist, buy american! but don't be surprised how very limited that option is!

[fgrammit]

05:40 PM on 09/02/2011

very good post ninthraphael

[Phil Dearing]

12:40 AM on 09/02/2011

This do nothing House of Reps will do NOTHING to help Americans. They are all owned by Corporate special interests. They are all well paid, well fed and have great healthcare as well. Why would they want to do anything for the American poor or middle? And if Obama continues "Trickle-on" economics, it will get even worse. We cant "Tax-cut" our way out of the terrible economy either. We need to spend, and spend big on infrastructure! We need to tax baby tax the rich to the fullest extent. And we need to close ALL the corporate loopholes. And finally we need trade agreements that make sense. Its the least we can do for our own people you would think. Oh I am having a pipe dream! The Repubs are in charge. Forget what I said. We dont do those things anymore. America is weak thanks to the Republicans. I totally forgot. Sorry.

[BIGTERRA]

01:18 AM on 09/02/2011

Typical liberal rant...tax and spend - spend and tax - spend, spend, spend. It's the Democrat action of spend, baby, spend that got us in the pit we are in.

[Randolph Greer]

01:54 AM on 09/02/2011

No. It was the removal of money from our capitalist economy. Without money, a capitalist economy cannot function. This is just simple basic economics 201.

[Phil Dearing]

07:48 AM on 09/02/2011

No I am sorry but you are wrong again. Its the fact that the rich elites marginal tax rate has dropped by about 30 percent since Ronald Reagan. Meanwhile, the average taxpayers marginal tax rate has increased about 15 percent. Its mighty good to be rich. And you beleive these guys really create jobs? You dont see the private sector jumping in to help rebuild roads or bridges do you? Who's gonna do it? Lets hear some of your great idea's bubba. If the Government doesnt spend, then there is no spending at all. These corporations dont give a tinkers damn about the American people. Go democrat, or go home.

[surfinnonreality]

09:50 AM on 09/03/2011

You cannot tax and regulate the country to prosperity. It is economically impossible. Repeal antibusiness regulations and rules. Let people grow their businesses and create wealth. When wealth grows then the government will have more taxes coming into it.
Tax cuts worked for Kennedy, Reagan and Bush. Everytime there is a major tax cut there is a strong growth in jobs and the economy. Time for the Dems to repeat history. What they are doing now ain't working. ZERO jobs growth in the current jobs report. ZERO!!!!! Get a clue.

[MiddleMolly]

03:13 AM on 09/04/2011

Wake up. We've been doing this for decades now. It hasn't worked. The middle and working classes are falling farther and farther behind; poverty rates are up, and it's unclear if we are ever going to get down to the 4% unemployment of the Clin t@n years. Actually, if you look at R ay gun, job growth only started when he, with the help of the Dems in Congress, increased taxes in late 1982. His first major tax cut bill in 1981 was devastating to the economy. Look it up.

[billhodges]

07:34 PM on 09/01/2011

We do not have 2.2 trillion dollars to spend.

[Randolph Greer]

01:51 AM on 09/02/2011

Oh yes we do. We have much more than that.

[zmanusmc]

02:18 AM on 09/03/2011

Where do we get the $2.2 Trillion from? I have some ideas I would like to share with you.]

[Aarroonn Fleszar]

05:45 PM on 09/01/2011

Do either proposals contain the truth?
http://PalinsDirtyLittleSecret.blogspot.com/