Jobs & the Economy
Throughout the 117th Congress, House Democrats have partnered with President Biden to enact policies that expand economic opportunity for businesses, workers, and communities across America. Under President Biden and Congressional Democrats, the unemployment rate is at its lowest in more than 50 years with more than 10 million jobs created, helping more of our people get ahead in today’s economy and Make It In America.
Democrats pursue an economic agenda that helps American businesses create good-paying jobs and ensure that workers have the tools not only to get by but to get ahead in our global economy. From raising the minimum wage to providing skills training and apprenticeship opportunities to ensuring equal pay for equal work, from making childcare more affordable to making it easier to save for retirement, Democrats’ economic policies are aimed at helping workers and their families attain real economic security at every stage of life.
Democrats have also delivered historic legislation investing in infrastructure and greater access to high-speed internet, taking the lead in the clean-energy economy, and supporting innovation and entrepreneurship. The generational Bipartisan Infrastructure Law has already begun to expand economic opportunity for Americans in communities across the country and takes action to repair our nation’s roads, bridges, ports, and other infrastructure while creating nearly 1.5 million jobs annually over the next decade. It contains the first major American investment in climate resilience to help communities upgrade their critical infrastructure and mitigate the impact of climate change-driven extreme weather. Likewise, the Inflation Reduction Act also advances America’s clean energy goals, turbocharging clean energy research and transmission while promoting electric vehicle domestic manufacturing to reduce American dependence on gasoline while revitalizing our auto industry.
The CHIPS and Science Act includes bipartisan measures to revitalize the domestic semiconductor industry and spur research. By strengthening domestic supply chains, this law acts directly to accelerate American innovation in the long-term while acting immediately to address inflation and create good paying jobs. House Democrats will continue to champion skills training and education at every level – from early childhood learning through higher education – to prepare our people for success and advancement in a changing economy. In all of these efforts, Democrats will continue to look for ways to make access to opportunities more equitable and to combat the lingering effects of legalized discrimination that continue to make it harder for minorities to access credit for loans, seek investment capital for startups, and build wealth to pass on to the next generation.
With historic job creation under President Biden, House Democrats will continue to advance policies that expand economic opportunity for working families, support small businesses, and create better-paying jobs.
Democrats agree with Republicans that we must cut spending and are committed to working with them to reach a compromise so that we can reduce spending while protecting investments that create jobs and grow the economy. Republicans have asked for $100 billion in cuts and Democrats have nearly met them halfway: $45 billion has been cut so far, with $41 billion in the Continuing Resolution passed in December and $4 billion in the short-term Continuing Resolution signed into law yesterday. It’s now up to Republicans to stop punting on a compromise and work together.
Congress has now sent a two-week Continuing Resolution to the President to cut spending and keep the government running. We have now cut $45 billion of the $100 billion that Republicans have set as their goal. Funding government two weeks at a time is inefficient and cannot continue.
I want to thank Chairman Rockefeller and Ranking Member Hutchison for giving me the opportunity to speak on one of our nation’s defining challenges: strengthening and creating jobs for America’s middle class. That same goal is behind the Democrats’ Make It In America agenda. Make It In America is about creating an environment in which American businesses can thrive, innovate, and create jobs here—and it is about ensuring we have a workforce that can fill the well-paying jobs of the future. I believe that when more products are made in America, more families will be able to Make It In America.
Our deep debt is a serious danger to our economic future and our children’s opportunities. The American people want us to bring the debt down, and I doubt that there’s a Member here who disagrees.
While the House considers a two-week continuing resolution this week, Americans remain focused on how Congress will cut spending while investing in our nation’s future over the remainder of the fiscal year. Democrats agree that we need to cut spending, and are willing to work together to reach a compromise plan for the remainder of the fiscal year. Republicans will have to abandon their extreme and arbitrary cuts which will harm our economic recovery and job creation, while not seriously reducing the deficit.
While Republicans have now proposed a two week extension to keep the government open, we must stay focused on reaching a compromise to fund the government for the remainder of the fiscal year. Republicans must abandon the extreme and arbitrary cuts they called for in their spending bill that passed the House last week, and move closer to Democrats’ position of cutting spending in a smart, targeted way. I have talked to members of the Republican leadership, and I am hopeful we can resolve our differences on a long-term measure quickly so that we are not forced to continue funding the government in disruptive two-week increments that undermine efficiency. We need to seriously discuss how we can cut spending and invest in our nation’s future, and ensure that we continue the services which are essential to the American people and our economy. If we are going to get a handle on our nation’s deficit, we cannot continue to focus on a small portion of the budget. I hope Republicans will work with us to responsibly reduce the deficit and invest in the future of our economy.
The Republican plan to slash government spending by $61bn in 2011 could reduce US economic growth by 1.5 to 2 percentage points in the second and third quarters of the year, a Goldman Sachs economist has warned.
When Republicans took the House majority, they pledged to create jobs and immediately start cutting the deficit. But they still haven’t put forward a real agenda to create jobs or to address the deficit in a serious way. A look at the past two months shows Republicans have failed to address Americans’ top priorities:
Intel Corp., during a visit by President Barack Obama, announced plans to build a $5 billion microprocessor plant in Arizona and hire 4,000 employees in the U.S. this year.
President Barack Obama says the U.S. must invest in research and development, science, and especially education — or risk seeing the technological breakthroughs of the future happen in some other country."