Jobs & the Economy

Manufacturing is central to our jobs recovery and long-term economic prosperity, and President Obama has long recognized this. By appointing Commerce Secretary John Bryson and National Economic Council Director Gene Sperling to co-chair the White House Office of Manufacturing Policy, the President again demonstrates his commitment to expanding U.S. manufacturing. House Democrats have been focused on creating jobs and strengthening manufacturing through our Make It In America plan, and I hope Republicans in Congress will work with us to take legislative steps to bolster our manufacturing sector in the months ahead.

Speaker Boehner and Leader Cantor’s least favorite quote of the weekend, from Senator Lindsay Graham (R-SC) on NBC’s Meet the Press:

“At the end of the day, the payroll tax will get extended as it is now. …The pipeline's probably not going to sell.”

Wanted to be sure you saw this article in today’s Politico highlighting how Republicans are struggling to live up to their Pledge by packaging unrelated and controversial items to a bill to extend the payroll tax holiday, extend unemployment insurance, and fix the Medicare physician payment rate.

We cannot leave for the holidays until we ensure that the payroll tax holiday and unemployment benefits are extended and the Medicare physician payment rate is fixed. We should not risk raising taxes on middle class families, dropping unemployment benefits for those out of work, or preventing seniors from accessing their doctors through Medicare by including unrelated and controversial provisions. Democrats remain willing to work with Republicans to extend these critical measures before Congress adjourns for the year, but I do not believe that the plan Republican leaders proposed this morning would be the best path forward to do so. I hope they will work with us to find common ground quickly on a deal that can pass both chambers and be signed into law by the President.

Once again, House Republicans are wasting the Congress’s time on a bill that has nothing to do with creating jobs or dealing with the pressing issues that confront us before the end of the year. The Farm Dust Regulation Prevention Act is based on the same failed claim that deregulation will lead to job growth. Economists from both sides of the aisle strongly disagree and have said the link between regulations and unemployment is negligible, and they further add that many of our regulations help businesses compete on a level playing field. This farm dust bill is merely a smoke screen for Republican inaction on legislation that is actually important and would have significant bearing on millions of Americans. Even worse, the bill’s definition of ‘nuisance dust’ is overly broad and makes it easier for mining, smelting, excavation, and industrial operations to pollute in rural communities.

This Congress should not leave for the holidays without extending the payroll tax holiday, extending unemployment insurance benefits, and fixing the Medicare physician payment rate. I am disappointed that Republicans insist on playing political games with these critical policies. I have said repeatedly that Democrats are willing to work with Republicans to move these policies forward as long as unrelated, controversial policies are not attached, and President Obama said yesterday that he would reject a package that includes the Keystone pipeline. With so little time left before the end of the year, I hope Republicans reconsider their position and work with us to address these issues.

I continue to be disappointed that House Republicans are wasting Congress's time on ideologically driven bills to erode federal protections for consumers and communities instead of working on a plan to create jobs. The REINS Act would undermine our ability to protect children from harmful toys, prevent asthma and lung ailments resulting from pollution, and ensure that our small businesses can compete fairly in the marketplace. At the same time, it would force Congress to play a larger role in the regulatory process, leading to even more gridlock in Washington. Economists have told us again and again that regulations have a negligible impact on unemployment, and in many cases they help create the conditions for private sector growth. Right now, we cannot afford the uncertainty Republicans are creating for businesses by attempting to bog down the regulatory process. We need to consider real job-creating legislation, like House Democrats' Make It In America plan and the President's American Jobs Act. I hope Republicans will stop focusing on placating their most extreme supporters and instead work with Democrats on policies that benefit all Americans.

Democrats remain committed to working with Republicans on an omnibus package. But as we have made clear, the final package must adhere to the budget agreement reached in August, and it must not include controversial policy riders. As we work to complete appropriations bills for the remainder of the fiscal year, we also cannot forget that we must continue working on a big, bold, and balanced deficit reduction deal. We must step up and meet our fiscal challenges, and to do so we will need all options on the table. I hope Republicans will work with us to get this done well before painful and arbitrary spending cuts take effect in 2013.