Press Release

At this time, the House is scheduled to reassemble at 11:00 a.m. on Tuesday, December 9th.

The American economy lost 533,000 more jobs last month—the worst one-month drop in three decades. Our unemployment rate, 6.7%, is the highest in 15 years.

The 111th Congress is set to convene at a tough and challenging time in our nation’s history.

The economic crisis has hit workers and businesses hard, with rising unemployment and a frozen credit market, making it especially critical that President-elect Obama choose leaders for his economic team who will help him address the nation’s pressing needs.

Last month, the Democratic leadership in Congress insisted that the automakers present a plan for long-term viability before receiving any assistance from the federal government. Today, the automakers are presenting to Congress their plans for restructuring and viability.

Today, Barack Obama kept his campaign promise to choose advisors of the highest stature, from a variety of backgrounds, who would challenge his thinking on vital issues.

Today the National Bureau of Economic Research announced that the U.S. economy has officially been in a recession since December 2007--but that will not come as a surprise to millions of Americans.

Each year on World AIDS Day we come together as an international community to reflect on the progress we have made combating this horrific disease, as well as recognize how much we have left to accomplish.