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Harkin: Republicans Fail Job Crisis Test
The only thing congressional Republicans have done about the nation’s job crisis is to make it worse by standing in the way of job creation and pushing a budget proposal—which Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) equates to ”applying leeches to a patient who needs a transfusion.”
In a column in the Des Moines Register, Harkin writes:
The Republican mantra is “government can’t create jobs.” Nonsense. Smart government can create jobs—and short-sighted government can destroy jobs. The brief shutdown of the Federal Aviation Administration this summer put 70,000 private-sector construction employees out of work. Draconian cuts proposed by House Republicans to the new transportation bill would destroy an estimated 490,000 highway construction jobs and nearly 100,000 transit-related jobs.
He says Republicans are in a “mindless march to austerity,” by focusing on the budget deficit rather than the deficit that most Americans say must be closed—the jobs deficit. The Republican budget, authored by Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.), would put the nation on “a course of radical disinvestment and decline.”
Smart countries do not just turn a chainsaw on themselves. Instead of the current slash-and-burn approach, which is being sold through fear and fatalism, we need an approach that reflects the hopes and aspirations of the American people.
Harkin points to tens of millions of jobs created by visionary leadership and government investment in the nation’s highway system, space exploration and research. For example, the federal government’s $3.8 billion in the human genome project, between 1988 and 2003, translated into $796 billion in economic output and, in 2010 alone, supported 310,000 jobs.
Investments to bring the U.S. infrastructure of roads, highways, transits systems, schools and the power grid into the 21st century would “rapidly create millions of private sector-jobs, especially in the hard-hit construction industry, while modernizing the arteries and veins of commerce.”
There can be no economic recovery and no return to fiscal balance without the recovery of the middle class. This means investing in education, innovation, and infrastructure—creating a world-class workforce. And it means restoring a level playing field, with fair taxation, vibrant unions and a strong ladder of opportunity to give every American access to the middle class.
Click here for the full column.
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15 Comments
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Well, this is a mis-nomer because what is really happening more than “standing in the way of job creation” is the promotion and supporting of GLOBALIZATION to displace domestic economies around the world. This is the biggest problem, but certainly, job creation is going to be abhored and shunned by the Reugnicans because that would be anti-Globalization… they cannot create more domestic jobs without attacking Globalization !!!! It is just impossible!
Oh… and kudos to my state’s US senator!!!! Great use of words! And although state government is out of Senator Harkin’s jurisdiction, I wish he could assist in bringing our State of Iowa to task for hiring out-of-state workers to work on the State-owned University of Iowa’s medical buildings!!!! If there are federal funds to that project, I wish Senator Harkin could do something to GARNISH the funding if Iowa does not replace those out-of-state workers with IOWANS !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! This is no different in effect than illegal trespassers from foreign countries coming in and taking our domestic jobs, and this PROVES how that illegal alien trespassing worker-commerce effects our employment economy — but this time using US workers from out-of-state IN PLACE OF… NOT IN ADDITION TO… DOMESTIC WORKERS AND NOT AS SUPPLEMENTARY LABOR BUT ENTIRELY AS REPLACEMENT LABOR !!!!!!
Any more questions about how labor is used and exploited to punish domestic labor ?????
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Ofcourse the Republicans are on a mindless march…they’re DC based Republicans…what an obvious statement. You don’t get angry at a pit bull when it bites…it’s what they do.
Our problem is the Great Betrayer, Barak Obama. His jobs program will be modelled in great part on Georgia Works. The Georgia based so called “jobs program” that entices for a 250 dollar one time bonus to go work off their unemployment checks with companies that might, MIGHT, want to hire them. So far they have had a 15 percent success rate. Meanwhile, the other 85% of business get a year or so of free labor.
So cut the BS the problem is Obama and the cowardice of most of our Democratic Congressmen. You want jobs? It’s easy. Stop the bailout of Wall Street and the City of London and pass HR 1489 which calls for re-instating Glass-Steagall. But to do that Labor must do what Trumka a couple of months ago, said they would do. Stop carrying water for Obama and the Democratic Party.
Chameleon
Evil rises with its calamitous heinous deception‘s. It seeks the divisions of factions. Disseminate order and unity. History has of abundant displays of its nature. It takes the loyal patriot’s ideologies as easily as the mythological legends and sagas, to prostate deceptions upon and within them. Projecting the ambiguities of evil upon and within them, for you to be vanquished.
Ennoble one’s of compassion, love and unity of social discourse are to be degraded as dysfunctional fundamentals. Divisions of prejudice, manifest, agendas of chaos. Subjugation to the order of chaos is the destiny. Compassion, love and social unity trodden under foot.
The order is rapidly changing. If the time to you are worth savings, then gather up your compassion’s of life. Observe the waters are rising and the enmities will sink like a stone.
Come writers and critics throughout, the land who prophetesses with your pen, gather round now for the chance will soon be gone, for the wheel is still in spin and there’s no telling who it will be naming. Those that stall will be those that will be grieving, as the storm that is raging, engages us all. It will soon shake our windows and rattle our walls. Don’t criticize what you don’t understand, for the old order is rapidly fading. Please get out of the new way if you can’t lend a hand. For the times are a changing. The lines have been drawn.
Hey there Bernie010, you might at least have given credit to Bob Dylan since about half of what you wrote is word for word from his song “The Times They Are A-Changing.”
what many of us feel that created a short fall in jobs for all american wroking families was obama care and was a real job killers to us all with all its regulations ! why do we keep pointing there fingers to the gop .. the fault lies with the progressive socialist democarts .. can they get it right here !
Yes I wish all Americans were all good Democrats, I said good. Harkin is a good Democrat in a very tough state. I wish all hard working Americans were organized. I wish the bosses did not have the right to fire whom ever they please. I wish greed was gone. I wish, I wish. But the fact is it is not that way in America. So by bashing this President makes no sence. Here is a President that has said ” I like unions ” I can’t remember a President that came out and said that sence FDR. Yes I and many others think he should have stood toe to toe with the Tea-Party and not given and one inch. But I don’t know if a democracy works that way. I know one thing and I have said it before Unions are not that well supported in America. You can not expect the President to make every thing good for the American worker, when the American worker does not want every thing good for the American worker!!
Again, clarity is necessary. It’s not the progressive socialist Democrats. It’s not The Tea Party. It’s Wall Street and the City of London. They run Obama; they run the Republican and Democratic leadership.
The problem with most others, i.e. Liberal, progressive or any other political persuasion Congressman or Senator is that THEY ARE JUST PLAIN COWARDS. They will not stand up for what is right and necessary. They look for escape roots.
40 Congressmen and women have cosponsored a bill to police Wall Street by re-instating Glass-Steagall, the 1933 Act which regulated banking till 1998, when the Republican congress repealled it, with the backing of most Democrats. This would put the nation right back on track, breaking the back of Wall Street.
Anyone who says, “Well, it’s more complicated than that…” is just plain LYING. It’s not the only thing that needs to be done, certainly, but it is the essential first step…after we dump that class traitor Barak Obama.
The idea that Obama, who was sponsored by George Soros, the world’s leading, leading speculator(Soros is a British citizen, not an American) works for anyone but Wall Street and the City of London..is just plaing childish. He won the presidency because any Democrat was going to beat any Republican; it’s that simple.
So Wall Street and London made sure we got Obama.
So, if we want Jobs Dump Obama and Get Glass-Steagall.
Bring back the WPA, that’ll create jobs. If I don’t get hired soon, I might have to resort to growing and stealing.
With all due respect to Mr. Harkin, the GOP does not have a monopoly on betraying the working people of this country. Just consider what Mr. Obama did with the deficit commission. By appointing a commission tasked with finding ways to cut the deficit he told the world “Yes. The GOP is right. The deficit, not unemployment, is the most important economic issue we face.” He caves to the whinging wingnuts in Congress and helps set up this SuperCongress, staffed with industry lobbyists and people committed to “new taxes over my dead body”
Then and only then, when the budget is tied up tighter than a virgin’s BLEEP does he give his nice sounding speech about job creation? But what does he propose to do? More tax cuts! When we can’t tax cut our way into prosperity. And the banksters with the money aren’t spending or lending, because there isn’t a demand for the things they might make.
With politicians making so much noise about Social Security;s insolvency, why in the hell does he propose further cuts in the Social Security (AKA payroll) tax anyway?
As a lifelong Democrat, and former chair of our county Democratic Party, I hate to say this, but
the Democratic Party is not our ally. It is part of the problem.
don’t think everyone will not be affected by fall of this great nation, as they say we are all in this together. you know the old saying trickle down affect also. best of luck to all of us.
I think it’s time that we are going to have to get really brave and get ready to take seat in Senate and House ourselves because all these politicians are being payed off by the rich guys to work in favor of them. We must have ALL OF THEM RECALLED! They have screwed us over real good and rotten and I think they should be burned at the stake for conspiring against us american working folks!! It is time to STONE any republican from who’s mouth comes the word FREE ENTERPRISE!
It is wrong to say that the Republicans and Democrats have “betrayed” the working class. Only working class parties, like, say, the British Labor Party, or the NDP in Canada, can betray the working class, because they are the only parties declaring the intention to represent the working class. The Democratic and Republican parties claim to represent ‘the people’, ‘the nation’, etc, because they do not want to say that “we are put here by the superrich to represent their interests against the working majority.” (There are still some tiny monarchist parties in Europe, parties dedicated to returning to the divine rule of kings. They are very small, because they say openly who they represent, and no one wants to be ruled by royalty.) Thus, the Ds and Rs claim to represent ‘the people’ while enriching our royalty, the rich and famous, at everyone else’s expense.
To say that they betray us is to reveal a childish naivete. It is generally acknowledged here that the rich own these parties, so we should know what they are going to do and not feel ‘betrayed’ when they do it. The ones who are betraying us are the union ‘leaders’ who keep telling us to vote, every election, for the same parties that are dedicated to our destruction.
I find it interesting that people think Barak Obama makes bills, amendment and set policy. The House of Representatives make bills, amendments, laws and set the direction of the US. The President can only suggest policy and direction, but he can approve or veto bills that come before him and in emergency take action. The GOP is in control of the House of Representative. The Democratic have a slight majority in C
Senate. Congress mainly amendment, approves funding and can kill bills If the bill does not get out of the house and senate the president has nothing to sign. If you want change vote out the house of Representatives. They are the road block to recovery, not the President. The tea party was funded by the rich and corporate America.
The lay off will continue until the employment picks up or the same thing as the layoff will continue until the economy pickup.
Only government can doe deficit spending.
Two times in the history of the US has 1% owned 20% of the wealth 1929 and 2008+. If you get to 30-40% you are in third world countries , rich and poor. Deficit is not the problem, it is where you spend it and who you should get it from.
Labor creates the wealth and therefore share in it. Wall street does not create wealth it adds cost to it.
Unions came about from the disparity in wealth in the 1920s – 40s They were the equalizer of wealth and living condition, but union are on the decline from 20%+ to around 10% now.
To blame unions and the president is unfounded. Then corporation pay their CEO more than they pay taxes. The American people looses.
Outsourcing and privatization is one and the same. I pay less when it is ran by the government and just as effective, than by a corporation or a business. Corporation are for profit CEO, CFO and stock holders. You can out source your self out of business and that is what this country and other are doing. Many a business have gone under from out sourcing and take overs.