White House Faces Pressure on Jobs

[tonysam]

Source: CBS News, Washington Post

Eight months after enacting a massive economic stimulus package, the Obama administration is facing rising pressure from some congressional Democrats to move more aggressively to jump-start the moribund job market and try to spur a housing recovery.

For the lawmakers, the imperative is clear: to get the job market back on track before midterm congressional elections in November 2010. While mainstream economists credit the $787 billion stimulus package passed in February for helping stabilize the economy, the unemployment rate reached 9.8 percent in September and is widely forecast to keep rising in the coming months.

But the White House, which is juggling priorities -- including a health-care overhaul, big changes to financial regulation and a proposal to combat global warming -- is reluctant to take on another far-reaching task. And in a time of large budget deficits, administration officials are particularly eager not to do anything that would be characterized as another stimulus act or tagged as wasteful spending.

Read more: http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2009/10/09/politics/washingtonpost/main5374320.shtml

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Further down the article it says it may be next week when the Senate votes on extending unemployment insurance benefits. My God, what's wrong with these people who supposedly represent us?

Congress piddles while the USA burns.

[ixion]

1. On the near-term, there needs to be jobs

all the other things -- healthcare, finance, and even global warming -- are long term issues that need dealing with, but are not as critical as getting people working again.

Green jobs, anyone?

[OhioChick]

2. You're absolutely right. One needs a job, first. n/t

[Deja Q]

17. Middle class jobs. not entry level or fast food crap where people with college degrees are deemed

"overqualified".

[fujiyama]

3. Health care as an issue can't wait anymore

and the financial sector helped lead us to the mess we're in right now. If we don't address those immediately, we'll be back right where we are. Global warming is something that will require constant work (and obviously an increased effort to combat).

Of course getting people to work is vitally important, and obviously more relevant as an indicator of the health of the economy than the stock market or anything else. But creating jobs in the private sector is not something that can be done by a magic wand. It takes a long time to release the funds to where you want it to go and make sure people aren't defrauding the government. I'd be fine with the government taking a greater role (especially in infrastructure spending - I'd like to see an extensive high speed rail system built), but that is politically very difficult. Most of the money will be subcontracted.

No quick fixes.

[tonysam]

6. Jobs are far more important

Health insurance is a luxury if you have little or no income in which to pay the rent or for food.

[fasttense]

4. If they don't get people back to work it's going to be very difficult

in the upcoming election.

[tclambert]

5. I don't care if we start building pyramids, we need jobs!

[elocs]

7. Having been out of work when Obama took office

I thought that he would begin something like FDR's WPA to put Americans back to work doing things that needed to be done in this country. A job is the kind of hope that millions of Americans need. A big problem with unemployment, especially for men, is that in our society we have been socialized to measure our self-worth by our job, by bringing home a paycheck. In fact, we tend to describe who we are by what we do for a living. Once we are working again, even with a government job where we are doing something useful, it relieves that sense of hopelessness and worthlessness.

[Jeep789]

12. I am still hoping he will see the light

I loved FDR's Second Bill of Rights that included a right to a job. Why don't we implement a WPA type solution that works on energy solutions and rebuilding our sorely neglected infrastructure? Put everyone that wants to work to work.

[RDillon]

8. It is...

A pretty well-known fact that the jobs are the last thing to recover after a recession. I think we just need to be a little more patient, and our leaders need to keep reminding folks that without Bush crashing the economy the jobs would not have been lost in the first place.

[defendandprotect]

9. Keep this one kicked -- jobs, jobs, jobs, jobs --

[OhioChick]

10. You're right.

:kick:

[defendandprotect]

13. k i c k

[Haole Girl]

11. k&r

:kick:

[seminal]

14. We need patience. Recovery takes time

Jobs are the last thing in a recovery. GDP growth comes first and has improved.

[Haole Girl]

15. Are jobs the last thing?

I wasn't aware of that fact.

[mule_train]

16. just curious, but why do we still have so many guest workers nt

[Deja Q]

18. self-del

[OhioChick]

19. For jobs Americans won't do

:sarcasm: