Under the gun on jobs, Obama tells Congress to pass major transportation bill
In a run-up to his much-anticipated jobs speech next Thursday, President Obama is banging the drum for legislation that would save thousands 鈥� perhaps millions 鈥� of jobs around the country right now.
It鈥檚 the Surface Transportation Bill, which funds construction of roads, bridges, mass transit systems, and other infrastructure projects with gasoline taxes. Without congressional action extending the bill鈥檚 authority, such funding would halt at the end of September. Even before that, the law authorizing aviation ticket taxes to pay for airport construction expires on September 16.
鈥淩ight away, over 4,000 workers would be furloughed without pay,鈥� in his weekly radio and Internet address Saturday. 鈥淚f it鈥檚 delayed for just 10 days, we will lose nearly $1 billion in highway funding that we can never get back. And if we wait even longer, almost 1 million workers could be in danger of losing their jobs over the next year.鈥�
RECOMMENDED: 'Zero job' economy: 11 ways Washington can fix it
鈥淭hose are serious consequences, and the pain will be felt all across the country,鈥� he warned. 鈥淚n Virginia, 19,000 jobs are at risk. In Minnesota, more than 12,000. And in Florida, over 35,000 people could be out of work if Congress doesn鈥檛 act.鈥�
Obama鈥檚 effort here comes as the nation鈥檚 employment picture remains grim 鈥� 9.1 percent unemployment and no net gain in jobs in August. It could be the deciding issue in next year鈥檚 presidential race, and how the public views his speech Thursday to a joint session of Congress may be crucial to his reelection bid.
But on funding for infrastructure projects, Obama has powerful allies.
AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka and Thomas Donohue, president of the US Chamber of Commerce 鈥� hardly political bedfellows 鈥� both are urging Congress to continue infrastructure funding.
On Friday, the bipartisan US Conference of Mayors issued 鈥淎 Common Sense Jobs Agenda.鈥�
鈥淚t is a matter of urgent necessity that Congress pass a clean extension of the current Transportation Bill 鈥� without policy and funding changes 鈥� and extend the gas tax to give Congress time to pass the larger reauthorization bill,鈥� mayors of the nation鈥檚 largest cities wrote. 鈥淚f such an extension is not signed by the President by September 30, the entire program will be suspended 鈥� causing the loss of 1.8 million jobs and doing irreparable harm to our economy. In this scenario, the Highway Trust Fund will lose $100 million dollars each day and the Trust Fund would completely run out of money early next year.鈥�
The impact of tropical storm Irene 鈥� hundreds of roads and bridges wiped out 鈥� gives added urgency to the issue.
For their part, Republican leaders say they鈥檙e for infrastructure funding too, although as usual the devil is in the details. And GOP leaders certainly don鈥檛 agree with Obama鈥檚 implication that 鈥減olitical gamesmanship鈥� on the part of Republican-led House members means the country could 鈥渞isk losing hundreds of thousands of jobs,鈥� as he said Saturday.
鈥淚n the interest of getting Americans back to work and moving vital transportation legislation, Republicans are committed to working with the President and Congressional Democrats,鈥� Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Chairman John L. Mica (R) of Florida said in a statement this week. 鈥淒uring their control, they neglected aviation legislation for more than four years and left major transportation legislation in the ditch for more than a year.鈥�
In the Saturday, Rep. Bob Goodlatte of Virginia stressed two things he said are needed to stimulate job growth: 鈥渆liminating burdensome mandates and regulations鈥� and passage of a Balanced Budget Amendment.
鈥淭丑颈蝉 Labor Day, America鈥檚 workers are right to ask where the jobs are,鈥� he said. 鈥淭he policies coming out of Washington aren鈥檛 getting it done. By focusing on removing barriers to job creation 鈥� and creating barriers to debt creation 鈥� we can get our economy back on track.鈥�
RECOMMENDED: 'Zero job' economy: 11 ways Washington can fix it
