Obama says he's looking at any way to create jobs

[Peacetrain]

In the end, the thing that will bring jobs back the most, is the private sector. But we have such a need in our public sector for rebuilding our infrastructure, that job creation through government could and can boost private sector production .. Thinking of things like materials needed to make repairs of the public sector etc.


______________________________________________________________________________________________
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20091014/ap_on_go_pr_wh/us_obama_stimulus
AP


SPRINGFIELD, Va. – Standing at the site of a highway project funded by his massive economic stimulus plan, President Barack Obama said Wednesday he is committed to exploring all avenues to create jobs.

"Middle-class Americans are the ones who built this country," Obama said. "They deserve leaders in Washington who are willing to work as hard as they work."

Obama spoke after touring a highway construction site in the Virginia suburbs outside Washington. The Fairfax County Parkway Extension project is the state's largest stimulus-funded project. When completed, it will connect both ends of Fairfax County.

Obama first visited the project in February, when work was just beginning. He said the progress that's been made since then is just one example of the work that's being done to turn the economy around.

"We are moving in the right direction," he said.

[Peacetrain]

1. Unreccing for jobs for Americans.. not good..

or is it just my fan club.. :rofl:

[HamdenRice]

3. They're unrecing because it's news that not consistent with "same as Bush"

can't have facts puncturing that fantasy.

rec'd.

[JuniperLea]

10. Bingo...

I'm sure they tap their foot waiting for the microwave too.

I'm sick of the idiots myself. If "nothing's been done" a year from now, I'll be whining too. Until then, far too many here need to take a damn chill pill.

[Cha]

30. "Tap their foot waiting for the microwave"!

That's funny:D..I don't even have one.

[JuniperLea]

33. It takes my tea kettle the same amount of time to boil on the stovetop...

As it does to heat four cups of water in the microwave. Cheaper on the stove too. Then there's the cute whistle:)

People in a rush miss so much:)

[Peacetrain]

11. I thought it was just me for a second..

;)

[Clio the Leo]

22. And also because they "hate America." NT

[sendero]

38. It's justlike Bush..

... a bunch of talk to be followed by no or negative action.

[Deja Q]

46. Some peoples' comments here are interesting:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/10/16/adam-storch-sec-hires-exg_n_323526.html

"Judge me by the people I surround myself with"

The inexperienced
The corrupt
The banks
Wall Street
Insurance companies
Lobbyists

"Change we can believe in"

Thanks to those who voted for the chiaobama
And let's not forget

Tax Cheats Geithner, Rangel, Daschle
Comm unists Van Jones
Marxists Valerie Jarret
Pedophiles Jennings

Terrific!

Now, recent clichés can be recycled and put to good use:

"He's brilliant."

"I trust him."

"He's a chess master."

"Give him more time."

What's the big headline for?

GOLDMAN EX-EXECS ARE ALL OVER THIS ADMINISTRATION!!!

Is this called CHANGE??????

SEEMS BUSH & OBAMA are two sides of the same coin!!!!

Copied, in order, from responders:
WasAGr8State
anothermcintosh
norbitjr


HuffPo needs a little DU love, right now...

[JNelson6563]

58. +1

[olegramps]

52. Could a suggest a tariff on out-sources products?

Of course the Republicans convinced the working class this was unacceptable along with the working class buying their propaganda that unions were bad for them and they would be well taken care of. The working class was taken for a ride with their jobs out-sourced, their pensions cut and health insurance canceled. Talk about drinking the cool aid.

[Kurt_and_Hunter]

2. Please tell me this headline is from six months ago

[Peacetrain]

4. Let me see.. six months ago.. the cabinet officers were not even set up yet

[Kurt_and_Hunter]

5. And an obviously job shy stimulus bill had just passed w/ fanfare

And the administration (treasury) was saying the stimulus was adequate to keep unemployment below 8% despite the fact that pretty much every left-leaning economist outside the administration was saying that was a fantasy.

And I was spamming DU with my asinine opinion that the stimulus was weak and that unemployment would go through 8% without a backward glance.

Good times.

[Peacetrain]

7. Honest to GOD!! if that money had went out full tilt all at one time

with out the administration checking to make sure what it was going to was in place (a lot of the money that went out before hand, kept people from losing their jobs) people would be beside themselves with anger over money being squandered the way the republicans did it.

You cannot have it both ways my friend.

[Kurt_and_Hunter]

15. I always said it was going to be too slow.

So the fact that is is, in fact, too slow is not a refutation of my view.

People didn't want to do direct demand-side stimulus and preferred alternatives that would take a long time to implement.

That was the call that was made.

Wasn't my call.

[JuniperLea]

17. How long do you think it should take?

Huh?

[mkultra]

40. Thankfully, the rfutation of your point of view will not be seen

The reasoning was that doing it your way would wreck the economy and the debt. Doing it right takes time. This is made very clear. Proving you wrong would require trying it and wrecking the economy.

[Kurt_and_Hunter]

55. That "reasoning" only came from wing-nuts

No progressive or even main-stream econimist... none, zero, nada... said that speedy demand-side stimulus would wreck the economy.

None.

Only wing-nut faux-conimists said such things.

So you are either 1) a wing-nut (unlikely) or 2) just talking to say something without thinking it through.

[JuniperLea]

16. Barack "Instant" Obama!

Faster than a microwave! Able to wipe aways disgusting 8 year old Bush stains in under 10 months! Mr. Clean has nothing on him!

The stupid is really freaking me out... I'm really tired of it.

[Peacetrain]

18. Now that is funny.. Barack "Instant" Oatmeal..

I am going to borrow that one :hi:

[JuniperLea]

21. I always share with you, Sweetie!

:hi:

Now if we can only get Swampy to put Obama's face on the Quaker, we're in business!

:rofl:

[Peacetrain]

24. Old Swampy!

I just ran into the kitchen to get a glass of milk (twitter moment here).. flipped channels... and my hand to GOD June..

On Ed, he said if jobs don't improve the democrats will not win.. that it was not health care..(remember last month, if health care did not pass the democrats would not win in 2012..and I love Ed)

Flipped it over to CNN.. and the lead story for later.. Will Biden be quitting because of Afghanistan or something to that effect..

AYYY YII YII .. the media is working overtime to move those goal posts as fast as they can to keep people tuned in I think

[JuniperLea]

25. Another picture project for Swampy...

Goal posts attached to little cars to move them about.

Yeah, the RW is apoplectic... :rofl:

I have a feeling Biden is going to have a few choice words... but will we hear them?

[Peacetrain]

27. Goalposts on a volkswagon with 28 clowns jumping out and running around

;)

Joe might let loose on a few of them.

He and Obama have become the perfect team. This is not my observation, but I heard it.. they are the perfect Good Cop, Bad Cop.. with Joe as the enforcer!

[JuniperLea]

13. As I recall...

The administration said 9%... and it's been a scant 10 months.

Damn them for not posting those job openings before approving the stimulus!

:eyes:

Hint: Patience is a virtue.

Bush needed 8 years to fuck us over. What makes you think Obama should have cleaned up the whole fucking mess in 10 months?

:eyes:

I'm truly sick of the stupid. Truly.

[Lorien]

63. You question Obama in GD: Presidential teenbeat?

:popcorn:

[brentspeak]

6. 1) Shut the door on cheap imports from nations that shut their doors to our exports

2) Get on the stick with regards to making the U.S. the leader in green technology. So far, Obama has done a lot of talking, not much walking on the issue. China is already running away in the field.

3) Get on the stump and push for a retroactive credit card interest rate cap of 14%. Obama shouldn't be shocked and surprised to discover that consumers aren't buying things anymore when they're too busy paying down debt.

4) Push for single-payer health care, a vastly less expensive way for businesses to pay for their employees' health care than any private insurance plan.

[Peacetrain]

9. You are kidding me right?...you forgot your sarcasm thingy?..

The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) contains $787 billion of investments and tax cuts. Of this sum over $70 billion is directed to green activities including increasing energy efficiency, electricity grid modernization, renewal energy, mass transit and high-speed rail, and environmental cleanup.

There is also over $7 billion to expand broadband in rural areas. These provisions can be considered as green measures as they would enable more telework, distance learning, e-commerce, and telemedicine. Virtual travel uses less energy, alternatives to driving and taking transit, which consume more energy, leads to greater amounts of pollutants and consume larger areas of greenspace.

The Sierra Club’s Allegheny Group, Pennsylvania Chapter has published most of the green extracts of ARRA on its web site. The highlights include:

* $4.5 billion for the repair of federal buildings to increase energy efficiency using green technology

* $11 billion for smart-grid related activities, including work to modernize the electric grid and smart grid grants

* $6.3 billion for energy efficiency and conservation grants

* $5 billion for the Weatherization Assistance Program

* $2.5 billion for energy efficiency and renewable energy research

* $2 billion in grant funding for the manufacturing of advanced battery systems and components and vehicle batteries produced in the U.S.

* $6 billion for new loan guarantees aimed at standard renewable projects such as wind or solar projects and for electricity transmission projects

* $1 billion for energy efficiency programs including alternative fuel trucks and buses, transportation charging infrastructure, and smart and energy efficient appliances

* $8.4 billion for public transportation

* $9.3 billion for investments in rail transportation, including Amtrak and high-speed rail

* $4 billion to the public housing capital fund to enable local public housing agencies to address a $32 billion backlog in capital needs, especially those improving energy efficiency

* $6 billion to cleaning up former weapon production and energy research sites

* $1.38 billion to support $3.8 billion in loans and grants for needed water and waste disposal facilities in rural areas

Edit to add link http://green.tmcnet.com/topics/green/articles/50701-analysis-president-obamas-new-green-stimulus-law.htm

[brentspeak]

19. Obama isn't tackling the green tech imports from China nearly enough

http://your4state.com/content/fulltext/?cid=82502

Which brings up another criticism: that the United States is losing its competitive advantage in green energy manufacturing, especially to China, which has admitted selling solar panels here below cost to gain market share.

The United States has imposed a 2.5 percent tariff on imported solar panels.

The U.S. Business & Industry Council, which represents American manufacturers, says that's not a big enough tariff to prevent China or other countries from dumping solar panels on the U.S. market.

What good is any investment in U.S. green technology when China can simply flood our market with their cheap products?

[mkultra]

41. thank god your not in charge.

Seems like we have to protect ourselves from wingnuts on both sides.

1 - tradewar which we would lose

2 - doesn't help jobs at all.

3 - Would, thankfully, never pass. Americans love choice. Public Option is the only plausible alternative.


Thanks for trying though.

[brentspeak]

42. I can see why stooges and tools might not like a single-payer system

After reading your useless post, I can understand that. But most Americans would leap at it.

Also, since China doesn't allow most American imports, can't be much of a "tradewar", would there? A child could understand that. How come you can't?

Finally, how much consumer spending can be done when "consumers" are paying off credit cards? That was the point in my earlier post, which seemed to sail right over your head.

[mkultra]

44. maybe your just uninformed

60% of Chinese companies that trade with the US are owned by foreign companies, most of the are American. This ignores the amount of US debt and dollar that china owns. They could easily flood the market and kill our value which would tank our economy.

I'm sorry but the world is just a more complicated place than you understand it to be.

[pampango]

47. What American imports does China not allow? They are the third biggest importer of American stuff

after Canada and Mexico. China imports more from us than Japan does or Germany, England or any other country except for our two neighbors.

[brentspeak]

48. Please describe, exactly, what they import, and the source for your information

By "imports", I mean goods manufactured here, in the United States, and then sent overseas to China. I do NOT mean goods manufactured WITHIN China by American companies using Chinese workers and then sold within China -- which is the actual situation.

[branders seine]

51. you're arguing with fanatics.

Getting them to recognize reality is like trying to convince the religious nut at your door on Saturday morning that there is no god.

[yourout]

8. Easy....kill Nafta, Cafta, Gat...raise the top rate back to 74% with incentives....

to reinvest. Change the rules so companys can not be bought with borrowed money and then have the debt dumped on the company.
Offer tax breaks for every payroll addition up a certain level on each addition to prevent offering Junior a $200k research position.

[Orsino]

34. This.

Take back the megacorps' American fiefdoms.

[uponit7771]

12. Obama should tell the truth, the Bush admin left the economy in worst shape than could be imagined

[Peacetrain]

14. There are times I wish he would toot his own horn more...

But that is not his style..

[kenny blankenship]

26. I will agree with that. But I expect that the incoming administration feared

making its job tougher by telling the people how much trouble we were in. (Let's not panic anybody - if they KNOW what could happen, then things will be made even worse by their reaction) But now they can't level with us without looking like they're trying to blame it all on their predecessors. Rock<--->Hardplace

[Peacetrain]

28. Good point!

[girl gone mad]

20. Adding to the public debt and printing currency is simply not..

a viable long term solution. Ask Japan.

[Kurt_and_Hunter]

23. Are you suggesting some fiscal austerity would have turned it around for them?

The lesson from Japan is that they didn't print enough money and didn't add enough to the debt.

They should have taken the hit bigger and faster rather than being "responsible" in dragging it out forever, one little stimulus plan after another.

Worst of both worlds. Kind of like Bill Bennett losing $3 million playing slot machines.

[girl gone mad]

32. That's a really crazy lesson to take from Japan.

Try as they might, they never stopped the deflation. Their economy has spent the last two decades in stagnation, despite spending hundreds of billions to prop up zombie banks and build bridges to nowhere.

Japan would have been better off allowing the deflation to happen quickly, putting the banks down gracefully and investing responsibly in the people.

Your solution involves saddling future generations with debt at 400% GDP rather than 200%? How much spending do you think would be enough?

[jeanpalmer]

35. I don't think that's the lesson from Japan

The final outcome in Japan is still unknown. It's hard to learn a lesson from something they didn't try. But it is possible to draw conclusions from what they did try -- running up a huge public debt. And that lesson is that there's no indication that it works. As it is, they have a monstrous public debt, 1.5 times GDP, from all deficits they have run up.

[Dappleganger]

29. If he doesn't bring real jobs during this term

there's no way I'd vote for him again.

Democrats have to be about bringing jobs BACK to the US, REAL ones with a living wage!

[nostalgicaboutmyfutr]

31. Just legalize marijuana....EOM

[mayya]

64. politicians and the legal system profit yoo much from prohibition

You are right about it helping the economy. But politicians, police, courts, prisons, drug gangs and do-gooders all profit from prohibition. They can keep public opinion against legalization.

The only way to do it is for Obama to say this is a States' Rights issue and legalize it federally on the State Rights principle. Then he is not for legalization, just for letting the people of the states decide for themselves. Power to the People, right on!

[jeanpalmer]

36. He's creating government jobs

If he were serious about job creation, he would ask "why have we lost so many jobs?" He would identify why that has occured. For example, 3 million jobs have been shipped overseas through unfair "free trade." Does he want to know that? I doubt it. Because that would require him to do something. Same with legal and illegal immigrants taking jobs that would otherwise go to US citizens. Is he willing to face up to that issue? Apparently not. It's easier to to create government sponsored jobs and ignore the fundamental problem.

[eridani]

37. Pass single payer health care. That will be good for 1.4 million jobs n/t

[and-justice-for-all]

39. Obama gave the stimulous funds to states & private agencies

so they could create the jobs, you might to ask those who took the funds where the hell the money went if they are no creating jobs.

I do not think it is Obama's responsibility to create jobs for us.

[Romulox]

43. Well, giving trillions to Wall Street crooks didn't work. So...next? nt

[Skittles]

45. how about keeping the ones we have?

no you're not moving in the right direction

[Enrique]

49. need another stimulus

I believed Krugman that the first one wasn't big enough. Repeal the Bush tax cuts now to pay for it.

[branders seine]

50. maybe he could give the banks another trillion or two.

that really worked the first few times.


by the time he got done watering down the small part of his previous attempt that was actual stimulus, the jobs it created have cost over half a million buck each. Not very efficient.

Leave out the tax cuts and tax credits and all that Wall Street and republican bullshit; spend some dough on some actual job creation.

[depakid]

53. Dean Baker's had numerous policy prescriptions

Unfortunately, the center right cabal in this adminstration simply doesn't want to listen or commit.

[Name removed]

54. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Garam_Masala]

56. NEW Job creation is really simple!!

3 out of 4 new jobs are created by small businesses! So where should the
money be spent to get most bang for the buck? Bingo! Small businesses!!!!

Instead where has been most of the tax payer money spent?
On bailing out BIG corporations such as GM, AIG, Bank of America etc.
Those big corporations are bloated and corrupt. Let them wither on the vine
if they can't operate efficiently.

What President Obama and his economic team should be doing is helping
small businesses via accelerated depreciation of capital goods, tax credit
for hiring and training new employees, tax reduction on profits under $5
million so the business can invest that money in expansion, and tax credit
for covering employees health insurance. Jobs will explode if this is done.
And they will be LONG LASTING jobs, not a ONE time project jobs.

Forget also spending money on 1 time work projects since that money has to
be borrowed from China and we end up with the loan+interest for ever since
there is no surplus to pay off any loans. They just repaved my street which
was unnecessary since there was not a single pot hole anywhere. But the sign
said "stimulus money at work". Yeah right, a ONE time work project and money
owed to China for ever! So sad!!

[Garam_Masala]

57. and one more thing....

must extend unemployment benefits only to those who were laid off,
not to those who quit on their own.

[JNelson6563]

59. Valid points.

:toast:

[Manifestor_of_Light]

61. We need a Works Progress Administration.

There were infrastructure divisions -- Boulder Dam, TVA, courthouses all over the country, post offices, and arts divisions. They put people to work making art - murals in public buildings, writing music, writing plays, sending people from the Smithsonian (Alan Lomax)out to record ethnic music from former slaves, write down their oral history, etc.

The Federal Art Project was one of the divisions of the W.P.A. created under Federal Project One. President Franklin D. Roosevelt had made several attempts prior to the F.A.P. to provide employment for artists on relief, namely the Public Works of Art Project (P.W.A.P.) which operated from 1933 to 1934 and the Treasury Department Section of Painting and Sculpture which was created in 1934 after the demise of the P.W.A.P. However, it was the F.A.P. which provided the widest reach, creating over 5,000 jobs for artists and producing over 225,000 works of art for the American people.

We also need research and development on the level of the Superconducting Supercollider. Except now it's all at CERN in Switzerland.

[FES2009]

60. looking for ways to create jobs

...Thats good that he is looking for ways to create jobs, let me know when he finds them.

[Lorien]

62. Um, what ever happened to those green jobs and high speed rail?

Or is blowing up more mountains for the joke that is "clean coal" more important right now?

[eridani]

65. I'll believe that when he stops trying to destroy discretionary income

--by mandating the purchase of private health insurance.