Barack Obama proposes 2.5 million jobs
Says time is now to keep crisis at bay
By Associated Press and Reuters
Sunday, November 23, 2008 - Added 21h ago
WASHINGTON - President-elect Barack Obama yesterday promoted a sweeping infrastructure investment plan he said would create 2.5 million jobs by rebuilding roads and bridges and modernizing schools.
?These aren?t just steps to pull ourselves out of this immediate crisis. These are the long-term investments in our economic future that have been ignored for far too long,? Obama said in the weekly Democratic radio address.
?We?ll put people back to work rebuilding our crumbling roads and bridges, modernizing schools that are failing our children and building wind farms and solar panels,? Obama said. He also made a commitment to fuel-efficient cars and alternative energy technologies.
The goal is to get the two-year plan - ?big enough to meet the challenges we face,? he said - quickly through Congress after Obama takes office and create those new jobs by January 2011.
The speech - which came in the wake of centrist appointments to Obama?s Cabinet, including New York Federal Reserve President Timothy Geithner as Treasury secretary - signaled anything but a middle-of-road approach on economic stimulus.
Obama called in October for a $175 billion stimulus measure, but yesterday?s remarks suggested he was ready to push for a much larger package.
The top Republican in the House of Representatives warned against increasing government spending.
?The time for endless and aimless Washington spending has passed,? U.S. Rep. John Boehner said in a statement, adding he was willing to work with Obama on an economic recovery bill.
Obama said recently the United States should not worry about its budget deficit for the next two years as it worked to prevent a deep recession.
?If we don?t act swiftly and boldly, most experts now believe that we could lose millions of jobs next year,? Obama said, giving a bleak assessment of the economy in his most detailed comments on the subject since winning the election. ?We now risk falling into a deflationary spiral that could increase our massive debt even further.?
He said it will take support from Democrats and Republicans to pass the economic plan. ?I?ll be welcome to ideas and suggestions from both sides of the aisle,? he said. ?But what is not negotiable is the need for immediate action.?
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said Democrats will back ?a substantial economic recovery package, like the one President-elect Obama discussed this morning, that creates good-paying jobs here in America and stabilizes a volatile market.?
? Copyright 2008 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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Says time is now to keep crisis at bay
By Associated Press and Reuters
Sunday, November 23, 2008 - Added 21h ago
WASHINGTON - President-elect Barack Obama yesterday promoted a sweeping infrastructure investment plan he said would create 2.5 million jobs by rebuilding roads and bridges and modernizing schools.
?These aren?t just steps to pull ourselves out of this immediate crisis. These are the long-term investments in our economic future that have been ignored for far too long,? Obama said in the weekly Democratic radio address.
?We?ll put people back to work rebuilding our crumbling roads and bridges, modernizing schools that are failing our children and building wind farms and solar panels,? Obama said. He also made a commitment to fuel-efficient cars and alternative energy technologies.
The goal is to get the two-year plan - ?big enough to meet the challenges we face,? he said - quickly through Congress after Obama takes office and create those new jobs by January 2011.
The speech - which came in the wake of centrist appointments to Obama?s Cabinet, including New York Federal Reserve President Timothy Geithner as Treasury secretary - signaled anything but a middle-of-road approach on economic stimulus.
Obama called in October for a $175 billion stimulus measure, but yesterday?s remarks suggested he was ready to push for a much larger package.
The top Republican in the House of Representatives warned against increasing government spending.
?The time for endless and aimless Washington spending has passed,? U.S. Rep. John Boehner said in a statement, adding he was willing to work with Obama on an economic recovery bill.
Obama said recently the United States should not worry about its budget deficit for the next two years as it worked to prevent a deep recession.
?If we don?t act swiftly and boldly, most experts now believe that we could lose millions of jobs next year,? Obama said, giving a bleak assessment of the economy in his most detailed comments on the subject since winning the election. ?We now risk falling into a deflationary spiral that could increase our massive debt even further.?
He said it will take support from Democrats and Republicans to pass the economic plan. ?I?ll be welcome to ideas and suggestions from both sides of the aisle,? he said. ?But what is not negotiable is the need for immediate action.?
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said Democrats will back ?a substantial economic recovery package, like the one President-elect Obama discussed this morning, that creates good-paying jobs here in America and stabilizes a volatile market.?
? Copyright 2008 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
(2) Comments | Post / Read Comments
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Obama adviser issues warning to automakers
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