Pelosi Remarks Urging Congress to Take Action Creating Jobs
Washington, D.C. - Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi, House Democrats, and United Steelworkers International President Leo Gerard held a press conference today highlighting the urgent need for Congress to take action on America's top priority--job creation. Aaron Patterson, who also spoke today, was joined by 25 of his fellow workers from an automotive plant in Bowling Green, Ohio that received notice only Friday of the plant's closure and that a bulk of the jobs would be shipped abroad. Today, House Republicans brought to the floor legislation directing House committees to conduct oversight--a function they already perform--and voted against allowing a jobs bill, the Build America Bonds to Create Jobs Now Act, to come to the floor for a vote. Below are the Leader's opening remarks as prepared for delivery and a transcript of the question and answer session:
Leader Pelosi's Opening Remarks as Prepared for Delivery:
"Good afternoon. I am pleased to stand before you with my colleagues: Congresswoman Loretta Sanchez; Congressman Gerry Connolly, the lead sponsor of the Build America Bonds to Create Jobs Now Act; Congressman John Carney, one of our newest members. Thank you, Leo Gerard, International President, United Steelworkers, for your leadership and tireless work on behalf of America's workers. Thank you, Aaron Patterson, President, USW Local Union 1152-L, in Bowling Green, Ohio; his plant is closing, and the bulk of the work is moving to Mexico. Thank you, leaders and workers from the Apollo Alliance and Transportation for America.
"Across the country, the American people are sending a clear message to Washington: our number one priority is creating jobs now.
"Democrats agree. We will continue to measure every effort by whether it creates jobs, strengthens the middle class, and reduces the deficit.
"Americans are demanding that we put jobs first; that we act to invest in our future and help our economy grow.
"To answer Americans' call - and that of governors, mayors, and businesses nationwide - we are proposing our own legislation: to invest in America's future through Build America Bonds.
"These bonds expired in December, and we must renew them now. They're an investment that works; they leverage public dollars to strengthen the private sector.
"This bill will accelerate construction by American workers in the private and public sectors. It will strengthen our economy by rebuilding America.
"It will mark a critical step forward in fulfilling President Obama's pledge ‘to out-innovate, out-educate, and out-build the rest of the world.' And it will enable us to make it in America - so America's families can make it in America.
"Following President Obama's State of the Union address - calling on us to invest in innovation, in rebuilding America, in jobs, and in our future - Democrats held a hearing on creating jobs now in America. Our witnesses came from state and local government and from the ranks of workers nationwide. Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley and Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter shared how our investments create jobs and what they mean to the economies in our cities and states. These witnesses agreed: investing in our ports, highways, roads, and rail lines is an investment in jobs for the American people.
"Working together, we can expand our economy through innovation and public-private partnerships. We can invest in transportation, in clean energy and manufacturing, in new industries.
"Together, we can do what the American people are demanding: create jobs, grow our economy, and secure prosperity for all Americans. As we do so, we will reduce the deficit and strengthen our middle class."
Transcript of Question and Answer Session:
Q: Can you tell us, with the jobs that you want to create and what we want to do here--does this mean we are going to eliminate the free trade agreements that are taking our jobs overseas also?
Leader Pelosi. [Inaudible]I think it is really important for us to know that in any agreements that we have, that the concerns that you are reflecting here and that we have communicated to the Administration. That yes, we know we live in a global economy and that we want consumers of our products in other countries, but we cannot do it at the expense of American workers. And I was pleased that Ambassador Kirk, when he came the other day--that was yesterday I guess--came before Congress, he listed concerns that we have: violence against labor organizers in Columbia, issues that are about our values, as well as our interests in commerce. But Mr. Gerard has been a champion in challenging the conscience of any initiatives that come forward that would be harmful to America's workers. Thank you, Leo Gerard, for your leadership.
Q: [Inaudible question about President Mubarak stepping down]
Leader Pelosi. The question, in case you couldn't here, was: ‘According to media reports, the President of Egypt, President Mubarak, is going to step down later today.' Well, we'll see. But if those reports are true, it would certainly be a victory for the young people who had the courage to demonstrate for Democratic freedoms in Egypt. I congratulate on their success. I salute them for their courage. Their energy is changing Egypt. Their actions are an inspiration to the world.
Q: Leader Pelosi, as you talk about investments that need to be made in infrastructure, Republicans have announced that they want to cut at least $32 billion from the budget, and a lot of the things that they would like to cut are big cuts that they would like to cut are big cuts to things that help working families, things like WIC or community health students services, or even high speed rail. I am wondering what you think of the cuts that they proposed and if there are any of those cuts that you can support.
Leader Pelosi. Well, that remains to be seen. They are going to show us today what all of their cuts are, but when you say that they want to cut transportation--we know right away that that is a false economy. Investing in transportation, our country creates job. It's a quality of life issue, of moving people and product to market to work. And, again, reducing the time that people have to spend on the road--it's an environmental issue to reduce emissions in the air. So for every reason, that would be a false economy.
Yes, I think we should subject every dollar we spend of the taxpayer dollar to the harshest scrutiny. Are we getting our money's worth? Is it fulfilling its purpose? Is there any waste, fraud, abuse, duplication, obsolescence involved? If so, get rid of it. But that's what we have been doing. That's why we have some concern about them spending ten hours on the floor today and tomorrow on this, rather than talking about creation of jobs, joining us in Build America Bonds.
So again, if there are some places where we can find common ground--I understand the Appropriations Committee found common ground in eliminating $13 billion in Pentagon spending. That sounds like a good idea. According to my Chairman, Mr. Dicks, Ranking Member, Mr. Dicks. But I think we have to look at each one of them as they come down the road.
And we fool ourselves if we think that by cutting something, we are reducing the deficit. In fact, we may be adding to the deficit if we are cutting jobs [Applause.]
President Gerard was very eloquent when he spoke about how growth will reduce the deficit. Growth will reduce the deficit. So yeah, something you want us to look at in terms of, is it worth the money? Let's look at that. But let's have that debate on the high ground, the high ground of whatever our values--the values of educating our children, of keeping our community safe, of investing in job creation for the future, of making us out compete the rest of the world, and the green technologies and the rest. Let's have that debate about what those values are, and then make the determination as to whether we are getting our money's worth, rather than just cutting and thinking that we are saving--when in fact, we are losing jobs, losing revenue, and not reducing the deficit.
Q: There are reports, playing off of Nancy [Cordes], that the Appropriations Committee isn't going to come out with the numbers until tomorrow now, and that they are backing to Tea Party pressure to actually get to the $100 billion level. What is your response to that? Have you heard that from your Ranking Member?
Leader Pelosi. Well, we had hoped to receive the numbers this morning so that we could make some comment on them…we instructed our Members that we were told by the Majority that would be on the website this morning.
Now because of their disarray in the Republican Party, and this is only one manifestation of it, they will be taking another day. I think what they are finding out it that it is easier to talk about cutting than it is to actually do it. And that means, even at the--they said 100, they came down to 50, now at 35. Well, the people who like the sound of 100 are demanding more. And when they demand more, what they are doing is indiscriminately talking about how we, in a very indiscriminate way--you know without any test as to whether this is worth the money--make those cuts. $100 billion really cuts to the heart of who we are as a country. Unless they are putting everything on the table--are they putting everything on the table? Are they putting the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan on the table? Are they putting the whole Pentagon budget on the table? Are they just saying: We don't measure the strength of our country in the health and well-being that job creation and innovation for the future of the American people?
So this is going to be, to your question, it will be interesting to see where they come out. But if the $35 billion caused so much pain for them, you can just imagine how much pain going higher is is going to going to cause for the American people, and it's about them. But again, you find waste, fraud, abuse, obsolescence--we are right there with you. But if we are talking about our values, we are not eliminating the education of our children or the protection of our people or the creation of jobs or the health of our environment.
Q: On that issue, the President's budget is coming out on Monday. We understand that he is already planning to cut $2.5 billion from low energy heating programs. What do you think of that cut? Does that beat the test?
Leader Pelosi. Well, when we see the President's budget in its totality, we will see. But I will tell you this about the President's budget, which I conclude from his State of the Union address and the little I know about it--and they haven't given us any advance showing of what the budget is. I know this: It will be a statement of our national values. It will create jobs through investing in, as the President has said, innovation, education, and building America in infrastructure. So it is about long-term stability for our economy. There will be cuts that have to be made that will be painful that we can debate here. But we want to keep the debate very high here as to what the values are. Is this a reflection of our values, what is important the American people? Does it create jobs? Does it reduce the deficit? Does it strengthen the middle class? I know that the President's budget will do that. As far as individual pieces of it, that is all a matter of debate. But on overall structure of it, I look forward to it. His budget last year was one of the first President's budgets in years, and I know that this will be a budget that we will be proud of, even if we don't like every particular in it. And that's what we come here to do--if we all thought exactly the same way about every single subject, only one of us or two of us would have to show up. But this is the great American debate.
Thank you all very much for coming. Thank you, United Steelworkers, Apollo Alliance, Transportation for America. [Applause.]