Obama Challenges
Congress on Job Plan
Published: September 8, 2011 - New York Times
WASHINGTON — Mixing politically moderate proposals with a punchy tone, President
Obama challenged lawmakers on Thursday to “pass this jobs bill” — a blunt
call on Congress to enact his $447 billion package of tax cuts and new
government spending, designed to revive a stalling economy and his own political
standing.
Speaking to a joint session of Congress, Mr. Obama ticked off a list of
measures that he emphasized had been supported by both Republicans and Democrats
in the past. To keep the proposals from adding to the swelling federal deficit,
Mr. Obama also said he would encourage a more ambitious target for long-term
reduction of the deficit.
“You should pass this jobs plan right away,” the president declared over and
over in his 32-minute speech, in which he eschewed his trademark soaring oratory
in favor of a plainspoken appeal for action, stiffened by a few sarcastic
political jabs.
With Republicans listening politely but with stone-faced expressions, Mr.
Obama said, “The question is whether, in the face of an ongoing national crisis,
we can stop the political circus and actually do something to help the economy.”
Though Mr. Obama’s proposals — including an expansion of a cut in payroll
taxes and new spending on public works — were widely expected, the package was
substantially larger than predicted, and much of the money would flow into the
economic bloodstream in 2012. The pace would be similar to that of the $787
billion stimulus
package passed in 2009, which was spread over more than two years. Analysts
said that, if passed, the package would likely lift growth somewhat.
While Republicans did not often applaud Mr. Obama,, party leaders greeted his
proposals with uncharacteristic conciliation. Representative Eric Cantor, the
House majority leader, and other Republicans signaled a willingness to consider
at least some of the measures, reflecting what some have described as anger in
their home districts over the political dysfunction in Washington.
“The proposals the president outlined tonight merit consideration,” Speaker
John A. Boehner said in a statement. “We hope he gives serious consideration to
our ideas as well.”
Still, analysts said it was unlikely that the White House would win
Congressional approval for many elements of the package.
For Mr. Obama, burdened by the lowest approval ratings of his presidency, the
address crystallized the multiple challenges he faces, among them reviving a
torpid economy with a Republican House that, however receptive some of its
leaders appeared Thursday, has staked out a relentlessly confrontational course
with the White House. The president must also shake off a perception, after so
many speeches on the economy, that he has not delivered on the promise of his
oratory.
After weeks on the defensive, however, Mr. Obama seemed to get off his back
foot. He framed the debate over the economy as a tug-of-war between mainstream
American values and a radical, antigovernment orthodoxy that holds that “the
only thing we can do restore prosperity is just dismantle government, refund
everyone’s money, let everyone write their own rules, and tell everyone they’re
on their own.”
With a difficult re-election bid looming, Mr. Obama declared that his vision
would appeal to more voters. “These are real choices we have to make,” he said.
“And I’m pretty sure I know what most Americans would choose. It’s not even
close.”
At times, he edged into sarcasm. Promoting the extension in the payroll tax
cut to Republicans, Mr. Obama said: “I know some of you have sworn oaths never
to raise any taxes on anyone for as long as you live. Now is not the time to
carve out an exception and raise middle-class taxes, which is why you should
pass this bill right away.”
The centerpiece of the bill, known as the American Jobs Act, is an extension
and expansion of the cut in payroll taxes, worth $240 billion, under which the
tax paid by employees would be cut in half through 2012. Smaller businesses
would also get a cut in their payroll taxes, as well as a tax holiday for hiring
new employees. The plan also provides $140 billion for modernizing schools and
repairing roads and bridges — spending that Mr. Obama portrayed as critical to
maintaining America’s competitiveness.
The president insisted that everything in the package would be paid for by
raising the target for long-term spending cuts to be negotiated by a special
Congressional committee. He did not go through the arithmetic, but said he would
send a detailed proposal to Congress in a week. Senior White House officials
said the amount of increased spending cuts would hinge on how much of the plan
gets through Congress.
Mr. Obama said most of his proposals had support from both parties, a
contention that Republican leaders rejected. “There should be nothing
controversial about this piece of legislation,” he said. “Everything in here is
the kind of proposal that’s been supported by Democrats and Republicans.”
After a summer consumed by bitter debate over how to reduce the debt and
deficit, Mr. Obama kept his focus squarely on the need to create jobs. He
acknowledged that the government’s role in fixing the problem was limited, but
rejected the Republican argument that Washington’s major contribution would be
to eliminate regulations.
“Ultimately, our recovery will be driven not by Washington, but by our
businesses and our workers,” he said. “But we can help. We can make a
difference. There are steps we can take right now to improve people’s lives.”
Still, even if every one of the proposals were passed by Congress — something
that is extremely unlikely to happen — the measures would not solve the
economy’s problems, forecasters say, though they would likely spur some growth.
And that encapsulates the quandary for Mr. Obama: so long as there is no
evidence of improvement in the job market, his economic call to arms — backed by
a familiar list of proposed remedies — may not resonate with an American public
grown weary of stagnation and an unemployment rate stuck at 9.1 percent.
Even the scheduling of the speech set off a tempest when Mr. Boehner rejected
Mr. Obama’s request to address Congress on Wednesday, the night of a Republican
presidential
debate. At Mr. Boehner’s request, the White House agreed to move the date to
Thursday, which meant Mr. Obama had to wrap up his remarks before the New
Orleans Saints and the Green Bay Packers kicked off the N.F.L. season. As Mr.
Obama was entering the chamber, microphones caught him assuring a lawmaker that
his speech would not interfere with the game.
In setting out his program, Mr. Obama was, in effect, daring Republicans not
to pass measures that enjoy support among independent voters and business
leaders. If the Republicans refuse to embrace at least some of the measures,
administration officials said, Mr. Obama will take them directly to the American
public, portraying Congress as do-nothing and obstructionist.
“Maybe some of you have decided that those differences are so great that we
can only resolve them at the ballot box,” Mr. Obama told the lawmakers. “But
know this: the next election is fourteen months away. And the people who sent us
here — the people who hired us to work for them — they don’t have the luxury of
waiting fourteen months.”