Lack of Job Growth in America

LACK OF JOB GROWTH IN AMERICA -- (House of Representatives - March 09, 2004)

The SPEAKER pro tempore. Under a previous order of the House, the gentlewoman from Ohio (Ms. Kaptur) is recognized for 5 minutes.

Ms. KAPTUR. Mr. Speaker, the lack of job growth in America continues to reverberate, the jobless recovery they call it. That means even as investment increases, new jobs are not created. Now, there might be a recovery for a few in the financial elites that sit in our corporate board rooms, but it is still a recession around the kitchen tables of America's working families.

So where are our jobs? Millions of Americans are asking the Congress and they are asking the President, Where are the jobs?

Toledo Blade reported this weekend: "Unemployment rises across Ohio." Toledo, the major community in my district,
Toledo's rate of unemployment hit double digits, over 10 percent; and even rural counties, not accustomed to unemployment rising, those numbers are now increasing across the State of Ohio.
Even America's economists are starting to wonder what is going on.
[Time: 20:15]

When the Labor Department released the most recent job data last Friday, showing a mere 21,000 payroll jobs created in February, economists were left dumbfounded, shaking their heads. Alan Blinder, a former member of the Federal
Board of Governors, told the Wall Street Journal, and I quote, "From an historical perspective, the lack of job growth is stunning, given what is happening to the gross national product."

Productivity is high, economic activity is up, interest rates are still very low, but even Ohio's Republican governor was forced to admit no job growth. So, where are our jobs? Sales at U.S. retail stores rose by 6.7 percent in February, and the consumer continues to keep our economy afloat. But how long can that last?

Household debt is climbing. The Federal Reserve reported on Friday that consumer credit outstanding grew at an annual rate of 8.6 percent in February. Households in America have refinanced everything and they have maxed out on their credit cards and they have borrowed to keep up their spending levels.

They have been carrying the load up till now, but they simply cannot do it by themselves. We have got to start creating jobs in America, and that starts at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.

Last month, President Bush promised that the economy would create 2.6 million jobs by the end of this year. Instead, we have seen almost 3 million jobs disappear since he was installed in office.

Now, America suffers twin deficits that are sucking the lifeblood from our economy. We have a $.5 trillion budget deficit and a $.5 trillion trade deficit. At the same time, these twin deficits total more than $1 trillion sucking life and economic strength out of our economy. That is a $1 trillion in the wrong direction every year under President Bush.
The failed economic policies of the Bush administration are choking any hoped-for economic recovery, destroying wealth and saddling future generations of Americans with more debt than they can possibly afford. How irresponsible.
The failed economic policies of the Bush administration are the reason for the lack of jobs in America. Where are the jobs? They are being outsourced and exported to Mexico and China and other low-wage countries. Some have called this Bush-onomics. But if you are a multinational corporation looking for low-wage workers, they roll out the red carpet for you. They even say outsourcing jobs is a good thing. The Bush administration will even drive down the value of the dollar to help their bottom line.

But if you are a family in Toledo or Cleveland or Akron, you are out of luck. Our workers are sitting around the kitchen table asking a simple question: Where are the jobs? And I hope they are also asking who are they going to elect to the job of the Presidency of our Nation and to this Congress come next November.