Pass the American Jobs Act

Floor Speech

Ms. EDWARDS. Mr. Speaker, the other side has been in the majority for 39 weeks and they still haven't passed a single piece of legislation to create jobs or help small businesses. And now they reject out-of-hand, commonsense ideas in the American Jobs Act that would help small business owners who really are the economic engine responsible for creating 70 percent of the jobs in this country.

Last week, I visited with small business owners like Susan Bishop, the owner of Jaha Hair Studio. She has been in business 16 years, has eight employees, and she has found it impossible to get a $30,000 credit extension to meet payroll from a bank that she has done business with for 16 years. She wants to expand her business, to hire others, to train others, and she can't do it, but she could with the American Jobs Act.

Constituents Abeba and Lene Tsegaye, owners of Kefa Cafe, told me that they would actually hire someone if they could get the tax credits available in the American Jobs Act.

So why aren't we doing it, doing it for the owners of Kefa Cafe and other small businesses throughout my congressional district? These are real job creators. It's time for this to be our top priority.

Pass the American Jobs Act. Get America back to work. It's time for the majority to act.

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