Statement Of Senator Patrick Leahy
“Importance Of The Economic Recovery
Plan”
Senate Floor
February 12, 2009
Mr. President, I rise today in strong support of the economic recovery
plan because the American people and their communities need it to create
jobs, help stabilize the economy, and protect those who have been most
hurt by the current global economic and financial crises.
For the American people watching this process, the resistance this
economic recovery plan has met from many on the other side of the aisle
must be more than a little dispiriting. They remember how readily
Congress rubberstamped hundreds of billions of dollars that the previous
administration earmarked for Iraq, and then they see how difficult it
has been to get bipartisan approval of investments here at home that are
desperately needed to jump-start our economy, in the midst of the worst
economic crisis we have faced since the Great Depression.
No one convincingly disputes the clear fact that we are confronting the
most severe economic problems this country has experienced in
generations. The U.S. economy has been in recession since December
2007. America’s GDP declined 3.8 percent in the fourth quarter of
2008, the steepest drop since 1982. The United States lost 2.6
million jobs last year, the most since 1945. And last week we
learned that the U.S. economy shed 598,000 jobs in January, putting the
unemployment rate at 7.6 percent.
In my home state of Vermont, not only has the amount of credit available
to small businesses shrunk significantly, but our unemployment rate
jumped to 6.4 percent in December – the highest measurement in more than
15 years.
Of course, Vermont is not alone in this struggle. Workers,
businesses, and state and local governments all across the country face
mounting debt, slumping orders, and sagging budgets.
To respond to this extraordinary crisis, I agree with President Obama
and a vast majority of Americans that we must act quickly and
responsibly to pass an economic recovery and job creation plan as bold
as the challenges we face. By acting now to strengthen our economy
and invest in America’s future, we can create good-paying jobs, cut
taxes for working families, and make responsible investments in our
future.
Our number one priority should be to put America back to work.
This economic recovery plan will help create or save million jobs,
including an entire generation of green jobs that will make public and
private investments in renewable energy and make America more energy
efficient.
Investing in our country’s infrastructure and education will do more
than create jobs today – it also will put the country back on a
long-term path toward prosperity. Rebuilding our roads and
bridges; expanding broadband access to rural communities; making our
energy grid smart and more efficient; creating state-of-the-art
classrooms, labs and libraries; and investing in job training that
Americans will need to succeed in the 21st Century economy
will give us tangible assets that we can use for years to come to foster
additional economic growth.
As Chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, I would like to highlight
that the funding for state and local law enforcement in this recovery
package will not only help to address vital crime prevention needs, but
will also have an immediate and positive impact on the economy, as
police chiefs and experts from across the country told the Judiciary
Committee in our first hearing of the year, which I chaired last month.
Hiring new police officers will stimulate the economy and lead to safer
communities and neighborhoods.
Mr. President, nobody thinks this bill is perfect, but America is
hurting and Americans urgently need our help. I believe this
economic recovery package will make a timely and constructive difference
across the country by creating and saving jobs, making needed
infrastructure investments, reducing the tax burden on struggling
families, and relieving state budget deficits.
I hope other Senators will join me in voting for this important economic
recovery package when it comes back before the Senate. Vermonters
are watching and waiting, working families across the country are
watching and waiting, and time is running out.
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