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Good afternoon,
Last night President Obama walked Congress and the nation through the
American Jobs Act, his plan to create jobs in America now. It's up to
Congress to act on this set of bipartisan ideas that put people back to
work and put more money into the pockets of working Americans.
You can watch a special enhanced version of the speech, featuring charts and other relevant information here:
Here are a few important points about how the American Jobs Act works, and why Congress should act quickly:
- First, it provides a tax cut for small businesses, not big
corporations, to help them hire and expand now and provides an
additional tax cut to any business that increases wages.
- Second, it puts people back to work, including teachers, first
responders and veterans coming back from Iraq and Afghanistan, and
construction workers repairing crumbling bridges, roads and more than
35,000 public schools, with projects chosen by need and impact, not
earmarks and politics.
- Third, it helps out-of-work Americans by extending unemployment
benefits to help them support their families while looking for work and
reforming the system with training programs that build real skills,
connect to real jobs and help the long-term unemployed.
- Fourth, it puts more money in the pockets of working and middle
class Americans by cutting in half the payroll tax that comes out of
every worker's paycheck, saving families an average of $1,500 a year.
And it removes the barriers that exist in the current federal
refinancing program (HARP) to help more Americans refinance their
mortgages at historically low rates, save money and stay in their homes.
The American Jobs Act is based on ideas supported by both Democrats
and Republicans, and is fully paid for by closing corporate tax
loopholes and by asking the wealthiest Americans to pay their fair
share. It would have an immediate impact on job and economic growth, but
Congress has to act now.
You can learn more about the American Jobs Act on Whitehouse.gov.
Over the next few days there are a number of ways for you to ask
questions and engage with Administration officials about the American
Jobs Act including Open for Questions live panels and Twitter Office
Hours.
In fact, next week, I’ll be participating in my very first White
House Office Hours on Twitter, so be sure to tune in and send me your
questions using the hashtag #WHChat.
Here’s a list of the full lineup of events so far:
- Today at 4:30 p.m. EDT: Brian Deese, Deputy Director of the
National Economic Council will be answering your questions on Twitter
during White House Office Hours using the hashtag #WHChat.
- Monday September 12 at 4:30 p.m. EDT: White House Office Hours on Twitter with Stephanie Cutter, Assistant to the President and Deputy Senior Advisor.
- Tuesday, September 13 at 5:30 p.m. EDT: I’ll be answering your questions on Twitter during White House Office Hours using the hashtag #WHChat.
- Wednesday, September 14th at 4:00 p.m. EDT: White House Office Hours with Brian Deese, Deputy Director of the National Economic council.
Sincerely,
David Plouffe
Senior Advisor to the President
P.S. After last night’s address, a few White House policy experts
answered questions about the speech. Check out the video of the event: WhiteHouse.gov/JobsSpeechOFQ |
