APPLAUDS DEMOCRATIC PLAN
For Immediate Release
Tuesday, January 7, 2003
Washington, D.C. - Cong. Jesse Jackson, Jr., today said, "The Bush Administration's economic policy is an abysmal failure and his proposed solutions will only make matters worse. America has lost approximately 2 million jobs since the Bush inauguration - and the job losses didn't start until three months after President Bush took office. Over 8 million people actively seeking jobs are unemployed. In fact, the Bush Administration is headed toward the worst record for job growth in 58 years. Layoffs are epidemic, unemployment is rampant, growth is stagnant, stocks and savings have plummeted, poverty is on the rise, access to health care is declining, many of our schools are wanting, and there is no end in sight.
"The President is apparently blind to the nation's current financial realities because his proposed solutions will do virtually nothing to stimulate the economy in the short-term. He has taken the budget surplus he inherited, added so-called tax cut incentives and created deficits as far as the eye can see. An estimated 42% of the tax benefits will go to those earning incomes in the top 1%, and 65% to the top 5%. He is stimulating the wealthy, but not the economy. The Bush-created deficits will increase government borrowing, reduce national savings and investment, increase interest rates, delay or deny needed public investments, and slow economic growth even more. The President's road to recovery is strewn with nails.
"By contrast, House Democrats have put together an economic stimulus plan that is fast-acting, fair and fiscally responsible. It includes tax rebates for working Americans, tax relief for small businesses, and assists struggling states on issues like homeland security and medical care.
"It is long past time to jump-start this economy and put America back to work," Rep. Jackson said. "Giving more money to those who already have it does not work. We need tax cuts that are targeted to the people who will spend it, and investment that creates jobs and improves the lives of all Americans now."
"The Democratic plan will create approximately 1 million new jobs by immediately pumping $136 billion into a struggling economy, putting money in the hands of consumers, encouraging businesses to create jobs, and investing in a secure and healthy future.
"The need for an economic stimulus is urgent. Economic growth is the weakest in 50 years, and consumer confidence is down. Two million private sector jobs have been eliminated since President Bush took office and long-term joblessness has more than doubled in that time, now totaling more than three million.
"States are facing huge deficits - nearly $3 billion in Illinois - and are being forced to cut critical health and education spending. At the same time, the states are being asked to spend more than ever on a range of items, including homeland security.
"The Democrats stimulus plan includes, among other things:
Being front-loaded and fast-acting so that virtually all costs fall in 2003 allowing the budget to recover as the economy recovers. It devotes every penny to short-term stimulus, not long-term tax breaks disguised as stimulus.
Boosts consumer demand and investment by putting money in the hands of consumers who drive two-thirds of the economy by giving a $300 tax rebate to every working American ($600 for couples) and immediately extends unemployment benefits retroactively for workers whose insurance has run out and who have still been unable to find jobs.
Immediate tax relief for small businesses to generate investment and jobs.
Helps the states through their fiscal straits, addressing shared needs like homeland security, and vital needs like transportation and medical care.
"The Democratic plan is fair, fast-acting, and fiscally sound - supplying stimulus in the near-term and a responsible fiscal policy in the longer-term," Jackson concluded.
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