[Congressional Record Volume 148, Number 120 (Friday, September 20, 2002)]
[Senate]
[Pages S8960-S8961]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 THE ECONOMY AND UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE

  Mrs. CLINTON. Mr. President, I rise today to talk about an issue of 
great concern to my constituents and, indeed, to our entire country--
the state of our Nation's economy. We know our economy was already in 
recession on September 10 and it was devastated on September 11 by the 
horrific attacks we suffered, and it is stalled now. Too many Americans 
are out of work. Too many have seen their pension and retirement 
security disappear because of the illegal, unethical, and simply 
inexplicable behavior of corporate executives. Too many people who lost 
their jobs as a result of September 11 have not yet been able to find 
work.
  Let me just mention one of the hundreds of thousands--millions of 
such people: A New Yorker by the name of Felix Batista. Mr. Batista had 
worked for years, 25 years I believe, as a member of the wait staff at 
the restaurant known as Windows On The World at the top of the World 
Trade Center. He has four children. He was on vacation on September 11 
when 73 of his coworkers were murdered. He lost not only friends and 
colleagues, he lost his job, and he has been unemployed since that 
terrible day. He is a man who had a wonderful employment record who now 
spends his days looking for work. He exhausted his unemployment 
benefits almost 3 months ago. How is he going to support his four 
children? He is a victim of the terrorist attacks on New York and 
America, and he is not alone.
  Like so many other New Yorkers and Americans, despite their steadfast 
efforts to find work, and their overwhelming desire to get back to 
work, they remain out of work, struggling to make ends meet. In New 
York, there are 135,000 New Yorkers who have exhausted their benefits. 
Across the country, the number of people who have been unemployed for 6 
months or longer has almost doubled, from 800,000 to 1.5 million in the 
last year, and that number is expected to increase to more than 2 
million by December.
  What have we, the elected representatives of all the people, 
including the people who are unemployed, the people such as Felix who 
have lost their jobs--what have we done to respond? We have extended 
unemployment benefits once--but only once. Contrast that with the 
recession of the early 1990s when Congress extended temporary benefits 
five times. But this year, even in the wake of the combination of a 
slowdown in the economy and terrorism, we have only extended benefits 
once. Once is not enough. Congress must act to extend unemployment 
insurance and disaster unemployment assistance for an additional 13 
weeks each.
  With more people losing their benefits every day and being put into 
the terrible position in which Mr. Batista finds himself, these 
extensions should be passed before Congress adjourns.
  The Wall Street Journal says our economy is in the midst of a 
``jobless recovery.'' From what I hear, that phrase is only half true.
  Across New York State, 553,000 New Yorkers are out of work, and the 
same story is true of company layoffs and plant closings in Niagara 
Falls, Rochester, and so many parts of New York.
  Unfortunately, this is a story that is compounded by the corporate 
irresponsibility and illegality. They have added even more uncertainty 
to our economic condition. We not only are seeing plants closing and 
people losing their jobs because there is no business and there are no 
orders, but we are also in Rochester seeing 500 people out of work 
after Global Crossing filed for bankruptcy.
  If there is any doubt that the economic situation is not producing 
jobs for people, take a look at this chart. It shows the number of jobs 
that are available compared with the number of people who are looking 
for work. As you can clearly see, during most of 2002, jobseekers far 
outnumbered job availability. In fact, in June, there were almost three 
jobseekers for every available job.
  When President Bush took office in January 2001, there were 
approximately 1.5 jobseekers for every job. In just a short year and a 
half, we have gone from one job opening for every one and a half 
unemployed person to one job opening for nearly three unemployed 
persons.
  But only looking at the statistics and the unemployment rate doesn't 
paint a complete picture. The constituents that I talk to in New York 
describe an endless, frustrating job search--that hopeless feeling that 
comes when you go out every day and read the want ads and follow up 
every single lead. These are people who are young and old and middle-
aged. They are male, they are female, they are skilled and unskilled; 
they are white, they are black, and they are Latino. They are every 
kind of American. They want to work. But until this economy turns 
around, they need additional help.
  The so-called jobless recovery has hit long-term unemployed workers 
particularly hard. The number of people who cannot find jobs for 6 
months or longer has grown by almost 90 percent in the past year. In 
fact, the share of the unemployed today who have been without work for 
more than 26 weeks exceeds that of the recession of the early 1990s and 
the early 1980s.
  According to a recent study, ``an increase in the long term 
unemployment of workers with significant workforce experience'' is 
particularly striking. But why should we be surprised? We have 
companies such as Enron, Global Crossing, WorldCom, and Tyco that are 
laying off, going into bankruptcy, and rendering unemployed highly 
skilled workers--people who got their education, went to college, and 
improved their skills. They were part of the new economy, and, all of a 
sudden, they find themselves on the unemployment lines.
  What this means for real Americans is that people who are trying 
hard, who have played by the rules, who have been responsible, and, 
through no fault of their own--a corporate executive who commits 
illegalities, or a terrorist who destroys a building--are now 
unemployed.
  The number of workers who have exhausted their benefits has doubled 
compared to 2 years ago. The number of workers who have exhausted their 
State benefits is 2.3 million, more than we had 10 years ago during the 
recession of the early 1990s.

  As you can see from this chart, the number of workers exhausting 
their unemployment benefits without a job has risen steadily since last 
spring. If you are wondering what this means for individual States, I 
have information about every State in our country. This is not just a 
New York problem. This is a national problem. We may have the highest 
number of people who have exhausted their benefits, but, of course, you 
would expect that. We lost tens of thousands of jobs because of the 
attack and the collapse of the buildings. Because it was a crime scene, 
they couldn't reopen and get back into business.
  Our unemployment rate in New York City is 8 percent--higher than the 
national average--unfortunately reflecting a condition that affects all 
Americans.
  Back in the recession of the early 1990s when the first President 
Bush was in office, people who were unfortunate enough to lose their 
jobs got a compassionate response from the White House. The first 
President Bush said: You

[[Page S8961]]

know, I am going to be there to help you. And, working with the 
Congress, that is exactly what happened. We extended unemployment 
benefits five times.
  Are the people today less deserving? Are the workers who lost their 
jobs because of corporate illegality, economic slowdown, or terrorist 
attacks somehow not worthy of our help? I don't think so. I certainly 
hope not.
  As you can see from this chart, which has a lot of writing on it, 
basically the bottom line is that during the early stage of the 
recession in the 1990s, 35 States received 26 weeks of benefits, and 16 
received 33 weeks. And it is so clear that today during our recession 
we only have 39 States getting 13 weeks of benefits and 12 receiving 
26.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator has used 10 minutes.
  Mrs. CLINTON. I ask unanimous consent for another 5 minutes.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Mrs. CLINTON. This is not only a comparison--it should cause us to 
wonder what our national policy is--it is also a reflection of how we 
have no economic policy in America right now. We don't have an emphasis 
on creating jobs, prosperity, and economic opportunity.
  Our leader, Senator Daschle, came to the floor earlier this week and, 
in a series of charts, made clear that we are not attending to 
America's business. We all know we have foreign policy challenges. I, 
for one, have supported our men and women in uniform and supported our 
need for homeland security. I will continue to do so because our 
threats are real, and we have to deal with them. But we are a great 
nation. We can do more than one thing at a time. We should be paying 
attention to our economy. We should be taking care of our unemployed 
workers. It is the right thing to do. I hope we will do it because it 
takes care of people.
  Look at this next chart. Every dollar we spend on unemployment 
insurance adds $2.50 to our gross domestic product. It is a good 
investment. Why? Because when the unemployed get those benefits--when 
Mr. Batista and others like him finally get some help--what do they do? 
They go out and spend it. They have no other means. They have to buy 
food, they have to pay the rent, and they have to make a car payment. 
The money goes right into the economy, and it provides stimulus.
  In contrast, President Bush's solution is to stimulate the economy 
for the wealthiest--keep giving them big tax cuts and hope that it 
trickles down to people such as Mr. Batista. That didn't work in the 
1980s, it didn't work in the 1990s, and it will not work in the 21st 
century, either.
  I believe the President is using the wrong approach. Our economy 
needs to help people. It needs to stimulate jobs. And we owe it to the 
unemployed such as Mr. Batista to act now.
  Finally, obviously, I believe our economic policy during the 1990s 
worked for all Americans--the rich, middle income, and poor. It 
provided more than 22 million new jobs. We were on the right track in 
America when it came to the economy. For reasons that escape me, we 
threw all of that good work away, and now we are back into the 
deficits. We are not taking care of the unemployed. We are not creating 
jobs. And I don't think we have any plan to do so.
  I earnestly request that our colleagues here take leadership and 
support our unemployed people. Do what was done in the 1990s, provide 
these benefits, stimulate the economy, and let us get back on the right 
track for America's future.
  Thank you, Mr. President.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from West Virginia.
  Mr. BYRD. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that I may proceed 
for an additional 15 minutes over and above the order that has been 
entered.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. Is there objection?
  Without objection, it is so ordered.
  Mr. BYRD. Mr. President, I thank the Chair.

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