[Congressional Record Volume 149, Number 119 (Wednesday, September 3, 2003)]
[Senate]
[Page S11021]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                       THE ECONOMY IS PICKING UP

  Mr. ALEXANDER. Mr. President, my purpose tonight is to say a few 
words about a 10-day visit to Africa that the Presiding Officer, and I, 
and four other Members of the Senate completed last Friday. But I 
listened with great interest to the distinguished Senator from 
Illinois. I did not want him to leave on such a sad note about the 
economy, and I thought I would give him some late-breaking news.
  The Wall Street Journal today has a headline: ``Manufacturing 
Expanded In August.''

       The manufacturing sector expanded for the second 
     consecutive month in August, providing further evidence that 
     the economy's hardest-hit sector may finally be on the 
     rebound.

  I thought it would be important that the Senator have that in mind 
because we are all deeply concerned about the number of Americans who 
are looking for jobs and do not have them.
  The President talked about that on Labor Day. Every one of us, 
Republican and Democrat, feel that way. This is a piece of good news.
  The Wall Street Journal said today:

       The Institute for Supply Management said its monthly survey 
     of manufacturing conditions rose to 54.7 from 51.8 in July. A 
     result above 50 generally indicates expansion. Many key 
     segments of the report, meanwhile, showed similar strength, 
     including components that measure new orders for manufactured 
     goods and overall production. The results came on the heels 
     of otherpositive manufacturing news in recent weeks. . . .

  Now, this is the Wall Street Journal, not the White House talking, 
including the Federal report last week that showed new orders for 
durable goods or items built in the last 3 years or longer, so they 
rose 1 percent in July.
  Now, obviously we are all concerned about manufacturing jobs 
disappearing. They have been disappearing for a long time. I remember 
when the Saturn plant moved to Tennessee in the mid-1980s. It hired 
5,000 people. If it had done that 30 years ago and built the same 
number of cars, it would have needed to hire 30,000 people.
  So while manufacturing is up, manufacturing employment is still down 
and is a source of great concern to all of us. I thought that piece of 
good news might be interesting to the Senator from Illinois and others 
tonight.

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