[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 132 (Thursday, September 8, 2011)]
[House]
[Pages H6005-H6009]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                              {time}  1843
JOINT SESSION OF CONGRESS PURSUANT TO HOUSE CONCURRENT RESOLUTION 74 TO 
                  RECEIVE A MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT

  The recess having expired, the House was called to order by the 
Speaker at 6 o'clock and 43 minutes p.m.
  The Deputy Sergeant at Arms, Mrs. Kerri Hanley, announced the Vice 
President and Members of the U.S. Senate, who entered the Hall of the 
House of Representatives, the Vice President taking the chair at the 
right of the Speaker, and the Members of the Senate the seats reserved 
for them.
  The SPEAKER. The joint session will come to order.
  The Chair appoints as members of the committee on the part of the 
House to escort the President of the United States into the Chamber:
  The gentleman from Virginia (Mr. Cantor);
  The gentleman from California (Mr. McCarthy);
  The gentleman from Texas (Mr. Hensarling);
  The gentleman from Texas (Mr. Sessions);
  The gentleman from Georgia (Mr. Price);
  The gentlewoman from Washington (Mrs. McMorris Rodgers);
  The gentleman from Texas (Mr. Carter);
  The gentlewoman from California (Ms. Pelosi);
  The gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Hoyer);
  The gentleman from South Carolina (Mr. Clyburn);
  The gentleman from Connecticut (Mr. Larson);
  The gentleman from California (Mr. Becerra);
  The gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Van Hollen); and
  The gentlewoman from New York (Ms. Hochul).
  The VICE PRESIDENT. The President of the Senate, at the direction of 
that body, appoints the following Senators as members of the committee 
on the part of the Senate to escort the President of the United States 
into the House Chamber:
  The Senator from Nevada (Mr. Reid);
  The Senator from Illinois (Mr. Durbin);
  The Senator from New York (Mr. Schumer);

[[Page H6006]]

  The Senator from Washington (Mrs. Murray);
  The Senator from Michigan (Ms. Stabenow);
  The Senator from Alaska (Mr. Begich);
  The Senator from Kentucky (Mr. McConnell);
  The Senator from Arizona (Mr. Kyl);
  The Senator from Tennessee (Mr. Alexander);
  The Senator from Wyoming (Mr. Barrasso);
  The Senator from South Dakota (Mr. Thune); and
  The Senator from Texas (Mr. Cornyn).
  The Deputy Sergeant at Arms announced the Dean of the Diplomatic 
Corps, His Excellency Roble Olhaye, Ambassador from the Republic of 
Djibouti.
  The Dean of the Diplomatic Corps entered the Hall of the House of 
Representatives and took the seat reserved for him.
  The Deputy Sergeant at Arms announced the Cabinet of the President of 
the United States.
  The members of the Cabinet of the President of the United States 
entered the Hall of the House of Representatives and took the seats 
reserved for them in front of the Speaker's rostrum.
  At 7o'clock and 5 minutes p.m., the Sergeant at Arms, the Honorable 
Wilson Livingood, announced the President of the United States.
  The President of the United States, escorted by the committee of 
Senators and Representatives, entered the Hall of the House of 
Representatives and stood at the Clerk's desk.
  (Applause, the Members rising.)
  The SPEAKER. Members of the Congress, I have the high privilege and 
the distinct honor of presenting to you the President of the United 
States.
  (Applause, the Members rising.)
  The PRESIDENT. Mr. Speaker, Mr. Vice President, Members of Congress, 
and fellow Americans:
  Tonight we meet at an urgent time for our country. We continue to 
face an economic crisis that has left millions of our neighbors 
jobless, and a political crisis that has made things worse.
  This past week, reporters have been asking, What will this speech 
mean for the President? What will it mean for Congress? How will it 
affect their polls, and the next election?
  But the millions of Americans who are watching right now don't care 
about politics. They have real-life concerns. Many have spent months 
looking for work. Others are doing their best just to scrape by--giving 
up nights out with the family to save on gas or make the mortgage, 
postponing retirement to send a kid to college.
  These men and women grew up with faith in an America where hard work 
and responsibility paid off. They believed in a country where everyone 
gets a fair shake and does their fair share--where if you stepped up, 
did your job, and were loyal to your company, that loyalty would be 
rewarded with a decent salary and good benefits; maybe a raise once in 
a while. If you did the right thing, you could make it, anybody could 
make it in America.
  But for decades now, Americans have watched that compact erode. They 
have seen the deck too often stacked against them. And they know that 
Washington has not always put their interests first.
  The people of this country work hard to meet their responsibilities. 
The question tonight is whether we'll meet ours. The question is 
whether, in the face of an ongoing national crisis, we can stop the 
political circus and actually do something to help the economy; whether 
we can restore some of the fairness and security that has defined this 
Nation since our beginning.
  Those of us here tonight can't solve all of our Nation's woes. 
Ultimately, our recovery will be driven not by Washington, but by our 
businesses and our workers. But we can help. We can make a difference. 
There are steps we can take right now to improve people's lives.
  I am sending this Congress a plan that you should pass right away. 
It's called the American Jobs Act. There should be nothing 
controversial about this piece of legislation. Everything in here is 
the kind of proposal that's been supported by both Democrats and 
Republicans--including many who sit here tonight. And everything in 
this bill will be paid for. Everything.
  The purpose of the American Jobs Act is simple: to put more people 
back to work and more money in the pockets of those who are working. It 
will create more jobs for construction workers, more jobs for teachers, 
more jobs for veterans, and more jobs for the long-term unemployed. It 
will provide a tax break for companies who hire new workers, and it 
will cut payroll taxes in half for every working American and every 
small business. It will provide a jolt to an economy that has stalled, 
and give companies confidence that if they invest and hire, there will 
be customers for their products and services. You should pass this jobs 
plan right away.
  Everyone here knows that small businesses are where most new jobs 
begin. And you know that while corporate profits have come roaring 
back, smaller companies haven't. So for everyone who speaks so 
passionately about making life easier for ``job creators,'' this plan's 
for you.
  Pass this jobs bill, and starting tomorrow, small businesses will get 
a tax cut if they hire new workers or if they raise workers' wages. 
Pass this jobs bill, and all small business owners will also see their 
payroll taxes cut in half next year. If you have 50 employees making an 
average salary, that's an $80,000 tax cut. And all businesses will be 
able to continue writing off the investments they make in 2012.
  It's not just Democrats who have supported this kind of proposal. 
Fifty House Republicans have proposed the same payroll tax cut that's 
in this plan. You should pass it right away.
  Pass this jobs bill, and we can put people to work rebuilding 
America. Everyone here knows that we have badly decaying roads and 
bridges all over this country. Our highways are clogged with traffic. 
Our skies are the most congested in the world. It's an outrage.
  Building a world-class transportation system is part of what made us 
an economic superpower. And now we're going to sit back and watch China 
build newer airports and faster railroads? At a time when millions of 
unemployed construction workers could build them right here in America?
  There are private construction companies all across America just 
waiting to get to work. There's a bridge that needs repair between Ohio 
and Kentucky that's on one of the busiest trucking routes in North 
America. There's a public transit project in Houston that will help 
clear up one of the worst areas of traffic in the country. And there 
are schools throughout this country that desperately need renovating. 
How can we expect our kids to do their best in places that are 
literally falling apart? This is America. Every child deserves a great 
school--and we can give it to them, if we act now.
  The American Jobs Act will repair and modernize at least 35,000 
schools. It will put people to work right now fixing roofs and windows; 
installing science labs and high-speed Internet in classrooms all 
across this country. It will rehabilitate homes and businesses in 
communities hid hardest by foreclosures. It will jump-start thousands 
of transportation projects all across the country. And to make sure the 
money is properly spent, we're building on reforms we've already put in 
place. No more earmarks. No more boondoggles. No more bridges to 
nowhere. We're cutting the red tape that prevents some of these 
projects from getting started as quickly as possible. And we'll set up 
an independent fund to attract private dollars and issue loans based on 
two criteria: how badly a construction project is needed and how much 
good it will do for the economy.
  This idea came from a bill written by a Texas Republican and a 
Massachusetts Democrat. The idea for a big boost in construction is 
supported by America's largest business organization and America's 
largest labor organization. It's the kind of proposal that's been 
supported in the past by Democrats and Republicans alike. You should 
pass it right away.
  Pass this jobs bill, and thousands of teachers in every State will go 
back to work. These are the men and women charged with preparing our 
children for a world where the competition has never been tougher. But 
while they're adding teachers in places like South Korea, we're laying 
them off in droves. It's unfair to our kids. It undermines their future 
and ours. And it has to

[[Page H6007]]

stop. Pass this bill, and put our teachers back in the classroom where 
they belong.
  Pass this jobs bill, and companies will get extra tax credits if they 
hire America's veterans. We ask these men and women to leave their 
careers, leave their families, and risk their lives to fight for our 
country. The last thing they should have to do is fight for a job when 
they come home.
  Pass this bill, and hundreds of thousands of disadvantaged young 
people will have the hope and the dignity of a summer job next year; 
and their parents, low-income Americans who desperately want to work, 
will have more ladders out of poverty.
  Pass this jobs bill, and companies will get a $4,000 tax credit if 
they hire anyone who has spent more than 6 months looking for a job.
  We have to do more to help the long-term unemployed in their search 
for work. This jobs plan builds on a program in Georgia that several 
Republican leaders have highlighted, where people who collect 
unemployment insurance participate in temporary work as a way of 
building their skills while they look for a permanent job. The plan 
also extends unemployment insurance for another year. If the millions 
of unemployed Americans stopped getting this insurance and stopped 
using that money for basic necessities, it would be a devastating blow 
to this economy. Democrats and Republicans in this Chamber have 
supported unemployment insurance plenty of times in the past. At this 
time of prolonged hardship, you should pass it again--right away.
  Pass this jobs bill, and the typical working family will get a $1,500 
tax cut next year; $1,500 that would have been taken out of your 
paycheck will go right into your pocket. This expands on the tax cut 
that Democrats and Republicans already passed for this year. If we 
allow that tax cut to expire--if we refuse to act--middle class 
families will get hit with a tax increase at the worst possible time. 
We can't let that happen. I know that some of you have sworn oaths to 
never raise any taxes on anyone for as long as you live. Now is not the 
time to carve out an exception and raise middle class taxes, which is 
why you should pass this bill right away.

  This is the American Jobs Act. It will lead to new jobs for 
construction workers, for teachers, for veterans, for first responders, 
young people, and the long-term unemployed. It will provide tax credits 
to companies that hire new workers, tax relief for small business 
owners, and tax cuts for the middle class. And here is the other thing 
I want the American people to know: The American Jobs Act will not add 
to the deficit. It will be paid for, and here's how:
  The agreement we passed in July will cut government spending by about 
$1 trillion over the next 10 years. It also charges this Congress to 
come up with an additional $1.5 trillion in savings by Christmas. 
Tonight, I am asking you to increase that amount so that it covers the 
full cost of the American Jobs Act; and a week from Monday, I'll be 
releasing a more ambitious deficit plan, a plan that will not only 
cover the cost of this jobs bill but stabilize our debt in the long 
run.
  This approach is basically the one I've been advocating for months. 
In addition to the trillion dollars of spending cuts I've already 
signed into law, it is a balanced plan that would reduce the deficit by 
making additional spending cuts, by making modest adjustments to health 
care programs like Medicare and Medicaid, and by reforming our Tax Code 
in a way that asks the wealthiest Americans and biggest corporations to 
pay their fair share. What's more, the spending cuts wouldn't happen so 
abruptly that they'd be a drag on our economy or prevent us from 
helping small businesses and middle class families get back on their 
feet right away.
  Now, I realize there are some in our party who don't think we should 
make any changes at all to Medicare and Medicaid, and I understand 
their concerns, but here is the truth: millions of Americans rely on 
Medicare in their retirement, and millions more will do so in the 
future. They pay for this benefit during their working years. They earn 
it. But with an aging population and rising health care costs, we are 
spending too fast to sustain the program; and if we don't gradually 
reform the system while protecting current beneficiaries, it won't be 
there when future retirees need it. We have to reform Medicare to 
strengthen it.
  I'm also well aware that there are many Republicans who don't believe 
we should raise taxes on those who are most fortunate and who can best 
afford it, but here is what every American knows: While most people in 
this country struggle to make ends meet, a few of the most affluent 
citizens and most profitable corporations enjoy tax breaks and 
loopholes that nobody else gets. Right now, Warren Buffett pays a lower 
tax rate than his secretary--an outrage he has asked us to fix. We need 
a Tax Code where everyone gets a fair shake and where everybody pays 
their fair share--and by the way, I believe the vast majority of 
wealthy Americans and CEOs are willing to do just that if it helps the 
economy grow and gets our fiscal house in order.
  I'll also offer ideas to reform a corporate Tax Code that stands as a 
monument to special interest influence in Washington. By eliminating 
pages of loopholes and deductions, we can lower one of the highest 
corporate tax rates in the world. Our Tax Code should not give an 
advantage to companies that can afford the best-connected lobbyists. It 
should give an advantage to companies that invest and create jobs right 
here in the United States of America.
  So we can reduce this deficit, pay down our debt, and pay for this 
jobs plan in the process, but in order to do this, we have to decide 
what our priorities are. We have to ask ourselves, What's the best way 
to grow the economy and create jobs?
  Should we keep tax loopholes for oil companies or should we use that 
money to give small business owners a tax credit when they hire new 
workers? Because we can't afford to do both.
  Should we keep tax breaks for millionaires and billionaires or should 
we put teachers back to work so our kids can graduate, ready for 
college and good jobs? Right now, we can't afford to do both.
  This isn't political grandstanding. This isn't class warfare. This is 
simple math. These are real choices. These are real choices that we've 
got to make, and I'm pretty sure I know what most Americans would 
choose--it's not even close--and it's time for us to do what's right 
for our future.
  The American Jobs Act answers the urgent need to create jobs right 
away, but we can't stop there. As I've argued since I ran for this 
office, we have to look beyond the immediate crisis and start building 
an economy that lasts into the future--an economy that creates good, 
middle class jobs that pay well and offer security. We now live in a 
world where technology has made it possible for companies to take their 
business anywhere. If we want them to start here and stay here and hire 
here, we have to be able to out-build and out-educate and out-innovate 
every other country on Earth.
  This task of making America more competitive for the long haul, 
that's a job for all of us--for government and for private companies, 
for States and for local communities, and for every American citizen. 
All of us will have to up our game. All of us will have to change the 
way we do business.
  My administration can and will take some steps to improve our 
competitiveness on our own. For example, if you're a small business 
owner who has a contract with the Federal Government, we're going to 
make sure you get paid a lot faster than you do right now. We're also 
planning to cut away the red tape that prevents too many rapidly 
growing start-up companies from raising capital and going public. And 
to help responsible homeowners, we're going to work with Federal 
housing agencies to help more people refinance their mortgages at 
interest rates that are now near 4 percent. I know you guys must be for 
this because that's a step that can put more than $2,000 a year in a 
family's pocket and give a lift to an economy still burdened by the 
drop in housing prices.
  So some things we can do on our own. Other steps will require 
congressional action. Today, you passed reform that will speed up the 
outdated patent process so that entrepreneurs can turn a new idea into 
a new business as quickly as possible. That's the kind of action we 
need. Now it's time to clear the way for a series of trade agreements 
that

[[Page H6008]]

would make it easier for American companies to sell their products in 
Panama, Colombia and South Korea while also helping the workers whose 
jobs have been affected by global competition.
  If Americans can buy Kias and Hyundais, I want to see folks in South 
Korea driving Fords and Chevys and Chryslers. I want to see more 
products sold around the world stamped with three proud words: ``Made 
in America.'' That's what we need to get done.
  And on all of our efforts to strengthen competitiveness, we need to 
look for ways to work side by side with America's businesses. That's 
why I've brought together a jobs council of leaders from different 
industries who are developing a wide range of new ideas to help 
companies grow and create jobs.
  Already, we've mobilized business leaders to train 10,000 American 
engineers a year by providing company internships and training. Other 
businesses are covering tuition for workers who learn new skills at 
community colleges, and we're going to make sure the next generation of 
manufacturing takes root, not in China or in Europe, but right here in 
the United States of America. If we provide the right incentives, the 
right support and if we make sure that our trading partners play by the 
rules, we can be the ones to build everything from fuel-efficient cars 
to advanced biofuels to semiconductors that we sell all around the 
world. That's how America can be number one again, and that's how 
America will be number one again.

  Now, I realize that some of you have a different theory on how to 
grow the economy. Some of you sincerely believe that the only solution 
to our economic challenges is to simply cut most government spending 
and eliminate most government regulations.
  I agree that we can't afford wasteful spending, and I'll work with 
you, with Congress, to root it out; and I agree that there are some 
rules and regulations that do put an unnecessary burden on businesses 
at a time when they can least afford it. That's why I ordered a review 
of all government regulations. So far, we've identified over 500 
reforms which will save billions of dollars over the next few years. We 
should have no more regulation than the health, safety and security of 
the American people require. Every rule should meet that commonsense 
test.
  But what we can't do--what I will not do--is let this economic crisis 
be used as an excuse to wipe out the basic protections that Americans 
have counted on for decades. I reject the idea that we need to ask 
people to choose between their jobs and their safety. I reject the 
argument that says, for the economy to grow, we have to roll back 
protections that ban hidden fees by credit card companies or rules that 
keep our kids from being exposed to mercury or laws that prevent the 
health insurance industry from shortchanging patients. I reject the 
idea that we have to strip away collective bargaining rights to compete 
in a global economy.
  We shouldn't be in a race to the bottom where we try to offer the 
cheapest labor and the worst pollution standards. America should be in 
a race to the top, and I believe we can win that race.
  In fact, this larger notion that the only thing we can do to restore 
prosperity is just dismantle government, refund everyone's money, let 
everyone write their own rules, and tell everyone they're on their 
own--that's not who we are. That's not the story of America.
  Yes, we are rugged individuals. Yes, we are strong and self-reliant. 
And it has been the drive and initiative of our workers and 
entrepreneurs that has made this economy the engine and envy of the 
world. But there has always been another thread running throughout our 
history--a belief that we are all connected and that there are some 
things we can only do together as a Nation.
  We all remember Abraham Lincoln as the leader who saved our Union--
the founder of the Republican Party--but in the middle of a Civil War, 
he was also a leader who looked to the future--a Republican President 
who mobilized government to build the Transcontinental Railroad, launch 
the National Academy of Sciences, set up the first land grant colleges; 
and leaders of both parties have followed the example he set.
  Ask yourselves: Where would we be right now if the people who sat 
here before us decided not to build our highways, not to build our 
bridges, our dams, our airports? What would this country be like if we 
had chosen not to spend money on public high schools or research 
universities or community colleges? Millions of returning heroes, 
including my grandfather, had the opportunity to go to school because 
of the GI Bill. Where would we be if they hadn't had that chance?
  How many jobs would it have cost us if past Congresses decided not to 
support the basic research that led to the Internet and the computer 
chip? What kind of country would this be if this Chamber had voted down 
Social Security or Medicare just because it violated some rigid idea 
about what government could or could not do? How many Americans would 
have suffered as a result?
  No single individual built America on their own. We built it 
together. We have been and always will be one Nation under God, 
indivisible, with liberty and justice for all--a Nation with 
responsibilities to ourselves and with responsibilities to one another.
  Members of Congress, it is time for us to meet our responsibilities.
  Every proposal I've laid out tonight is the kind that has been 
supported by Democrats and Republicans in the past. Every proposal I've 
laid out tonight will be paid for, and every proposal is designed to 
meet the urgent needs of our people and our communities.
  Now, I know there has been a lot of skepticism about whether the 
politics of the moment will allow us to pass this jobs plan or any jobs 
plan. Already, we're seeing the same old press releases and tweets 
flying back and forth. Already, the media has proclaimed that it's 
impossible to bridge our differences, and maybe some of you have 
decided that those differences are so great that we can only resolve 
them at the ballot box.
  But know this: the next election is 14 months away. And the people 
who sent us here--the people who hired us to work for them--they don't 
have the luxury of waiting 14 months. Some of them are living week to 
week, paycheck to paycheck, even day to day. They need help, and they 
need it now.
  I don't pretend that this plan will solve all our problems. It should 
not be, nor will it be, the last plan of action we propose. What's 
guided us from the start of this crisis hasn't been the search for a 
silver bullet. It's been a commitment to stay at it, to be persistent, 
to keep trying every new idea that works and listen to every good 
proposal, no matter which party comes up with it.
  Regardless of the arguments we've had in the past, regardless of the 
arguments we will have in the future, this plan is the right thing to 
do right now. You should pass it. And I intend to take that message to 
every corner of this country. And I ask every American who agrees to 
lift your voice. Tell the people who are gathered here tonight that you 
want action now. Tell Washington that doing nothing is not an option. 
Remind us that if we act as one Nation and one people, we have it 
within our power to meet this challenge.
  President Kennedy once said, ``Our problems are manmade. Therefore, 
they can be solved by man. And man can be as big as he wants.''
  These are difficult years for our country. But we are Americans. We 
are tougher than the times we live in, and we are bigger than our 
politics have been. So let's meet the moment. Let's get to work. And 
let's show the world once again why the United States of America 
remains the greatest Nation on Earth.
  Thank you very much. God bless you, and God bless the United States 
of America.
  (Applause, the Members rising.)
  At 7 o'clock and 43 minutes p.m., the President of the United States, 
accompanied by the committee of escort, retired from the Hall of the 
House of Representatives.
  The Deputy Sergeant at Arms escorted the invited guests from the 
Chamber in the following order:
  The members of the President's Cabinet; the Dean of the Diplomatic 
Corps.
  The SPEAKER. The Chair declares the joint session of the two Houses 
now dissolved.

[[Page H6009]]

  Accordingly, at 7 o'clock and 46 minutes p.m., the joint session of 
the two Houses was dissolved.
  The Members of the Senate retired to their Chamber.

                          ____________________