[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 47 (Wednesday, March 21, 2012)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1875-S1876]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                                JOBS ACT

  Mr. McCONNELL. Madam President, for the past several months, I and 
others have been calling on the Democratic majority here in the Senate 
to take up and pass the various bipartisan jobs bills that House 
Republicans have been sending across the dome. These bills on their own 
certainly will not

[[Page S1876]]

solve the jobs crisis, but they will make it a lot easier for 
entrepreneurs and innovators to get the capital they need to build 
businesses and create jobs. And because these bills are more concerned 
with getting Washington out of the way than getting it more involved, 
these bills also send an important message that the economy and the 
country are a lot better off when folks have more control over their 
economic destinies, not less.
  Last night, we were on the cusp of passing a collection of bills 
known as the JOBS Act. This bill had overwhelming bipartisan support in 
the House. Nearly 400 Members voted for it. And the President himself 
says it will create jobs, he supports it and would sign it into law.
  Unfortunately, a handful of Democrats here in the Senate wants to 
slow it down. They denied Americans this bipartisan victory for jobs 
that we could have had last night.
  So this morning I would ask our friends on the other side to 
reconsider. I would ask them to put the politics aside and allow this 
bipartisan bill to actually move forward. We could pocket this 
achievement and move on to other measures, including the 
reauthorization of the Export-Import Bank, which I suggested yesterday. 
One bill alone cannot undo the damage inflicted on the economy by this 
administration, but it sure could help, and we need to show the 
American people we can do this.
  This bill is exactly the kind of thing Americans have been asking 
for: greater freedom and greater flexibility. That is one of the 
reasons it has had such overwhelming bipartisan support. At a moment 
when millions are looking for work and Democrats say they want more 
bipartisan action on jobs, this is it.
  We are in the middle of March Madness here. To use a basketball 
metaphor: This is a layup. Let's get it done.

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