[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 84 (Tuesday, May 22, 2018)]
[Senate]
[Page S2802]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                               JOB GROWTH

  Mr. McCONNELL. Now, Madam President, one final matter. This week, 
survey data showed that more Americans say it is a good time to find a 
quality job than at any point in the last 17 years.
  Let me say that again. More Americans say it is a good time to find a 
quality job than at any point in the last 17 years.
  Under President Obama, this number got as low as 8 percent. It never 
broke 50 percent during his administration, but today 67 percent of 
Americans say it is a good time to find a quality job.
  Optimism has taken off for all groups since this President was 
elected and the Republican Congress was sworn in, but the injection of 
new hope has been felt the most among working-class Americans. This is 
a major distinction between the economic policies Democrats spent years 
putting in place and the new approach this Republican government has 
taken.
  For nearly a decade, Democrats followed the standard liberal 
playbook: tax more, regulate more, and pile up more money and power 
right here in Washington. They cracked down on American businesses, 
imposed one new regulation after another, and looked to the Federal 
Government to pick winners and losers.
  It is a familiar, old set of ideas. Here is what it produces: an 
economy that works very well for a few but leaves many more behind.
  The Obama era was just fine for our Nation's biggest coastal cities. 
Roughly, three-quarters of all the new jobs created between 2010 and 
2016 poured into the country's largest metropolitan areas, but outside 
of these places, taxes and regulations created an anti-business climate 
that hurt American manufacturing, American coal communities, and small- 
and medium-sized businesses throughout our country.
  So Republicans charted a new course. We understand that middle-class 
families know how to spend their own money better than the government; 
that American workers thrive when American job creators are expanding, 
hiring, and raising wages. We passed once-in-a-generation tax relief 
for American families and small businesses and are working at every 
turn to roll back runaway regulations. The result is an economic 
comeback that is reaching all kinds of communities, not just a favored 
few.
  A record-high percentage of American manufacturers have said they 
have a positive economic outlook for their enterprises. Rural 
communities outpaced everywhere else in relative job creation last 
year. The total amount spent on employee compensation grew faster in 
2017 than in any calendar year under President Obama.
  This is what happens when Republicans implement a pro-growth, pro-
opportunity agenda that gets Washington out of the way. Everyone shares 
in the prosperity.

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