[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 114 (Tuesday, July 9, 2019)]
[Senate]
[Pages S4713-S4714]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                              The Economy

  Mr. THUNE. Mr. President, we received more good economic news on 
Friday with the announcement that the economy created 224,000 jobs in 
June.
  Meanwhile, unemployment remained near its lowest level in half a 
century. June marked the 16th straight month that unemployment has been 
at or below 4 percent. That is a tremendous record.
  June also marked the 11th straight month that wage growth has been at 
or above 3 percent. Before 2018, wage growth had not hit 3 percent in 
nearly a decade.
  Friday's announcement was just the latest piece of good news about 
the economy. Thanks to Republican economic policies, the economy has 
taken off during the Trump administration. Economic growth is up, wage 
growth is up, personal income is up, and the list goes on.
  Importantly, the benefits of this economic growth are being spread 
far and wide. One of the distinguishing features of the economic 
expansion that we have been experiencing is the way it has been 
reaching those who have trailed behind economically.
  Over the past 3 years, pay hikes for the lowest income workers have 
exceeded pay hikes for the richest workers. Huge numbers of new blue-
collar jobs have been created, and the employment situation for 
minorities has improved substantially.
  The unemployment rates for Asian Americans, African Americans, and 
Hispanic Americans are all at or near record lows. The Wall Street 
Journal notes that ``Nearly one million more blacks and two million 
more Hispanics are employed than when Barack Obama left office, and 
minorities account for more than half of all new jobs created during 
the Trump Presidency.''
  So where has all this economic progress come from? At the end of the 
Obama administration, 2\1/2\ years ago, the economic outlook wasn't too 
rosy. The economy was sputtering, and American families were 
struggling. Some were predicting that a weak economy would be the new 
normal.
  Republicans, however, didn't agree with that. We knew that American 
workers and American businesses were as dynamic and creative as ever. 
But we also knew that burdensome regulations and an outdated tax code 
were holding our economy back and reducing the opportunities available 
to workers. So when we took office in 2017, we got right to work on 
improving

[[Page S4714]]

our economy in order to improve life for the American people.
  We eliminated burdensome regulations that were acting as a drag on 
economic growth, and we passed a historic reform of our Tax Code to put 
money in Americans' pockets and make it easier for businesses to grow 
and to create jobs. Now we are seeing the results: a thriving economy 
that is extending more opportunities to more Americans.
  For all of Democrats' talk about inequality, it is actually 
Republicans and President Trump who have done something about it. We 
have helped create an economy that is lifting up people across the 
entire economic spectrum.
  There is still more work to be done, of course. For one thing, we 
need to make sure that the agriculture economy is able to catch up to 
the economy at large. But thanks to tax reform and other Republican 
economic policies, American workers are doing better than they have in 
a very long time.
  It is unfortunate that the gains we have made would be reversed if 
Democrats have their way. Democrats' plans--from budget-busting 
government-run healthcare to free college--all have one thing in 
common: They would cost a lot of money.
  Where would the government get most of that money? From tax 
increases--tax increases on businesses and tax increases on ordinary 
Americans.
  Thanks to the tax relief that Republicans passed, the economy has 
expanded, paychecks have increased, and more jobs and opportunities 
have been created.
  Raising taxes would result in the opposite: fewer jobs and 
opportunities, a smaller economy, and more families struggling to get 
by on smaller paychecks.
  Republicans are determined to make sure that doesn't happen. We are 
committed to building on the progress we have made and further 
expanding economic opportunity for all Americans.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER. The Senator from Pennsylvania.