[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 157 (2011), Part 6]
[Senate]
[Pages 8714-8715]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                           ECONOMIC RECOVERY

  Mr. McCONNELL. Mr. President, as Senators return to Washington this 
week, we do so amidst a crush of troubling news about the economy. In 
the past week alone, we have learned that home values across the 
country are still falling at a time when about one out of five 
homeowners already owes more on their home than that home is worth. 
Auto sales are down. Manufacturers are showing the weakest growth in 
nearly 2 years. And there is deep pessimism about the prospects of a 
recovery anytime soon. So while some in Washington have sought to kind 
of paper over the economic problems or offer weak assurances that a 
recovery is right around the corner, millions of Americans continue to 
suffer with no end in sight, and very few people are confident things 
will turn around anytime soon. It is no secret why.
  For 2\1/2\ years, Democrats in Washington have paid lipservice to the 
idea of job creation while pursuing an agenda that is radically opposed 
to it, and the results speak for themselves. They told us that if we 
borrowed $1 trillion and spent it, unemployment would rise above 8 
percent. Mr. President, 2\1/2\ years later, unemployment is hovering 
above 9 percent--higher than when the stimulus was signed. They told us 
that if we spent trillions on a new health care entitlement, we would 
see health care costs go down. A year later, health care costs are 
expected to go up. They told us that if we spent money on things we 
didn't have, such as cash for clunkers, turtle tunnels, solar panels, 
and windmills--in other words, on more government--the recovery would 
take care of itself. And where has it gotten us? Well, last week a 
second rating agency threatened that if we do not get our fiscal house 
in order in a matter of weeks, America's stellar rating runs a serious 
risk of being downgraded. This is uncharted territory.
  The warning signs are clear and urgent. Something must be done. The 
first step is to recognize how we got here. That is the easy part. The 
government-driven policies of the last 2\1/2\ years have clearly been a 
failure. The next step is getting Democrats in Washington to admit it, 
and that is the hard part. If the last few weeks have shown us 
anything, it is that Democrats in Washington are in a deep state of 
denial. We have seen their approach to all the warnings.
  As signs of an economic catastrophe have gathered, Republicans have 
offered concrete proposals for creating jobs and growing the economy. 
We have offered multiple concrete budget proposals. We have offered 
specific plans for reining in the crushing cost of entitlements and for 
preserving them. Democrats have offered a 30-second campaign ad of 
someone pushing a grandmother off a cliff. As ratings agencies have 
sent up smoke signals about the catastrophic consequences of a 
potential default, Republicans have proposed plans that will rein in 
our deficit and debt and send a clear signal to taxpayers and the world 
that lawmakers in Washington have the will to live within our means. 
Democrats rushed to the White House and demanded that the President 
raise taxes. These past weeks should have been a wake-up call for 
Democrats. They sent it through to voicemail. More concerned about an 
election that is nearly 2\1/2\ years away, Democrats have ignored every 
single warning.
  Americans look at all this, and they ask themselves a simple 
question: When will these guys get serious? Every light on the control 
panel is flashing red. Yet, amidst all the bad news this past Friday, 
the President heads out to Toledo to pat himself on the back for an 
auto bailout that is expected to cost taxpayers tens of billions of 
dollars. Nearly 14 million Americans are looking for jobs and can not 
find them. Yet the President, who acknowledges that free-trade 
agreements will create hundreds of thousands of new jobs, is now 
suddenly holding them hostage in exchange for even more government 
spending. American businesses want to expand and hire. Yet the White 
House has weighed them down with mountains of new regulations and 
costs, health care mandates, taxes, and conflicting signals about the 
future. American energy producers want to tap into our own resources. 
Yet the administration is blocking them at every turn. One of our 
Nation's biggest and proudest manufacturers wants to build a new 
factory that would employ thousands and solidify its reputation as an 
industry leader in the world. Yet the administration is standing in the 
way in order to help their union allies. Since when do businesses have 
to ask the President's permission to create jobs?
  Most people know that when it comes to politicians, you should pay 
more attention to what they do than what they say. Never was this truer 
when it comes to Democrats in Washington today.
  Just consider this. Three years ago, my good friend the majority 
leader issued a press release blasting the Bush administration on its 
approach to unemployment and debt. He called these figures a casualty 
of the administration's failed economic policies and a shameful legacy 
of the policies of the previous 8 years. At the time my friend the 
majority leader made that statement, unemployment was 5 percent and the 
national debt stood at $9.2 trillion.

[[Page 8715]]

Today, with unemployment above 9 percent and the debt at more than $14 
trillion, Democrats are silent. They have no plan, no proposals, no 
sense of urgency. They run the White House and they run the Senate, and 
yet their entire approach is to sit back and wait--no budget, no plans, 
just wait for the next election; let Republicans offer solutions, and 
then we will attack them and pretend we care about jobs.
  That is the game plan. Here is the problem. Unless one is a political 
consultant or just standing around waiting for a bailout, their plan 
won't do anything to create a single new job--not one--and it won't do 
anything to address the crisis we know is coming.
  There is no excuse for inaction. That is why Republicans refuse to 
sit back and wait. Until these crises are met, until we see more jobs 
being created, until the American people begin to regain their 
confidence in this economy, then we will have to be out there proposing 
solutions, coming up with answers, and making our case. And we will 
keep at it until our Democratic friends finally start to focus on the 
battle for America's future instead of the battle over next year's 
election.
  Mr. President, I suggest the absence of a quorum.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. The clerk will call the roll.
  The legislative clerk proceeded to call the roll.
  Mr. KYL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that the order for 
the quorum call be rescinded.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. Without objection, it is so 
ordered.
  Mr. KYL. Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent that I be allowed to 
speak as in morning business for up to 15 minutes.
  The ACTING PRESIDENT pro tempore. Without objection, it is so 
ordered.

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