Hoyer: GOP Doesn't Want Obama To Succeed On Jobs

By Adrianna McGinley

House Republicans are jeopardizing the nation’s economic success and reputation for political purposes, said House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) on Tuesday.

Hoyer told reporters that he is confident in Congress’s ability to put aside political differences and pass jobs legislation, but warned against the “defeat Obama” attitude coming from some GOP members.

“I call your attention to the stark contrast between Democrats’ response to George Bush at the beginning of this crisis and Republicans’ responses to Barack Obama,” Hoyer said. “The leader in the Senate says his principle objective is to defeat Barrack Obama, what follows is that America needs to fail over the next 14 months, because if America succeeds, if jobs are created, if the economy starts growing, then some will believe that it will be to the political benefit of Barack Obama and the Democrats.”

Hoyer said he supports President Obama’s call for a return to Clinton-era tax rates for the wealthy, and said that everything should be on the table when it comes to job creation and debt reduction.

“No one,” Hoyer said, “if they’re going to be responsible, should preclude any item from being on the table. The magnitude of the challenge that confronts us is great, the consequences of failure are substantial.”

Hoyer said he was extremely pleased that the military’s “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell” policy was officially ended today, but said that if Congress cannot pass comprehensive jobs legislation, America’s reputation will suffer in the eyes of its people and the international community.

“America believes that Congress can’t work, that its partisan gridlock undermines its ability to get the job done for the American people,” Hoyer said. “If we do not come to agreement and Americans and the international community see this Congress and this president unable to act effectively in meeting the challenges that confront us, then I think the confidence level at home and abroad will be further diminished.”

GOP Presidential Contenders Critical Of Obama's Deficit Reduction Plan

President Obama is taking some harsh criticism from a group of individuals over his new proposal to hike taxes on the wealthiest Americans to help pay for his newly unveiled jobs bill.

That group? The GOP presidential field.

Rep. Michele Bachmann, who’s seen her status in the field dip in recent weeks, called Obama’s plans “gimmicks” and simply said “you don’t create jobs by increasing taxes on job creators.”

“If Warren Buffet believes he doesn’t pay enough taxes, then he should write a check today to the Treasury,” Bachmann said in a statement. “He and the President shouldn’t enact warfare on the millions of small businesses, charities and on middle class America with increased tax burdens.”

Rep. Ron Paul (R-Texas) recently emerged victorious in this weekend’s California Straw Poll and his national poll figures have followed suit. Paul now sits just behind former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney and Texas Governor Rick Perry.

In response to Obama’s new proposal, Paul said that by increasing taxes on the “so-called rich,” the president is actually targeting small businesses. Paul continued by saying the President’s policies are putting Americans in opposition with each other, stopping just short of using the words “class warfare,” a term that has grown in popularity among conservatives critical of Obama’s plan.

“The President’s class-baiting rhetoric categorizes Americans into opposing groups and pits them against one another, purely for his own political gain,” Paul said.

Romney, who prides himself as a guy who knows the mechanics of the economy and a job creating guru, argued that higher taxes will only be detrimental to economic growth.

“Higher taxes mean fewer jobs - it’s that simple,” Romney said. ” This is yet another indication that [Obama] has no clue how to bring our economy back.”

Perry shot right to the top after joining the GOP presidential field, using Texas’ job creation numbers as a staple in his new White House campaign. Perry tagged Obama’s proposal as a “bait and switch” plan that would only provide temporary tax relief as a trade off for higher taxes.

“The President penalizes investment when it is needed most,” Perry said. “Worst of all, the Obama plan fails to provide the certainty employers need to create jobs and the spending and deficit reduction our economy needs.”

The candidates will likely address and dissect the President’s American Jobs Act and his proposal to pay for it at their next debate this Thursday, Sept. 22 in Orlando, Fla.

Obama Proposes New Taxes On Top Earners To Slash Deficit

President Obama made an impassioned appeal to Republican lawmakers to support his latest deficit reduction plan, details of which had already been released to the press by the time he took the podium on Monday morning.

(Click here for the White House’s summary of the plan)

Speaking in the White House Rose Garden, the president said his proposal represents a balanced approach to reigning in the nation’s bloated debt level while at the same time providing a shot in the arm to a fledgling economy.

“It’s a plan,” he said, “that reduces our debt by more than four trillion dollars, and achieves these savings in a way that is fair, by asking everybody to do their part so that no one has to bear too much of the burden on their own.”

Obama added that the measure would fully offset his jobs bill, a $447 billion plan that includes a mix of tax cuts and tax credits and spending on public works projects.

Like everything these days, the biggest challenge for the president will be getting Congress to support the plan. Republicans, led by House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) and House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-Wis.), have already drawn a line in the sand over tax increases, which happen to comprise $1.5 trillion of the total savings found within Obama’s measure.

In a statement put out on Sunday, Ryan called the plan an example of “class warfare” — referring to Obama’s idea to raise tax rates on those making more than $250,000 per year. The president’s plan also includes the so-called “Buffett rule,” a nod to billionaire investor Warren Buffett, who has come out in support of raising investment taxes on those making more than $1 million per year.

The president, in his remarks this morning, pushed back strongly against Ryan’s assertion.

“I reject the idea that asking a hedge fund manager to pay the same tax rate as a plumber or a teacher is class warfare,” he said. “I think it’s just the right thing to do.”

Republicans will also likely accuse Obama of using gimmicks, such as counting $1 trillion in new cuts from ending the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, to inflate total savings. However, as the Associated Press noted on Monday, Ryan included those future savings in his budget proposal earlier this year.

Cantor: Stimulus Spending Unacceptable

By Adrianna McGinley

House Majority Leader Eric Cantor (R-Va.), said no to more stimulus spending at his weekly news briefing Monday.

Contributing to the overall sentiment of ‘no more of the same’ emanating from both sides of the aisle, Cantor said no form of stimulus spending will be accepted.

“Anything that is akin to the stimulus bill I think is not going to be acceptable to the American people. Most folks understand that the promises made around the stimulus program were not kept.”

Cantor pointed out several points on which he does agree with the president, including the need to focus  on small businesses when presenting jobs legislation.

“The fact is, we don’t have the money, and we got to prioritize and right now is about getting people back to work. Right now we want to focus on small businesses and the private sector because focusing on the stimulus and the public sector has not gotten us anywhere.”

Cantor also expressed worry over the “pay fors” that will not be included in the bill that the president is expected to present this week.

“I sure hope that the president is not suggesting that we pay for his proposals with a massive tax increase at the end of 2012 on job creators that we’re actually counting on to reduce unemployment.”

On the doubt regarding whether or not Congress will be willing to work across party lines to pass jobs legislation, Cantor said, “I think all of us are here to try and do right by the people that elect us and what’s right for this country.” He added, “when there is potential for areas of agreement, we’re going to work towards accomplishing that.”

He criticized President Obama, however, for taking an “all or nothing” approach.

“I do not think that the president’s all or nothing approach is something that is constructive. We have good ideas, he’s got some ideas that we think are good, we can bring these together, but let’s not allow the things in his bill that we disagree with to get in the way of producing some results.”

Rep. Tim Scott (R-SC), also present at the briefing, said, “those of us who come from strong defense districts still believe that if we’re going to have the opportunity to engage the president, we have to do so with everything on that table to improve our spending,” when the two were presented with questions regarding possible cuts to national defense.

Obama On Jobs Bill: No Games, No Politics, No Delays

President Obama announced Monday that he is presenting Congress with the American Jobs Act and urged the legislative body to pass the bill “immediately.”

“This is the bill that Congress needs to pass,” Obama said from the Rose Garden where he was joined by Vice President Joe Biden and a handful of teachers, construction workers, police officers, firefighters and veterans. 

“No games, no politics, no delays,” Obama said. “I’m sending this bill to Congress today and they ought to pass it immediately.” 

Obama ensured that the $447 billion dollar proposal would be paid for in full and would not add a single cent to the deficit. The president said that he will unveil a plan sometime next week that would include details describing how he plans to pay for his jobs bill. The payment plan will also include measures to further reduce the country’s deficit, according to the president.

During his remarks, Obama called on Americans once again to call and email their representatives and urge them to shy away from partisan politics and pass his jobs bill sooner rather than later. 

“The fact of the matter is the next election is 14 months away,” Obama said. “The American people don’t have the luxury of waiting 14 months for Congress to take action.”