Demonstrators Demand Jobs On Capitol Hill

By Adrianna McGinley

Reps. Raul Grijalva (D-Ariz.) and Keith Ellison (D-Minn.) joined hundreds of activists and union representatives on Capitol Hill and demanded Congress take action to create jobs, something Ellison has already vowed to do.

“You have elected us to Congress. We are listening to you, and we want to be in partnership with you,” Ellison said. “So when you go out across America and you fight for the justice we all deserve, please know that you’ve got brothers and sisters in Congress ready to fight side by side with you.”

Attendees also stood in solidarity with the Occupy Wall Street protestors, but Grijalva played down comparisons suggesting the Occupy Wall Street movement will spark the creation of a new political party. He said the movement is not an answer to the Tea Party, but rather a solution to America’s problems.

Struggling Americans shared their stories at the rally, including unemployed Army Reservist Tiffany Mellers. 

“I am continually shocked at how little politicians seem to care about how regular people, like me are doing,” Mellers said. “This cannot go on any longer…we are finally saying enough is enough.”

Demonstrators announced that another rally, Occupy DC, is scheduled for Thursday at Freedom Plaza in support of the Occupy Wall Street movement.

Dems React To Boehner's Resistance On China Bill

By Adrianna McGinley

House Republicans must schedule a vote on a bill addressing Chinese currency manipulation, said Rep. Sander Levin (D-Mich.) and other House Democrats on Tuesday.

The House Ways and Means Committee ranking Democrat and other supporters of the bill said the legislation would create jobs in the U.S.

“There’s been no jobs legislation that has come out of the Republican majority here,” Levin said. “This is a jobs bill, and it is coming over most certainly from the Senate, and so the question will be whether the House leadership will let us vote on it. They know if it comes up for a vote, it will pass.”

Democrats who spoke took issue with House Speaker John Boehner’s (R-Ohio) assertion that the bill would be “dangerous” for Congress to take up.

“This is a message from the Republican party, from Speaker Boehner, to all those small and medium size manufacturers all across the industrial Midwest that your help…is dead on arrival,” said Rep. Tim Ryan (D-Ohio). “The Republican party no longer represents the small and medium size manufacturer.”

Levin said his years of experience in trade dismiss concerns from critics who say the bill could lead to a “trade war” with China. Levin said American businesses are already on an uneven playing field with the industrial powerhouse.

Rep. Jim McDermott (D-Wash.) heavily criticized Republicans for not acting on the bill, saying they are inhibiting economic recovery.

“They don’t want Barack Obama to have one bit of success,” said the ranking member of the House Trade Subcommittee. “They will do anything to our economy in order to prevent him from having any lessening of the unemployment rate in this country.”

Rep. John Larson (D-Conn.) agreed, saying Congress not only needs to act on this bill, but also on the president’s jobs bill, and he urged reporters to ask Republicans “why won’t you take up the job creation bills?”

Bloomberg's Stance On Immigration Draws Heavy Criticism

By Adrianna McGinley

Roy Beck, President of NumbersUSA, an immigration reduction organization, offered harsh criticisms of New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s comments touting immigration reform as the key to job creation.

“He doesn’t seem to have an idea what’s happening to American workers,” Beck said. “He doesn’t seem to know that there are 22 million Americans who are looking for a full-time job, who can’t find one.”

Beck blasted Bloomberg for saying undocumented college graduates should be allowed to pursue employment in the U.S. saying it sends the wrong message to the parents of citizen graduates.

“It’s very offensive to the parents of today’s high school students and college students for Mayor Bloomberg to continually go around and say that these American children are not worthy of getting the jobs when they get out of college, but instead we need to have a whole lot more foreign students come in and take those jobs,” Beck said.

Beck acknowledged that there is a need for comprehensive immigration reform, saying E-Verify should be made mandatory. The NumbersUSA founder added that the green card system should also be reformed, making permanent residence available only to those with “truly world-class skills.”

According to its website, NumbersUSA is a non-partisan site committed to “bringing federal immigration policy back to a logical place.”

Bloomberg Cites Immigration Reform As Key To Economic Recovery

By Adrianna McGinley

New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg proposed an overhaul of the immigration system as a bipartisan key to economic recovery and job creation.

During a speech Wednesday at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in D.C., Bloomberg proposed reform focused on opening pathways for international students, entrepreneurs and temporary workers, citing that a mere 15 percent of visas are given for economic reasons, a number that he says drastically lessens the U.S. ability to compete globally.

“Allocating only 15 percent of visas based on economics is just terrible public policy, and it really is holding our economy back. In today’s global marketplace we cannot afford to keep turning away those with skills that our country needs to grow and to succeed. It is sabotaging our economy, I’ve called it national suicide, and I think it really is.”

He said the U.S. can no longer rely on its position as the world’s super power of innovation, as other countries emerge as strong competitors.

“America no longer is the inevitable crossroads for enterprise and innovation. Countries from Asia to South America now beckon with opportunity, so the United States simply has to compete like never before for talent.”

Bloomberg cited programs in China offering incentives including tax breaks, affordable loans, and start up capital for those who study overseas to return to China once they graduate. He said not providing a path for these students to remain and work in the U.S. is “about the dumbest thing we can do” since two-thirds of those earning Ph.D.s in computer science or engineering in the U.S. are foreign students.

“We are saying to those who dream of becoming Americans, who dream of coming here to work and start businesses, we don’t need you, we don’t need your sweat or your skills, we don’t need your ideas or your innovations, but nothing, nothing could be further from the truth,” Bloomberg said. “We desperately need immigrants who want to come here to work, who have the skills our companies need to succeed. The American dream cannot survive if we keep telling the dreamers to go elsewhere.”

Bloomberg urged the public to contact their representatives to push for immigration reform.

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.