We Can't Wait

Today in Las Vegas, the President is kicking off a new effort to urge Congress to pass the American Jobs Act, piece by piece, to put folks back to work and strengthen the economy.  Using the mantra “we can’t wait,” the President will highlight executive actions that his Administration will take.  He’ll continue to pressure Congressional Republicans to put country before party and pass the American Jobs Act, but he believes we cannot wait, so he will act where they won't.

While in Vegas, he’ll highlight a set of steps announced by the FHFA to make it easier for some homeowners to refinance their mortgages.  This will help responsible borrowers with little or no equity in their homes take advantage of today’s low mortgage rates. 

Later this week, the Administration will announce measures to help students better manage their student loan debt when they graduate. 

These announcements will build on our ongoing effort to take action and help middle class families. For example, we decided to stop waiting for Congress to fix No Child Left Behind, and decided to give states the flexibility they need to help our children meet higher standards.  And the President acted to dramatically reduce the time it takes for small businesses to get paid when they have a contract with the federal government, and eliminated regulations that will save hospitals and patients billions of dollars. 

These steps aren’t a substitute for the bold action we need to create jobs and grow the economy, but they’ll make a difference.  The fact is, our problems are too serious to simply do nothing.  The stakes are too high.  The issues facing Americans require serious bipartisan solutions, yet the Republicans in Congress have decided to put party before country and block legislation that would create jobs and grow the economy.  They blocked the Americans Jobs Act, a bill that independent experts said could create up to 2 million jobs.  And again, just last week, Senate Republicans obstructed a piece of the American Jobs Act that would keep hundreds of thousands of firefighters on the job, police officers on the streets, and teachers in the classroom when our kids need them most.

While President Obama continues to take executive actions, Republicans in Congress will have the opportunity to do what’s right for the country.  They’ll have a chance to vote on another piece of the Americans Jobs Act.  It’s a bill that will make an immediate investment of $50 billion in our nation’s surface transportation infrastructure and a $10 billion investment to create a bipartisan National Infrastructure bank.  Together, these initiatives will put hundreds of thousands of construction workers back on the job rebuilding our roads, rails, and runways.

We’ll continue to do our job.  Over the weeks and months ahead, we’ll continue to take actions that will improve the economy and help middle class families.  Now, it’s time for Republicans in Congress to do theirs. It’s time to put country before party and do what’s right for the American people.