The FMP reaction to Obama’s “Jobs Speech”

Before a joint session of Congress last night, President Obama reached into the trash can of failed Democrat policies and pulled out a recycled version of his 2009 Stimulus plan. This time around, he’s asking for a $447 Billion stimulus package containing $250 billion in tax cuts and $194 billion in new spending. And, of course, he did not detail how it would be paid for, despite repeated assurances that it somehow would. Also not mentioned was how much Obama wants in new tax increases.  For the details, we’ll have to wait another two weeks.

But that didn’t stop Dear Leader from droning on like a broken record, demanding 18 times that Congress should pass this bill, sight unseen. Every time he uttered a variation of the phrase “Pass this jobs bill,” I was reminded of the healthcare fiasco, when the President, Nancy Pelosi and Harry Reid urged Congress to pass a bloated bill they hadn’t even read.

Last night was no different.

Only this time, a visibly angry Obama repeatedly scolded Congress as though they were responsible for 2.5 years of his incompetence. And by grandstanding in the Well of the House, the President’s long-winded speech just looked like the charade it was. There were no new ideas here. No grand plan. Just more spending and more tax increases. Obama must truly believe that they only way for America to prosper is for him to redistribute the country’s wealth.

In the FMP household, my lovely wife hates it whenever President Obama gives a speech because yours truly always talks back to him, as if Dear Leader can hear me through the television. Last night’s campaign speech was no different. The President queued up his usual, factually-challenged talking points and I kept swatting them down like so many buzzing (f)lies.

Below is the transcript of Obama’s speech. His remarks are in light gray, mine are in red. The fisking will not be quite as vigorous as it was last night while the circus was unfolding, but you’ll get the general idea.

THE WHITE HOUSE

September 8, 2011
Remarks of President Barack Obama in an  Address to a Joint Session of Congress

Mr. Speaker, Mr. Vice President, Members of Congress, and fellow Americans:

Tonight we meet at an urgent time for our country. We continue to face an economic crisis that has left millions of our neighbors jobless, and a political crisis that has made things worse.

This past week, reporters have been asking “What will this speech mean for the President? What will it mean for Congress? How will it affect their polls, and the next election?”

But the millions of Americans who are watching right now, they don’t care about politics.  They have real-life concerns.  Many have spent months looking for work.  Others are doing their best just to scrape by — giving up nights out with the family to save on gas or make the mortgage; postponing retirement to send a kid to college.

And millions of Tea Partiers wonder why it’s taken 961 days in office for President Obama to come up with a jobs plan.

These men and women grew up with faith in an America where hard work and responsibility paid off.  They believed in a country where everyone gets a fair shake and does their fair share [drink!] — where if you stepped up, did your job, and were loyal to your company, that loyalty would be rewarded with a decent salary and good benefits; maybe a raise once in a while.  If you did the right thing, you could make it.  Anybody could make it in America.

For decades now, Americans have watched that compact erode.  They have seen the decks too often stacked against them.  And they know that Washington has not always put their interests first.

The people of this country work hard to meet their responsibilities.  The question tonight is whether we’ll meet ours.  The question is whether, in the face of an ongoing national crisis, we can stop the political circus and actually do something to help the economy.  (Applause.)  The question is — the question is whether we can restore some of the fairness [drink!] and security that has defined this nation since our beginning.

President Obama could have stopped “the political circus” by giving this jobs speech from the Oval Office instead of using a joint session of Congress as a political prop to push his reelection agenda.

Those of us here tonight can’t solve all our nation’s woes.  Ultimately, our recovery will be driven not by Washington, but by our businesses and our workers.  But we can help.  We can make a difference.  There are steps we can take right now to improve people’s lives.

I am sending this Congress a plan that you should pass right away.  It’s called the American Jobs Act.  There should be nothing controversial about this piece of legislation.  Everything in here is the kind of proposal that’s been supported by both Democrats and Republicans — including many who sit here tonight.  And everything in this bill will be paid for.  Everything.  (Applause.)

Paid for? How? Even the AP is calling B.S. on this. Any time President Obama says that something will be paid for, you can bet it won’t. Not without a huge tax hike. 

And just which Republicans have supported which proposals? He made similar false claims of Republican support while he was peddling Obamacare. There’s a huge difference between RINOs like John McCain and Olympia Snowe and true conservatives like Paul Ryan.

The purpose of the American Jobs Act is simple:  to put more people back to work and more money in the pockets of those who are working.  It will create more jobs for construction workers, more jobs for teachers, more jobs for veterans, and more jobs for long-term unemployed.  (Applause.)  It will provide — it will provide a tax break for companies who hire new workers, and it will cut payroll taxes in half for every working American and every small business.  (Applause.)  It will provide a jolt to an economy that has stalled, and give companies confidence that if they invest and if they hire, there will be customers for their products and services.  You should pass this jobs plan right away.  (Applause.)

Tax breaks for companies hiring new workers is a fine idea. And a payroll tax cut isn’t bad, either. But both of these are short-term ideas which will invariably create an increased burden on companies after the temporary measure goes away. So then what, Mr. President? Oh yeah, I forgot. You only need this plan to work until November 2012.

Everyone here knows that small businesses are where most new jobs begin.  And you know that while corporate profits have come roaring back, smaller companies haven’t.  So for everyone who speaks so passionately about making life easier for “job creators,” this plan is for you.  (Applause.)

Pass this jobs bill — pass this jobs bill, and starting tomorrow, small businesses will get a tax cut if they hire new workers or if they raise workers’ wages.  Pass this jobs bill, and all small business owners will also see their payroll taxes cut in half next year.  (Applause.)  If you have 50 employees — if you have 50 employees making an average salary, that’s an $80,000 tax cut.  And all businesses will be able to continue writing off the investments they make in 2012.

It’s not just Democrats who have supported this kind of proposal.  Fifty House Republicans have proposed the same payroll tax cut that’s in this plan.  You should pass it right away.  (Applause.)

Just because there may be a few good items in this bill doesn’t mean the GOP should pass the entire thing. A glass of water need only contain a small amount of arsenic to be deadly. Many of Obama’s other proposals are just as toxic to America’s economy.

Pass this jobs bill, and we can put people to work rebuilding America.  Everyone here knows we have badly decaying roads and bridges all over the country.  Our highways are clogged with traffic.  Our skies are the most congested in the world.  It’s an outrage.

It’s an outrage to assert that we aren’t repairing our roads and bridges because of Republicans. This bit of demagoguery conveniently forgets the President’s $787 billion dollar stimulus bill from 2009, wherein we were promised it would pay for — you guessed it — repairing America’s roads and bridges.

Mr. President, are you confessing that your first stimulus was a bunch of smoke and mirrors and this stimulus will really, really work this time? Were you lying then or are you lying now?

Building a world-class transportation system is part of what made us a economic superpower.  And now we’re going to sit back and watch China build newer airports and faster railroads?  At a time when millions of unemployed construction workers could build them right here in America?  (Applause.)

There are private construction companies all across America just waiting to get to work.  There’s a bridge that needs repair between Ohio and Kentucky that’s on one of the busiest trucking routes in North America.  A public transit project in Houston that will help clear up one of the worst areas of traffic in the country.  And there are schools throughout this country that desperately need renovating.  How can we expect our kids to do their best in places that are literally falling apart?  This is America.  Every child deserves a great school — and we can give it to them, if we act now.  (Applause.)

Again, whatever happened to the $787 billion you were given in 2009?

The American Jobs Act will repair and modernize at least 35,000 schools.  It will put people to work right now fixing roofs and windows, installing science labs and high-speed Internet in classrooms all across this country.  It will rehabilitate homes and businesses in communities hit hardest by foreclosures.  It will jumpstart thousands of transportation projects all across the country.  And to make sure the money is properly spent, we’re building on reforms we’ve already put in place.  No more earmarks.  No more boondoggles.  No more bridges to nowhere.  We’re cutting the red tape that prevents some of these projects from getting started as quickly as possible.  And we’ll set up an independent fund to attract private dollars and issue loans based on two criteria:  how badly a construction project is needed and how much good it will do for the economy.  (Applause.)

Before anybody swallows this line about “no more earmarks,” they might do well to look back at Comrade Soetoro’s similar claims about no earmarks in Porkulus #1 and the $1.1 Trillion-dollar Omnibus Spending Bill.

This idea came from a bill written by a Texas Republican and a Massachusetts Democrat.  The idea for a big boost in construction is supported by America’s largest business organization and America’s largest labor organization.  It’s the kind of proposal that’s been supported in the past by Democrats and Republicans alike.  You should pass it right away.  (Applause.)

Bingo. There’s the payoff to Big Labor.

Pass this jobs bill, and thousands of teachers in every state will go back to work.  These are the men and women charged with preparing our children for a world where the competition has never been tougher.  But while they’re adding teachers in places like South Korea, we’re laying them off in droves.  It’s unfair to our kids.  It undermines their future and ours.  And it has to stop.  Pass this bill, and put our teachers back in the classroom where they belong.  (Applause.)

After the first year of federal subsidy, what will the states do to pay these thousands of teachers? Again, this is a short-term fix which kicks the problem down the road.

And again, what did you do with the $787 billion you were given in 2009 that was supposed to help teachers go back to work?

Pass this jobs bill, and companies will get extra tax credits if they hire America’s veterans.  We ask these men and women to leave their careers, leave their families, risk their lives to fight for our country.  The last thing they should have to do is fight for a job when they come home.  (Applause.)

This is a good idea. But again, a couple good ideas mixed in with economic poison isn’t something America needs to swallow. Instead of this toxic concoction, how about proposing individual ideas like this and let them pass on their own merits? Tax credits for hiring veterans could surely pass without a problem.

Pass this bill, and hundreds of thousands of disadvantaged young people will have the hope and the dignity of a summer job next year.  And their parents — (applause) — their parents, low-income Americans who desperately want to work, will have more ladders out of poverty.

Pass this jobs bill, and companies will get a $4,000 tax credit if they hire anyone who has spent more than six months looking for a job.  (Applause.)  We have to do more to help the long-term unemployed in their search for work.  This jobs plan builds on a program in Georgia that several Republican leaders have highlighted, where people who collect unemployment insurance participate in temporary work as a way to build their skills while they look for a permanent job.  The plan also extends unemployment insurance for another year.  (Applause.)  If the millions of unemployed Americans stopped getting this insurance, and stopped using that money for basic necessities, it would be a devastating blow to this economy.  Democrats and Republicans in this chamber have supported unemployment insurance plenty of times in the past.  And in this time of prolonged hardship, you should pass it again — right away.  (Applause.)

We already pay for TWO YEARS of unemployment benefits. America doesn’t need more unemployment and food stamps, we need an economy unshackled by a government that wants to extract as much money as possible for redistribution. Two and a half years of failed Keynesian economics is more than enough.

Pass this jobs bill, and the typical working family will get a $1,500 tax cut next year.  Fifteen hundred dollars that would have been taken out of your pocket will go into your pocket.  This expands on the tax cut that Democrats and Republicans already passed for this year.  If we allow that tax cut to expire — if we refuse to act — middle-class families will get hit with a tax increase at the worst possible time.  We can’t let that happen.  I know that some of you have sworn oaths to never raise any taxes on anyone for as long as you live.  Now is not the time to carve out an exception and raise middle-class taxes, which is why you should pass this bill right away.  (Applause.)

This part sounds an awful lot like a validation of conservatism: allowing workers to keep more of what they own is good for the economy. This is the polar opposite to everything Obama has stood for — namely, wealth redistribution.

This is the American Jobs Act.  It will lead to new jobs for construction workers, for teachers, for veterans, for first responders, young people and the long-term unemployed.  It will provide tax credits to companies that hire new workers, tax relief to small business owners, and tax cuts for the middle class.  And here’s the other thing I want the American people to know:  The American Jobs Act will not add to the deficit.  It will be paid for.  And here’s how.  (Applause.)

Wait for it…

The agreement we passed in July will cut government spending by about $1 trillion over the next 10 years.  It also charges this Congress to come up with an additional $1.5 trillion in savings by Christmas.  Tonight, I am asking you to increase that amount so that it covers the full cost of the American Jobs Act.  And a week from Monday, I’ll be releasing a more ambitious deficit plan — a plan that will not only cover the cost of this jobs bill, but stabilize our debt in the long run.  (Applause.)

Bing! He’s dumping the responsibility for an additional $47 billion in financial obligation onto a committee that hasn’t even figured out how to deal with the deficit yet. That’s not a plan. It’s “seagull management.”

This approach is basically the one I’ve been advocating for months.  In addition to the trillion dollars of spending cuts I’ve already signed into law [projected cuts to baseline spending], it’s a balanced plan [drink!] that would reduce the deficit by making additional spending cuts, by making modest adjustments to health care programs like Medicare and Medicaid, and by reforming our tax code in a way that asks the wealthiest Americans and biggest corporations to pay their fair share. [drink!] (Applause.)  What’s more, the spending cuts wouldn’t happen so abruptly that they’d be a drag on our economy, or prevent us from helping small businesses and middle-class families get back on their feet right away.

Now, I realize there are some in my party who don’t think we should make any changes at all to Medicare and Medicaid, and I understand their concerns.  But here’s the truth:  Millions of Americans rely on Medicare in their retirement.  And millions more will do so in the future.  They pay for this benefit during their working years.  They earn it.  But with an aging population and rising health care costs, we are spending too fast to sustain the program.  And if we don’t gradually reform the system while protecting current beneficiaries, it won’t be there when future retirees need it.  We have to reform Medicare to strengthen it.  (Applause.)

Wait. When Republicans say they want to reform Medicare, we were told by Democrats that the GOP wants to “destroy Medicare.” Are you saying you want to destroy Medicare?

I am also — I’m also well aware that there are many Republicans who don’t believe we should raise taxes on those who are most fortunate and can best afford it.  But here is what every American knows:  While most people in this country struggle to make ends meet, a few of the most affluent citizens and most profitable corporations enjoy tax breaks and loopholes that nobody else gets.  Right now, Warren Buffett pays a lower tax rate than his secretary — an outrage he has asked us to fix.  (Laughter.)  We need a tax code where everyone gets a fair shake and where everybody pays their fair share. [drink!] (Applause.)  And by the way, I believe the vast majority of wealthy Americans and CEOs are willing to do just that if it helps the economy grow and gets our fiscal house in order.

Before pulling out the tired “Warren Buffett wants to pay higher taxes” canard yet again, perhaps Obama could persuade Buffett to pay the $1 billion dollars his corporation owes in back taxes.

I’ll also offer ideas to reform a corporate tax code that stands as a monument to special interest influence in Washington.  By eliminating pages of loopholes and deductions, we can lower one of the highest corporate tax rates in the world.  (Applause.)  Our tax code should not give an advantage to companies that can afford the best-connected lobbyists.  It should give an advantage to companies that invest and create jobs right here in the United States of America.  (Applause.)

Wanna eliminate loopholes and make taxes more fair? Fine. Just abolish the IRS and institute a single flat tax rate of less than 20 percent for everybody. Or abolish the IRS and institute the Fair Tax. Either one.

So we can reduce this deficit, pay down our debt, and pay for this jobs plan in the process.  But in order to do this, we have to decide what our priorities are.  We have to ask ourselves, “What’s the best way to grow the economy and create jobs?”

Lemme guess: tax increases?

Should we keep tax loopholes for oil companies?  Or should we use that money to give small business owners a tax credit when they hire new workers?  Because we can’t afford to do both.  Should we keep tax breaks for millionaires and billionaires?  Or should we put teachers back to work so our kids can graduate ready for college and good jobs?  (Applause.)  Right now, we can’t afford to do both.

This isn’t political grandstanding.  This isn’t class warfare.  This is simple math.  (Laughter.)  This is simple math.  These are real choices.  These are real choices that we’ve got to make.  And I’m pretty sure I know what most Americans would choose.  It’s not even close.  And it’s time for us to do what’s right for our future.  (Applause.)

Any time President Obama says that something he does isn’t political, you can bet it’s political. One doesn’t get more of a grandstand than in the Well of the House.

And when he says it isn’t class warfare, he’s lucky that his name isn’t Pinocchio because his nose would have knocked over his teleprompters by now. Just a few minutes ago, he was demonizing oil companies, millionaires and billionaires, and talking about raising taxes on “those who are most fortunate and can best afford it.”

Sounds to me like a textbook example of class-warfare.

Now, the American Jobs Act answers the urgent need to create jobs right away.  But we can’t stop there.  As I’ve argued since I ran for this office, we have to look beyond the immediate crisis and start building an economy that lasts into the future — an economy that creates good, middle-class jobs that pay well and offer security.  We now live in a world where technology has made it possible for companies to take their business anywhere.  If we want them to start here and stay here and hire here, we have to be able to out-build and out-educate and out-innovate every other country on Earth.  (Applause.)

And this task of making America more competitive for the long haul, that’s a job for all of us.  For government and for private companies.  For states and for local communities — and for every American citizen.  All of us will have to up our game.  All of us will have to change the way we do business.

America has changed the way it does businesss, Mr. President. That’s the whole reason for this recession. More of the same CHANGE isn’t going to fix things.

My administration can and will take some steps to improve our competitiveness on our own.  For example, if you’re a small business owner who has a contract with the federal government, we’re going to make sure you get paid a lot faster than you do right now.  (Applause.)  We’re also planning to cut away the red tape that prevents too many rapidly growing startup companies from raising capital and going public.  And to help responsible homeowners, we’re going to work with federal housing agencies to help more people refinance their mortgages at interest rates that are now near 4 percent.  That’s a step — (applause) — I know you guys must be for this, because that’s a step that can put more than $2,000 a year in a family’s pocket, and give a lift to an economy still burdened by the drop in housing prices.

That’s great. But why has it taken you 961 days to pay government contractors in a timely fashion? Why has it taken you 961 days to cut away red tape from business owners? And why has it taken you 961 days to admit that more money in the pockets of American workers is better for the economy than money in the coffers of the federal government?

So, some things we can do on our own.  Other steps will require congressional action.  Today you passed reform that will speed up the outdated patent process, so that entrepreneurs can turn a new idea into a new business as quickly as possible. That’s the kind of action we need.  Now it’s time to clear the way for a series of trade agreements that would make it easier for American companies to sell their products in Panama and Colombia and South Korea -– while also helping the workers whose jobs have been affected by global competition.  (Applause.)  If Americans can buy Kias and Hyundais, I want to see folks in South Korea driving Fords and Chevys and Chryslers.  (Applause.)  I want to see more products sold around the world stamped with the three proud words:  “Made in America.”  That’s what we need to get done.  (Applause.)

Which trade agreements should Congress ratify, Mr. President? Are you referring to the Korea, Colombia and Panama free-trade deals that have been sitting unsigned on your desk?

And on all of our efforts to strengthen competitiveness, we need to look for ways to work side by side with America’s businesses.  That’s why I’ve brought together a Jobs Council of leaders from different industries who are developing a wide range of new ideas to help companies grow and create jobs.

Already, we’ve mobilized business leaders to train 10,000 American engineers a year, by providing company internships and training.  Other businesses are covering tuition for workers who learn new skills at community colleges.  And we’re going to make sure the next generation of manufacturing takes root not in China or Europe, but right here, in the United States of America.  (Applause)  If we provide the right incentives, the right support — and if we make sure our trading partners play by the rules — we can be the ones to build everything from fuel-efficient cars to advanced biofuels to semiconductors that we sell all around the world.  That’s how America can be number one again.  And that’s how America will be number one again.  (Applause.)

Now, I realize that some of you have a different theory on how to grow the economy.  Some of you sincerely believe that the only solution to our economic challenges is to simply cut most government spending and eliminate most government regulations.  (Applause.)

Well, I agree that we can’t afford wasteful spending, and I’ll work with you, with Congress, to root it out.  And I agree that there are some rules and regulations that do put an unnecessary burden on businesses at a time when they can least afford it.  (Applause.)  That’s why I ordered a review of all government regulations.  So far, we’ve identified over 500 reforms, which will save billions of dollars over the next few years.  (Applause.)  We should have no more regulation than the health, safety and security of the American people require.  Every rule should meet that common-sense test.  (Applause.)

Nice words. But that’s all they are. Words. Ask Gibson Guitars how Obama’s common-sense regulations are working out for them.

But what we can’t do — what I will not do — is let this economic crisis be used as an excuse to wipe out the basic protections that Americans have counted on for decades.  (Applause.)  I reject the idea that we need to ask people to choose between their jobs and their safety.  I reject the argument that says for the economy to grow, we have to roll back protections that ban hidden fees by credit card companies, or rules that keep our kids from being exposed to mercury, or laws that prevent the health insurance industry from shortchanging patients.  I reject the idea that we have to strip away collective bargaining rights to compete in a global economy.  (Applause.)  We shouldn’t be in a race to the bottom, where we try to offer the cheapest labor and the worst pollution standards.  America should be in a race to the top.  And I believe we can win that race.  (Applause.)

This is a pathetic collection of logical fallacies. President Obama is making assertions that are patently untrue. I have yet to see a Republican-sponsored bill in favor of hidden fees, mercury poisoning, or cheating patients of the care for which they’ve paid.

And nobody is saying we have to strip away collective bargaining rights to compete in a global economy. The problem that Republicans have had with collective bargaining revolves around public employee unions using collective bargaining and the concept of forced union membership.

In fact, this larger notion that the only thing we can do to restore prosperity is just dismantle government, refund everybody’s money, and let everyone write their own rules, and tell everyone they’re on their own — that’s not who we are.  That’s not the story of America.

Nobody is saying we should dismantle government. This is a straw man argument — a logical fallacy. Republicans want to reduce the size and scope of government, not eliminate it entirely. Most Republicans are conservatives, not anarchists.

Yes, we are rugged individualists.  Yes, we are strong and self-reliant.  And it has been the drive and initiative of our workers and entrepreneurs that has made this economy the engine and the envy of the world.

But there’s always been another thread running throughout our history — a belief that we’re all connected, and that there are some things we can only do together, as a nation.

We all remember Abraham Lincoln as the leader who saved our Union.  Founder of the Republican Party.  But in the middle of a civil war, he was also a leader who looked to the future — a Republican President who mobilized government to build the Transcontinental Railroad — (applause) — launch the National Academy of Sciences, set up the first land grant colleges.  (Applause.)  And leaders of both parties have followed the example he set.

Ask yourselves — where would we be right now if the people who sat here before us decided not to build our highways, not to build our bridges, our dams, our airports?  What would this country be like if we had chosen not to spend money on public high schools, or research universities, or community colleges?  Millions of returning heroes, including my grandfather, had the opportunity to go to school because of the G.I. Bill.  Where would we be if they hadn’t had that chance?  (Applause.)

Grand ideals, all. But we have all those things now. And what President Obama is proposing doesn’t even begin to approach such lofty goals. What he wants is nothing more than a $447 billion dollar program to ensure his reelection.

How many jobs would it have cost us if past Congresses decided not to support the basic research that led to the Internet and the computer chip?  What kind of country would this be if this chamber had voted down Social Security or Medicare just because it violated some rigid idea about what government could or could not do?  (Applause.)  How many Americans would have suffered as a result?

Yeah, that “rigid idea” in the U.S. Constitution known as enumerated powers. What a nuisance.

No single individual built America on their own.  We built it together.  We have been, and always will be, one nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all; a nation with responsibilities to ourselves and with responsibilities to one another.  And members of Congress, it is time for us to meet our responsibilities.  (Applause.)

Every proposal I’ve laid out tonight is the kind that’s been supported by Democrats and Republicans in the past. [Who? And under which circumstances?] Every proposal I’ve laid out tonight will be paid for. [How? There's no written plan to respond to.]  And every proposal is designed to meet the urgent needs of our people and our communities.

Now, I know there’s been a lot of skepticism about whether the politics of the moment will allow us to pass this jobs plan — or any jobs plan.  Already, we’re seeing the same old press releases and tweets flying back and forth.  Already, the media has proclaimed that it’s impossible to bridge our differences.  And maybe some of you have decided that those differences are so great that we can only resolve them at the ballot box.

We did resolve them at the ballot box in November 2010, a fact Obama is conveniently ignoring. 

But know this:  The next election is 14 months away.  And the people who sent us here — the people who hired us to work for them — they don’t have the luxury of waiting 14 months.  (Applause.)  Some of them are living week to week, paycheck to paycheck, even day to day.  They need help, and they need it now.

That’s what November 2010 was for; it was the highest turnover of any legislative body since before World War II. America sent you a message, Mr. President. You ignored the Tea Party, so the Tea Party sent you an explicit message via the ballot box: you must work with these new Republican representatives. These newly-elected conservatives haven’t been sent there to bow down to you, they’ve been sent to fix your broken policies.

I don’t pretend that this plan will solve all our problems. It should not be, nor will it be, the last plan of action we propose.  What’s guided us from the start of this crisis hasn’t been the search for a silver bullet.  It’s been a commitment to stay at it — to be persistent — to keep trying every new idea that works, and listen to every good proposal, no matter which party comes up with it.

Regardless of the arguments we’ve had in the past, regardless of the arguments we will have in the future, this plan is the right thing to do right now.  You should pass it.  (Applause.)  And I intend to take that message to every corner of this country.  (Applause.)  And I ask — I ask every American who agrees to lift your voice:  Tell the people who are gathered here tonight that you want action now.  Tell Washington that doing nothing is not an option.  Remind us that if we act as one nation and one people, we have it within our power to meet this challenge.

President Kennedy once said, “Our problems are man-made –- therefore they can be solved by man.  And man can be as big as he wants.”

Nice try, but you’re no Abraham Lincoln and you’re no President Kennedy.

These are difficult years for our country.  But we are Americans.  We are tougher than the times we live in, and we are bigger than our politics have been.  So let’s meet the moment.  Let’s get to work, and let’s show the world once again why the United States of America remains the greatest nation on Earth.  (Applause.)

Thank you very much.  God bless you, and God bless the United States of America.  (Applause.)

The American Jobs Act is nothing more than a stunted clone of the failed 2009 American Reinvestment and Recovery Act. The only thing that crap sandwich of legislation managed to stimulate was the national debt. Congress should just pass on this recycled failure.

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UPDATE: Here’s an entertaining clip of President Broken Record repeating his key phrase: