The American Jobs Act

Rather than wait for the bill to pass so I could see what is in it, I decided to spend some time reading President Obama’s proposal for job creation…you know, the one we have to pass now if we love him.  You can find the full text of the bill here.

After reading it, I now understand why, to date, no Democrat has offered to sponsor the bill.  It has all of the indicia of “Son of Stimulus”, so I doubt that any Democrat, particularly one running for office in 2012 would want his or her finger prints on it.  But, you be the judge of that.

The bill, among other things, proposes to spend:

  • $30 billion for Teacher Stabilization to prevent teacher layoffs (see page 13),
  • $5 billion for First Responder Stabilization to prevent law enforcement layoffs (see page 16)
  • $25 billion to modernize schools using only union labor, and with an emphasis on “green” (see page 16),
  • $2 billion on airport construction, using, of course only union labor (see page 23),
  • $27 billion on highway projects, using, of course, only union labor (see page 24),
  • $4 billion on intercity passenger rail (see page 26),
  • $3 billion on new buses (see page 26),
  • $2 billion for Amtrak (see page 27),
  • $6 billion to modernize fixed rail systems and bus stations (see page 28),
  • $5 billion on anything else the Secretary of Transportation can think of concerning surface transportation infrastructure (see page 29), and.
  • $15 billion for construction workers (union, of course) to refurbish vacant and foreclosed homes (see page 48).

In addition to that, the President includes $9 billion for even more jobs training programs…Reemployment NOW, Bridge to Work, and Pathways Back to Work (see  pages 79, 80 and 94).

Finally it includes a “lawyers relief act”, as apparently all bills must, which makes it unlawful to discriminate in the employment process just because someone is currently unemployed (see page 109).

Of course, all of this will be paid for by “taxing the rich” as Jim detailed in a post earlier.

I did not notice a Dodd/Frank Stabilization to prevent 30,000 Bank of America layoffs, but, perhaps that was just an oversight.

If you don’t care to read all the legalese, beginning at page 126 there is an analysis of the bill, written mostly in “people” that goes through the proposal section by section.  But, I warn you, the analysis ends on page 157, and the next numbered page is 199.

Maybe if the bill is passed we’ll see whats on pages 158 through 199.

 

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SoundOffSister

The Sound Off Sister was an Assistant United States Attorney for the Southern District of Florida, and special trial attorney for the Department of Justice, Criminal Division; a partner in the Florida law firm of Shutts & Bowen, and an adjunct professor at the University of Miami, School of Law. The Sound Off Sister offers frequent commentary concerning legislation making its way through Congress, including the health reform legislation passed in early 2010.

28 Comments

  1. EddiePerez on September 18, 2011 at 6:06 pm

    I’ve always said ?”If ?it didn’t work the first time, try again.”

    Must be a good time to be a union worker.?? >:(



  2. Plainvillian on September 18, 2011 at 6:41 pm

    Aren’t all these expenditures authorized by the 37th, 38th and 43rd amendments to the constitution?? What’s the problem?



  3. sammy22 on September 18, 2011 at 6:59 pm

    Let’s see the Republican version. Maybe there are? some things on which both sides can agree. It could happen…….On the other hand we could just let the infrastructure of the country fall apart, or have the “private” sector step in and build public “structures”.



    • johnboy111 on September 19, 2011 at 3:39 pm

      maybe we could use all the taxes collected for road&bridges to fix roads&bridges??OH wait we use that money for some other social ill???



    • crystal4 on September 20, 2011 at 8:54 am

      We are rebuilding the infrastructure in Iraq, rebuild ours? Hell no!



    • Dimsdale on September 20, 2011 at 3:26 pm

      Rebuilding it from the economic “bombing” the politicians have given it?



    • Anybody but Obama on September 21, 2011 at 6:37 am

      What you complaining about Crystal (August 25th) your president has been in charge 2 yrs 8 months, he could have pulled out of the wars and kept the money home for rebuilding infrastructure but he didn’t, instead, he has gone into Libya on his own without Congressional approval.?



  4. Anybody but Obama on September 18, 2011 at 7:07 pm

    I thought we paid a tax on each gallon of gas or diesel thats suppose to take care of roads and bridges.



    • GdavidH on September 20, 2011 at 6:32 pm

      Stop thinking!



  5. Dottie on September 18, 2011 at 7:12 pm

    Well, I worked in the banking industry for over 20 years and I know why those 30,000 jobs are an oversight…..I NEVER belonged to a union. ?As far as I know, there are NO union employees in any banks. ?He can’t buy those union votes if there is NO union.



    • Dimsdale on September 19, 2011 at 10:15 am

      So either the ?bama administration can’t or won’t protect union jobs?
      ?
      He’s buying jobs by showing that gov’t help requires unionization.? By design.?? You make SOS’s point.



    • Dimsdale on September 19, 2011 at 12:37 pm

      Pardon me: I meant “non union jobs” in the first sentence.?



  6. sammy22 on September 18, 2011 at 8:37 pm

    Nice going Dottie. SOS was on a roll again.



    • johnboy111 on September 19, 2011 at 3:41 pm

      do ya also post on media does not matter??



  7. Gary J on September 18, 2011 at 9:27 pm

    PV ? constitution? we don’t need no stinkin constitution. We make up the rules as we go along.



  8. steve418r on September 18, 2011 at 10:22 pm

    It is clear to me that this bill is just a lot of political posturing. Pandering to special interests, Jimmy Hoffa, and organized labor are foremost for this administration.



    • ricbee on September 18, 2011 at 11:59 pm

      DUH…



  9. Linda Mae on September 18, 2011 at 11:12 pm

    Bill, what bill?? It can’t be a bill until it is filed.? Currently it is nothing more than political posturing.? If it was so vital to pass this bill, then someone should have filed it weeks ago.? Still BO blames republicans for this oversight.?
    Live the list of amendments – but , don’t you mean executive orders?



    • Jeff S on September 19, 2011 at 12:50 pm

      Remember when the media would point this out before spouting out talking points?



  10. ricbee on September 18, 2011 at 11:58 pm

    I’m betting the missing pages will enable BOA to cancel the layoffs.



  11. Jeff S on September 19, 2011 at 10:30 am

    When he touts “If you love me, help me pass the bill” we need to play the Olivia Newton John song from the 70’s “If you love me, let me know”



    • phil on September 20, 2011 at 7:54 am

      But will you respect him in the morning?



  12. RoBrDona on September 19, 2011 at 1:56 pm

    Failure! Failure! Failure!
    It booms out like a foghorn on a rocky coast.?
    The ghost of Herbert Hoover smiles a bitter smile.
    Pols shiver and run screaming away.
    Failure! Failure! Failure!



  13. NH-Jim on September 19, 2011 at 6:13 pm

    If he loved us and our nation, he would stop spending what money remains in our pockets!



    • Murphy on September 21, 2011 at 12:09 pm

      If no one has any money then there are no Rich. If everyone has $0 there can not be any Poor, walla the great one has ridden us of poverty.



  14. Shared Sacrifice on September 19, 2011 at 8:27 pm

    Surprising, there’s no Obama money to buy those union workers brown shirts, jackboots, and billy clubs??? The clubs are for breaking your incandescent bulbs- of course!



  15. Common Man on September 19, 2011 at 11:56 pm

    The last bullet point troubles me. Check out the link.
    $15 billion for construction workers (union, of course) to refurbish vacant and foreclosed homes (see page 48).
    http://www.mcclatchydc.com/2010/06/22/96322/obama-administration-vows-to-end.html
    Obama vows to end homelessness by 2014 through gov’t supplied housing at the taxpayers expense. Who wants a free home? Is the gov’t going to take possession of these vacant/foreclosed homes by eminent domain?
    ?



  16. Lynn on September 21, 2011 at 5:54 pm

    If you don’t mind, I don’t love him. He golfs too much.



square-obama-congress

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