No Jobs Creation From Boehner

Joan McCarter   Mon Aug 22, 2011    

Read his lips: "No new jobs."

Republicans are ready to fight to stop job creation, Ezra Klein learns when he asks Speaker John Boehner's office about efforts to create a jobs super committee.

I ran Larson’s proposal by House Speaker John Boehner’s (R-Ohio) office on Friday afternoon, and it was immediately shot down. The response: Deficit reduction will spur job creation and, therefore, the supercommittee does not need to take on an additional mission.

“As every economist and every rating agency has made clear, getting our deficit under control is the first step to help get our economy growing again and to create jobs,” said Michael Steel, spokesman for Boehner. “Without knowing the specifics of this proposal, my concern would be this is some sort of new window-dressing for the same tired old, discredited Washington stimulus spending proposals.”

Klein then says, "Whether it wins enough Republican support to become part of the supercommittee’s work remains a pretty big unknown." Which isn't the larger point Larson and Congressional Democrats are making, which is to "call [Republicans'] bluff" on job creation and put them in the position of refusing to act on the issue that voters overwhelmingly say is most important to them.

Boehner's spokesman couldn't have made it any clearer. The Republicans will fight against putting people back to work. The Democrats' job is to make them have that fight.

Originally posted to Joan McCarter on Mon Aug 22, 2011

Also republished by Daily Kos.

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