Please watch - the Jobs bill is not for "everyone"


Valerie Jarret's briefing to interested parties based on race BEFORE Obama'a announcement. need to watch.

http://www.whitehouse.gov/photos-and-vi ... active-one

SEE PDF at the bottom for the version received by Waters.

Maxine Waters: Ready to Fight for Jobs Bill

September 10, 2011 at 12:27 AM

Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) had a bit of a "Moment" in August. Along the five stops of the Congressional Black Caucus' "For the People" Jobs Tour, she made headlines for a series of heated town hall remarks and media interviews challenging the Obama administration to direct more targeted help for black communities with high unemployment, pushing back against Tea Party momentum and interrogating federal officials for demurring at saying the word "black."

With African-American unemployment officially at 16.7 percent -- the highest level since 1984 -- Waters vowed to adopt tougher tactics with her Republican colleagues this fall and put more pressure on the president. So when President Obama finally revealed the American Jobs Act on Thursday, I wondered whether his plan warranted a "yea" or "nay" from the congresswoman.

I caught up with a "very pleased" Waters for her assessment of the bill and its potential impact, and why, despite political dysfunction being at an all-time high, she thinks it stands a fighting chance.

The Root: What do you think of the American Jobs Act?

Maxine Waters: I think it holds a lot of promise, and it was more than many people expected. I'm very pleased, the closer I look at the details of the plan, to see the impact on African Americans and the economy. I'm looking at an additional document [pdf] that the White House put out, which focuses on that. We've asked for targeting to the areas that have the most need, and basically they have responded with some of the targeting that we wanted them to do.

The Congressional Black Caucus, as you know, put a face on poverty and unemployment when we went out and did the job fairs. And of course, I did some additional work to put the pressure on the White House. [Laughs.]

TR: Do you think the attention from those job fairs and town halls influenced what was in the president's bill?

MW: I think it absolutely did. The job fairs put a real face on the unemployment problem. The [attendance] numbers were overwhelming, from the time we started out in Cleveland on up through Los Angeles, where we registered 10,000 people that day. And at our town hall meeting in Detroit, people showed some real anger and told us to push the president. When I confronted the reality of the politics of how you handle talking with the administration, they literally gave us permission. From that point on, we got more focused in talking with the White House, and in my public interviews I was more direct.

We wanted the whole plan to be big. While I even called for a trillion, $450 billion is substantial. We supported the extension of unemployment insurance, which will benefit 1.4 million African Americans and their families. The president mentioned in his speech targeted support for the long-term unemployed, which we also kept high on our agenda. We talked about our unemployed youth, up to 45 percent in some areas, and he came out in his speech talking about subsidized jobs and summer and year-round programs for disadvantaged youth. So I think he started out right.

TR: Before the president's speech on Thursday, you said that in his remarks, "he must acknowledge the economic disaster in the African-American community." Did you mean that he must use the words "African American" or "black" specifically?

MW: You know, I've encouraged speaking to the African-American community. If you noticed, he did speak to the veterans on Thursday night. I think when you are trying to assist a particular group of people because of what is going on in those communities, then it's good to talk to them and let them know. He did not do that with African Americans in a way that perhaps I would like, but his follow-up fact sheet certainly speaks directly to the targeting.

TR: As for getting the bill passed, what can Democrats realistically expect in a divided Congress that isn't willing to support any Obama proposals?

MW: My strong philosophical belief is that you have to fight for what you think is fair, and what you think you need, and what you think you deserve. The first step in the fight is to say what you want -- not to anticipate that someone is going to say you can't have it. The president started off right in doing that. Now he's got to use his negotiating skills, and we've all got to use everything that we have.

For example, after we did the job fairs, I had many Republicans come up to me and say, "Oh my goodness, those people who were standing in line! I didn't realize it was like that; that is horrible!" I had at least a half dozen people stop me and say that. I think that's a good sign that perhaps we did reveal something they were not focused on. Perhaps there is some information that they gained that will make them more sympathetic toward doing more to help the highest unemployed constituency in this country.

And then you have to remember, the jobs question is not just about African Americans; it is about all Americans. And many of them come from districts -- Appalachia and other rural communities -- where they haven't really addressed this issue. I think there's a chance to get something substantial, and we've got to work at it and fight for it.

http://www.theroot.com/blogs/congressio ... -jobs-bill


THE PDF VERSION OF THE JOBS BILL THAT WATERS RECEIVED:

The American Jobs Act reflects a commitment to strengthen the recovery and help increase access to jobs for all Americans. With unemployment among African-Americans at an unacceptably high rate of 16.7 percent – and 1.4 million African-Americans out of work for more than six months – the President believes that inaction is not an option. That’s why the President is putting out a plan to increase the pace of job creation, and why he is committed to fighting for Congress to act on this plan. These measures – which will expand opportunities for the long-term unemployed to reenter the workforce, provide incentives for businesses to hire, and make investments in revitalizing schools, infrastructure and neighborhoods – will help create new job opportunities in African-American communities and across the country. For example:

• The extension of unemployment insurance will benefit 1.4 million African-Americans and their families. At the same time, the President is proposing bipartisan reforms that will enable that – as these families continue to receive UI benefits – the program is better tailored to support reemployment for the long-term unemployed.

• Targeted support for the long-term unemployed could help the 1.4 million African-Americans who have been looking for work for more than six months: To help them in their search for work, the President is calling for a new tax credit for hiring the long-term unemployed.

• A commitment to rebuilding and revitalizing communities across the country will target investments to the communities hardest-hit by the recession. The President’s investments in infrastructure include a school construction initiative with a significant commitment to the largest urban school districts, an investment in revitalizing communities that have been devastated by foreclosures, and a new initiative to expand infrastructure employment opportunities for minorities, women, and socially and economically disadvantaged individuals.

• Support for subsidized jobs and summer/year-round jobs for African-American youth – for whom unemployment is above 30%. In an environment with an unemployment rate of 32.4% for African-American youths, the President is proposing to build on successful programs like the TANF Emergency Contingency Fund to create jobs and provide training for those hardest-hit by the recession.

• An extension and expansion of the payroll tax cut for nearly 20 million African-American workers. By extending the payroll tax cut for employees next year and expanding it to cut payroll taxes in half, the President’s plan will help increase the paychecks of nearly 20 million African-American workers – providing them with more money to spend in their communities.
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WHAT THE PLAN WILL DO
Tax Cuts to Help African-American Owned Small Businesses Hire and Grow

• Providing Tax Cuts That Will Help Over 100,000 African-American Owned Small Businesses: The President is proposing tax cuts that will go to every small business nationwide – including over 100,000 African-American-owned small businesses. These tax cuts will cut employer payroll taxes in half for these businesses, provide them with an added bonus for increasing their payroll, and extend 100% expensing provisions that provide an incentive for investment.

Example: A small business has 40 employees, with an average salary of $40,000 a year – meaning a total payroll of $1.6 million. The business adds another 20 employees with the same average salary. Under the President’s plan, the business would receive a $49,600 tax cut on the payroll taxes of its existing employees, and another $49,600 tax cut due to the new employees.

• Helping African-American-Owned Small Businesses Access Capital and Grow: The President’s plan includes administrative, regulatory and legislative measures – including those developed and recommended by the President’s Jobs Council – to help small firms start and expand. This includes changing the way the government does business with small firms and working with the SEC to conduct a comprehensive review of securities regulations from the perspective of these small companies to reduce the regulatory burdens on small business capital formation in ways that are consistent with investor protection. In addition, the President is calling for comprehensive patent reform, increased guarantees for bonds to help small businesses compete for infrastructure projects and the removal of burdensome withholding requirements that keep capital out of the hands of job creators.

Putting African-American Workers Back on the Job While Rebuilding and Modernizing America

• Project Rebuild: Putting People Back to Work Rehabilitating Homes, Businesses and Communities. The President is proposing to invest $15 billion in a national effort to put construction workers on the job rehabilitating and refurbishing hundreds of thousands of vacant and foreclosed homes and businesses. Building on proven approaches to stabilizing neighborhoods with high concentrations of foreclosures, Project Rebuild will bring in expertise and capital from the private sector, focus on commercial and residential property improvements, and expand innovative property solutions like land banks. This approach will not only create construction jobs but will help reduce blight and crime and stabilize housing prices in areas hardest hit by the housing crisis.

• Targeted Investments to Modernize Schools Serving Low-Income Students – From Science Labs and Internet-Ready Classrooms to Renovated Facilities: The President is proposing a $25 billion investment in school infrastructure that will modernize at least

35,000 public schools – investments that will create jobs, while improving classrooms and upgrading our schools to meet 21st century needs. Funds could be used for a range of emergency repair and renovation projects, greening and energy efficiency upgrades, asbestos abatement and removal, and modernization efforts to build new science and computer labs and to upgrade technology in our schools. And they would be targeted at the lowest-income districts – with 40 percent, or $10 billion, directed towards the 100 largest high-need public school districts. The President is also proposing a $5 billion investment in modernizing community colleges, bolstering their infrastructure in this time of need while ensuring their ability to serve future generations of students and communities.

• Putting Construction Workers Back on the Job By Modernizing Infrastructure – With a Focus on Expanding Access to These Jobs: In order to jump start critical infrastructure projects and create hundreds of thousands of jobs, the President’s plan includes $50 billion in immediate investments for highway, highway safety, transit, passenger rail, and aviation activities – with one fifth of the funding advancing a transformation of how we finance transportation infrastructure and what we finance. To ensure that the employment benefits of these projects can be broadly shared, the President’s plan would invest an additional $50 million in 2012 to enhance employment and job training opportunities for minorities, women, and socially and economically disadvantaged individuals in transportation related activities, including construction, contract administration, inspection, and security. His plan will also invest an additional $10 million in 2012 to help minority-owned and disadvantaged business enterprises gain better access to transportation contracts. And it will ensure that infrastructure investments allow for the hiring of local workers, to maximize economic benefits for communities where projects are located.

• Preventing Layoffs of Teachers, Cops and Firefighters: The President is proposing to invest $35 billion to prevent layoffs of up to 280,000 teachers, while supporting the hiring of tens of thousands more and keeping cops and firefighters on the job. These funds would help states and localities avoid and reverse layoffs now, requiring that funds be drawn down quickly. Under the President’s proposal, $30 billion be directed towards educators and $5 billion would go to the cops and firefighters who keep our communities safe.

• Tax Credits and Career Readiness Efforts to Support Veterans’ Hiring: The President is proposing a Returning Heroes Tax Credit of up to $5,600 for hiring unemployed veterans who have been looking for a job for more than six months, and a Wounded Warriors Tax Credit of up to $9,600 for hiring unemployed workers with service-connected disabilities who have been looking for a job for more than six months, while creating a new task force to maximize career readiness of servicemembers.
Pathways Back to Work for African-Americans Looking for Jobs
• Extending Unemployment Insurance So That 1.4 Million African-Americans Looking For Work Do Not Lose Their Benefits: In December, the President successfully fought for
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unemployment insurance to be extended. The President has called for a further extension into 2012 to prevent 1.4 million African-Americans from losing their benefits next year.

• Targeted Support to Help the Long-Term Unemployed Get Back to Work: The recession pushed long-term unemployment rates to its highest levels since the Great Depression – with an estimated 1.4 million African-Americans out of work for more than six months. The President’s plan is targeted directly at helping these Americans get back to work by, for example:

o Tax Credits for Hiring the Long-Term Unemployed: The President is proposing a tax credit to provide up to $4,000 for hiring workers who have been looking for a job for over six months.

o “Bridge to Workâ€