Political Quotes

“Before we adjourn for the year, there are a number of important items that we must address. The most pressing is the expiration of unemployment benefits at the end of December. Should Congress fail to act, millions of Americans who rely on emergency unemployment compensation will begin to see their payments disappear starting in January. 2.1 million of our fellow Americans will have lost their benefits by the middle of February, and over 6 million by the end of 2012. However, we have the power to prevent that from happening by extending those benefits. These emergency benefits were put in place at the start of the recession in December of '07; and with so many Americans still out of work, now is certainly not the time to let them come to an end. {time} 1010 The number one challenge we must address in the Congress remains job creation. Americans out of work have been doing their part to find jobs. Congress must do its part as well. Some Republicans have unfairly and incorrectly blamed those who have been laid off for their continued difficulty in finding jobs. However, there are over four people looking for every one job that is available. At the same time, there are nearly 7 million fewer jobs today than there were in 2007. Instead of blaming the victims, we ought to work together, Democrats and Republicans, to find solutions. Congress has never allowed emergency unemployment benefits to lapse with our jobless rate anywhere close to where it is today.…”