On the recordSeptember 21, 2011
I come from the Greater Detroit area, which has been especially hard hit from this recession. When many wanted to let the auto industry fail, I stood with President Obama, and now the Big Three auto companies are once again earning profits and creating jobs in our region. Today, however, the House Republicans are trying to pass job-killing cuts to our auto industry by eliminating section 136 loans. We have the support of the Big Three auto manufacturers, as well as several labor unions and environmental groups but, sadly, the Tea Party can't even say ``yes'' to a program that has created and protected 41,000 jobs. In fact, according to experts, this program is directly responsible for bringing manufacturing of the Ford Focus automobile from Mexico to Michigan, with American workers making the Ford Focus. We absolutely need to fund disaster relief for communities affected by the recent natural disasters, but that doesn't mean we need to cause an economic disaster for our workers. I urge my colleagues to vote ``no'' on the rule and ``no'' on the continuing resolution because we need to be working to create more American manufacturing jobs, not destroying them.
