Byron Dorgan: “Several weeks ago I wrote to President Bush and suggested it is time--perhaps past the time--to have an economic summit…”

“Several weeks ago I wrote to President Bush and suggested it is time--perhaps past the time--to have an economic summit in this country to talk about the challenges we are facing with this American economy. It is interesting, if you look at what has happened. We had gone through a period of almost unprecedented growth and opportunity. The 1990s was a period in which people were working. We had increases in the number of jobs available, home ownership, personal income, and the stock market was moving up. The economy was growing. It solves a lot of problems in a country when you have an economy that is growing. There is no social program that is as good as a good job that pays well, and people who are trained and skilled and able to assume those jobs. But in recent years--the last year and a half, 2 years--we have hit some rough water here, and the economy is not doing well. We have a series of things that have happened.”