Political Quotes

“After President Obama's ill-conceived stimulus bill failed, he blamed its failure on the lack of shovel-ready construction projects. President Obama was even quoted in the press to have joked about it. ``Shovel-ready was not as shovel-ready as we expected,'' he said. Hard-working Americans desperate for jobs didn't think that was funny. They still don't. They are watching us right now, wanting to know if we can deliver meaningful reform that will create jobs. Let's send a message to them today that we can and we will. For years now the President's Jobs Council's recommendation that we streamline the Federal permitting process has been staring the President in the face. Just last term President Obama stood in this House and promised action to ``slash bureaucracy and streamline the permitting process . . . so we can get more construction workers on the job as fast as possible.'' Mr. Speaker, the RAPID Act is precisely the legislation to do that. It is exactly what our private and public sector leaders have called for. It is what millions of American workers yearning for new work and higher wages need. True to form, some of my colleagues on the other side of the aisle support this motion to recommit in an attempt to stop this legislation. They can't yet bring themselves to say, ``Yes, we can'' to the cutting of bureaucratic red tape and obstruction.…”