On the recordJanuary 25, 2011
I would like to salute Jeffrey R. Immelt for agreeing to chair the President's new Council on Jobs and Competitiveness. Mr. Immelt knows quite a bit about creating jobs, promoting innovation, and competing in the marketplace. As the chairman and chief executive officer of General Electric, Mr. Immelt has led the company through a major expansion into growth markets overseas and made GE a leader in manufacturing a new generation of environmentally friendly technologies. Now, as we transition from stabilizing our economy to increasing employment and growth, Mr. Immelt's experience leading GE will help him counsel the President through our long-term recovery. Mr. Immelt knows that innovation is the key to America's economic growth. Consequently, GE relies heavily on the U.S. patent system. I have been very happy to work with Mr. Immelt and GE as strong proponents of bipartisan patent reform legislation. I recently met with Mr. Immelt and was impressed by his determination to make GE even more competitive in the future than it has been in the past. He has original ideas on investing in research and development and understands that reviving and updating America's manufacturing economy is critical to creating jobs in this country. I have always been impressed with his commitment to manufacturing in Rutland, VT, where GE Aviation has a major plant.
