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Obama’s Stimulus Sales Campaign Continues: Boosts Job Estimate To 4 Million Jobs

Posted by JOE GANDELMAN, Editor-In-Chief in Economy, Politics.
Jan 10th, 2009 | Comments

Amid signs that his proposed economic $775 billion stimulus plan is supported by a majority but not whoppingly huge majority of the American public, President Elect Barack Obama is continuing to press hard for its passage — and has used his weekly radio/You Tube address to now boost the estimate of jobs it would create to some nearly 4 million.

President-elect Barack Obama said his two-year plan to boost the U.S. economy will generate up to 4 million jobs, higher than his previous estimates, the biggest portion of them in construction, manufacturing and retail.

The plan would also result in the U.S. gross domestic product increasing by 3.7 percent more by the end of 2010 than it would without the stimulus, according to a study compiled by Obama’s economic advisers. The study gives a forecast based on a package of spending and tax cuts totaling “slightly over” the $775 billion that has been discussed by the transition team with members of Congress.

“The jobs we create will be in businesses large and small across a wide range of industries,” Obama said in his weekly radio address today. “And they’ll be the kind of jobs that don’t just put people to work in the short term, but position our economy to lead the world in the long-term.”

The address and the forecast are being released together a day after the government reported that the nation lost 2.6 million jobs in 2008, just shy of the 2.75 million decline at the end of World War II. The unemployment rate hit 7.2 percent in December, the highest since January 1993. Even with the stimulus plan, Obama’s advisers say the jobless rate will remain at about 7 percent by the end of 2010.

It’s clear by the way Obama is using his radio address — posting it on the Internet — and by the large number of press conferences that he has held since winning the election that he intends to make communication a major part of the way he’s going to use his “bully pulpit” of the Presidency.

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JJ1

The job-creation numbers are impressive, but I hope the other details of the plan don't get ignored because of they don't make great headlines. I think we need the stimulus plan, and it needs to be very large, but Congress needs to make sure that it continues providing benefits in the long term, not just a shot in the arm for the short term.

The infrastructure spending will help keep the economy growing in the long term, but it would also be helpful if Congress could find a way to encourage businesses to invest in infrastructure as well. Possibly they could do this by making sure there are fewer unnecessary regulations that dissuade businesses from making those investments. There seem to be many businesses that have money to invest, but not as many that are actively investing in any forward-thinking enterprise. Hopefully Congress can find ways to get that money flowing.

The tax cuts on businesses would certainly be helpful, especially on small businesses or businesses in sectors where there is potential for significant job creation. We need the businesses like that to be able to resume their traditional role as the engine of our economy. The government can certainly assist the process getting started, but businesses will actually provide the growth.

I think the aid to the state governments is also needed, because the programs that the state governments support are needed for sustained growth. For instance, the state governments support schools and public workforce training programs. It is important to make sure both of those programs survive to make sure we are able to provide workers for whichever sectors of the economy are providing the jobs.

I recently saw that the Friends of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce is working with Congress to make sure that they take these things into account when they are designing the stimulus package. They have a petition that I encourage everyone to sign to make sure Congress knows that we want the economy fixed - but we want it fixed for the long-term - http://www.friendsoftheuschamber.com/takeaction...

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