Congressman McDermott | Pass Relief To America's Unemployed Now
Washington (Mar 17) – A member of the House, senior Congressman McDermott (D-WA), has finally brought the reality of everyday life to the floor. The Congressman voiced his concern regarding both the “Tax Extenders Bill” and the “Health Care Reform Bill”.
Congressman McDermott stepped up to the plate for the unemployed American, stating the need to work on jobs creation and to protect those unemployed before the end of next month. He did so by proposing a motion to request the move to suspend the rules and pass bill H.R. 4851, also known as the Continuing Extension Act of 2010.
According to Mr. McDermott, addressing the needs of America’s unemployed is as important as passing the “Health Care Reform Bill”. The Congressman further stated, “If we fail to act on this bill, Americans around the country will begin running out of unemployment benefits by the beginning of next month. By the end of April, over 1 million Americans will exhaust their unemployment benefits.”
In his remarks, Congressman McDermott acknowledged that the bill has shortfalls. Realizing that more needs to be done to protect the unemployed, the Congressman added, “This bill would merely continue the existing federal unemployment programs for one month as Congress works toward a longer extension. It does not increase the number of weeks of benefits provided by these programs. I know many of my colleagues are as frustrated as I am that we have to keep extending these programs every month, as opposed to continuing them through the end of the year.”
In a final stand for the American workforce he stated, “”Jobless Americans shouldn’t have to wait until the last minute to know whether their economic lifeline will continue. We need a long-term extension of these programs — a goal I very much hope we will achieve before the end of next month.”
Pointing out the problems imposed regarding the bill as it stalled in the Senate, he added, “Before I close, let me say that I hope we don’t see a repeat performance from last month, when a single Republican Senator blocked these vital benefits for so many Americans.”
Addressing the current economic situation and the looming national deficit directly, the Congressman was quick to point out how this crisis evolved. “Where were my colleagues on the other side of the aisle when President Bush turned the biggest budget surplus in our Nation’s history into the biggest deficit in our history?” he asked, adding, “When Republicans complain about the deficit, it’s like an arsonist complaining about a fire. They lit the first match, but take no responsibility for the resulting blaze.”
In reference to funding for the programs outlined in last week’s bill, he remarked, “The truth is there is no better use of federal resources than helping Americans who are struggling to find work.”
This motion was placed on the floor in an attempt to remove the roadblocks the GOP deems necessary as they put up a stiff fight against the Democrats efforts to provide the necessary assistance to the American unemployed.
Source: C-SPAN, Congressman Press Office
Posted by rgrone
on March 17, 2010. Filed under economic recovery,economy,News,Politics,US Politics.
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9 Responses to Congressman McDermott | Pass Relief To America's Unemployed Now
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Jobless American Workers
March 17, 2010 at 4:47 pm
Too bad the long term unemployed just aren’t a priority..says volumes! By May, when this latest 30 day extension is up, 1.5 million unemployed Americans will have no benefits left.
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Homeless in FL
March 18, 2010 at 5:11 am
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UEDDTxRrtK4
TIER 5 to Survive….Please Watch
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Mel
March 18, 2010 at 9:43 am
We need a tier 5 the jobs just aren’t there!
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David
March 18, 2010 at 9:56 am
They’ve done nothing to help the people who’ve been unemployed the longest. Extending the deadline to the end of this year helps the recently unemployed but does nothing for those on the verge of finishing tier IV or those finished with Tier IV already. Tier IV was remarkable short, all things considered. They need to pass a bill with a 5th tier like yesterday. It should be at least a 26 week tier, things should be turning around a little more by then. If not, I fear millions will become homeless and rivers of blood will flood the streets of DC.
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optimisticky
March 18, 2010 at 10:13 am
Thank you Congressman McDermott not only for myself but also on behalf of all the other long-term unemployed “99ers” for speaking the truth. If there were jobs out there to be gotten our government must surely know that the majority of us would be working. God bless your soul for stepping up to the plate for the us long-term unemployed Americans, stating the need to work on jobs creation and to protect those unemployed before the end of next month. And you did so by proposing a motion to request the move to suspend the rules and pass bill H.R. 4851, also known as the Continuing Extension Act of 2010. We the people have prayed for jobs, we have always been hard workers and took care of our families, that is what we were reared to do.
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Jeanne Popeck
March 18, 2010 at 11:48 am
Thank you Senator for speaking up for what should be at the forefront of everything that Congress is working on. Yes, we need health care reform, yes we need job creation…..but the unemployed need help right now or this situation will reach proportions of epic conditions when more and more people cannot afford to keep their houses and pay their bills.
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tired of BS
March 19, 2010 at 11:50 am
Do you really expect the economy to get better with these month to month extensions? People can not live in fear…do your jobs …extend for 6 months or greater…not this piecemeal crap…the unemployed are always a last minute fix – congress should be unemployed after the next election…maybe then you will be in touch with public sentiment…By public I mean thouse other than big business, wallstreet, and big political contributors….
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FriendlyWolf
March 20, 2010 at 10:50 pm
Unfortunately the longer one is unemployed the more challenging it is to find work (some employers look down on applicants who have been out of work for the long term), so long term unemployment can be self perpetuating. With not enough jobs to go around, it is imperative that more tiers are added to extend unemployment benefits beyond the 99 week threshold (in states with employment rates at 8.5 %) to allow people more time to find work and to survive the recession. We are experiencing record unemployment rates and a slow rebounding economy; unemployment benefits help stimulate the economy and most of all they provide a life line to those very people that worked hard and paid their taxes. Again–we need a Tier V that exceeds six weeks.
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