News

Feb 1, 2012

Pres. Obama: A 'Blueprint for An America Built to Last'

Bjorn Strom/ The Record
President Barack Obama speaks to a crowd of about 400 people at Conveyor Engineering and Manufacturing in Cedar Rapids on Jan 25. This was the first stop of five that the President made in the days following his State of the Union address, in order to bring the message of how to build an America that will last. He spoke of increasing jobs, investing in renewable energy and reforming the tax code so that everyone has a fair shot and plays by the same rules.

By Chuck Friend
Publisher

Less than 24 hours after he had delivered the 2012 “State of the Union” address to Congress and the nation, President Barack Obama brought his “Blueprint for An America Built to Last “ to Conveyor Engineering and Manufacturing in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. It was the first of five stops in which the president would outline and explain steps in his blueprint for America’s future.

The Iowa stop before nearly 400 “invited only” guests, not counting the local, state and national media, was to outline the blueprint for supporting manufacturing jobs, to discourage outsourcing and encourage insourcing.

Obama first reminisced about the times he spent on the campaign trail in 2007-08, and stated, “When I think about all the days I spent in Iowa, so much of my presidency, so much about what I care about, so much of what I think about every day, has to do with the conversations that I had with you.”

The conversations revealed that the middle class was having a tough time and that hard work had stopped paying off for some people. Good jobs and manufacturing were leaving America’s shores. And even before the financial crisis of 2008 hit, folk at the very top saw their incomes rise like never before, but most Americans were just trying to stay afloat.

“But we knew then what we still know today — that when we come together as a country, there is no reason that we cannot restore that basic American promise, that if you work hard, you can do well,” Obama said.

In a statement that has since drawn criticism from the opposition, the President said that the country lost four million jobs before the took office, another four million in the first few months he was in office, but since his administration’s policies took effect, the country has been growing and increasing jobs ever since. In fact he said that 3 million jobs have been created in the last 22 months.

“Our economy is getting stronger. We have a lot of work to do, but it is getting stronger. And we’ve come way too far to turn back now,” Obama said. “We are not going back to an economy weakened by outsourcing and bad debt and phony financial profits. That is not how America was built and we are not going back to that.”

According to Obama, his “Blueprint for An America Built to Last” is an economy that is built on American manufacturing with more good jobs and more products made here in America. It is also an economy built on American energy fueled by homegrown and alternative energy sources that makes the country less dependent on foreign oil.

The economy is also one built on the skills of American workers — getting people the education and training they need so that they are prepared for the jobs of today and ready to compete for the jobs of tomorrow.

“Most importantly, it’s an economy that is built on a renewal of American values, heartland values. Values that Iowa knows something about — hard work, responsibility, and the same set of rules for everybody, from Wall Street to Main Street,” the President said.

Obama then commented on how demanding responsibility in exchange for help had helped the auto industry add 160,000 new jobs and make new investments in American plants, and stated that he wants that to happen in other industries as well.

He said the country has a huge opportunity to help companies like Conveyor Engineering and Manufacturing hire more workers because of what is happening globally.

“America is getting more productive. We have to help these companies succeed. And that starts by changing our tax code,” Obama said.

He explained that a company that chooses to stay in America gets hit with one of the highest tax rates in the world, while companies that move jobs and profits overseas get tax breaks.

“That’s wrong. It doesn’t make sense,” Obama said. “Manufactures like Conveyor that stamp their products with three proud words, ‘Made in America,’ should be rewarded through our tax code.”

The President then promised to keep boosting American manufacturing and to keep training workers with the skills that they need to find good jobs. That in turn means creating new jobs in American energy, including the alternative energy that has been a source of strength for rural communities in Iowa.

He went on to point out that the most immediate thing that the nation needs to do with its tax code is to make sure that it stops a tax hike of 160 million working Americans at the end of February.

“People cannot afford loosing $40 out of their next paycheck. Renew that payroll tax cut— for the entire year. Tell Congress to pass this tax cut without drama, without delay. No soap operas. Just get it done,” was the Presidents urgent plea.

Stating that a quarter of the millionaires in America pay lower tax rates than millions of middle class households, Obama said it is time to follow the Buffet Rule: If one makes more than a million dollars per year he or she should pay a tax rate of at least 30 percent. On the other hand, those that make less than $250,000 per year (about 98 percent of Americans) should not see a tax increase.

Although being accused of this being “class warfare” the President said it was just common sense.

He said if folk like him gets a tax break that they do not need, and one the country can’t afford, it is either going to add to the deficit or alternatively somebody else has to pick up the tab: like a senior who has to suddenly pay more for Medicare, or a college student that suddenly has to pay more for his or her student loan, or a family that is just trying to get by.

“We need to recognize that if everybody is getting a fair shot, everybody has the chance to do better,” Obama told the crowd. “This country only exists because generations of Americans worked together, and looked out for each other, and believed that we are stronger when we rise together. These are not Democratic values. They are not Republican values. Those are American values. Those are the values that we have to return to.

He closed his 22 minute address by saying,” I know that if we work together and in common purpose, we can build and economy that gives everybody a fair shot. We can meet this challenge. And we’ll remind everybody just why it is the United States of America is the greatest nation on Earth.”