On the heels of a week that saw a steep drop in the stock market coupled with slight improvement in jobs numbers, but a controversial downgrade in the Standard and Poor's U.S. credit rating from AAA to AA+, President Obama used his address to set a list of policy goals that hope to improve America's situation moving forward. The President was focused on job creation.
Among other proposals involving U.S. trade and assisting entrepreneurialship, the President spoke of extending tax cuts for middle and working class families, creating business incentives for hiring veterans, extending unemployment benefits for millions of Americans, and investing in U.S. infrastructure:
"We need to extend tax cuts for working and middle-class families so you have more money in your paychecks next year. That would help millions of people to make ends meet. And that extra money for expenses means businesses will have more customers and will be in a better position to hire.
Yesterday, I proposed a new tax credit for companies that hire veterans who are looking for work after serving their country. We've got a lot of honorable and skilled people returning from Iraq and Afghanistan, and companies that could benefit from their abilities. Let's put them together.
We need to make sure that millions of workers who are still pounding the pavement looking for jobs are not denied unemployment benefits to carry them through hard times.
We've got to cut red tape that stops too many inventors and entrepreneurs from quickly turning new ideas into thriving businesses, which holds back our whole economy.
It's time Congress passed a set of trade deals that would help displaced workers looking for new jobs and that would allow our businesses to sell more products in countries in Asia and South America -- products stamped with three words -- Made in America.
And we ought to give more opportunities to all those construction workers who lost their jobs when the housing boom went bust. We could put them to work right now by giving loans to companies that want to repair our roads and bridges and airports, helping to rebuild America."
President Obama's Weekly Address:
