GOP leaders on Friday outlined pieces of President Barack Obama’s jobs plan that they believe could form the basis of a bipartisan agreement, ranging from small-business assistance to infrastructure spending.
In the memo, the GOP leaders say they “are pleased that the White House has begun to back away” from its initial demand that Obama’s bill be passed in total. “It is far more important that the focus be on delivering results for the American people rather than on the upcoming campaign,” they argued.
Republicans caution that while “we don’t agree with portions of President Obama’s proposal … we are, however, committed to passing legislation to implement the policies in the areas where agreement can be found to support job creation and long-term economic growth.”
Areas that leadership identifies as having potential for GOP support include extending the ability of companies to expense 100 percent of the cost of certain properties, eliminating a 3 percent withholding provision for government contracts, reducing regulation of small-business capital formation, creating incentives to hire veterans and modifying unemployment insurance.
Despite those commonalities, the memo also outlines a number of things in the plan that the leaders do not support and which they argue are policies proposed by the president that are a repeat or continuation of spending from his 2009 stimulus bill, including school-construction spending, new payments to states and some of Obama’s tax proposals.
Lois Lerner, director of exempt organizations for the IRS, arrives for a House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing on the investigation of the IRS' targeting of political groups. Lerner invoked her Fifth Amendment right to not testify and caused a protest from some committee members when she offered an opening statement and engaged in dialogue with members before invoking the right.
Roll Call has launched a new feature, Hill Navigator, to advise congressional staffers and would-be staffers on how to manage workplace issues on Capitol Hill. Please send us your questions — anything from office etiquette, to handling awkward moments, to what happens when the work life gets too personal. Submissions will be treated anonymously.
