Obama can't create many jobs without Congress' help, analysts say

[steve2470]

http://www.miamiherald.com/2011/09/04/2389965/obama-cant-create-many-jobs-without.html

WASHINGTON -- President Barack Obama's own job may be on the line as he presents his plan for job creation this week, with the nation's unemployment rate mired at 9.1 percent and his popularity at a record low.

He'll call on Congress to back him on a package of proposals that the White House says will put Americans back to work. Earlier this summer he tried to rally public pressure on Congress to do as he wished, and he may do so again, exercising his power of the bully pulpit. Last week he threatened to bash Republicans on the campaign trail if they fail to follow his lead.

But Republicans in Congress are dead set against any big new spending program, and they control the House of Representatives, so the prospect of no big new jobs program rolling out of Washington before 2013 looms large.

In light of that, is there anything else Obama can do on his own to spur job creation?

*more at link*

[shintao]

1. The Party of NO, and Do Whatever it Takes

I know voters are assumed to be stupid, but don't they see the manipulation of the rightwing? Do they need a sledge hammer in the smacker to get the message.

[MH1]

17. Yes, and apparently the sledgehammer is needed on certain internet discussion boards as well.

[BR_Parkway]

2. There's a lot he can do without Congress - FDIC can break up these

too big to fail banks that are simply walking corpses with a bunch of paper bullshit on their books. Take Citi and BOA and break them down to state or regional levels - there's 10,000 jobs there created mostly in middle & upper management since the branches are already staffed. And we take down some of the risk to the rest of the economy these "even bigger than they were before the last time" entities

Have DOJ start throwing these banksters in jail - if what they do is so needed, the "market" (everyone pause for a moment of silent reverence) will require that position to be filled, so there's new hires there.

Use the VA/FHA/Fannie/Freddie - take all the properties they own, start renting them out to people who need affordable housing - first come, first serve - rent is 30% of income. Put people to work repairing the ones that aren't currently habitable. Use rents to finance the rest - real estate/construction jobs have always led us out of recession, these won't last forever, but they'll prime that pump.

None of those require Congressional approval - the laws have already been passed that these agencies have the authority.
None of these require Congressional money - the bankster stuff is left up the invisible hand the GOP claims can cure all ills. The housing agencies already have the legal authority to do whatever repairs are needed to protect the value of the governments property.

Alright, that's basically top of head - surely he's got advisers who can come up with more.

Then he can start playing hardball - introduce a standalone bill for $5,000,000,000 in new Veterans spending - homeless prevention, hospital upgrades, etc (whatever the actual figure VA gives him). Then go on TV with a couple wounded vets and ask everyone to call their Congress to pass that funding - do the full blown patriotic pitch, even the Teabaggers can't resist that one. Support the troops and all that - well, not if they actually had to risk anything but they'll be outraged at the pictures from some of the current VA facilities.

[fasttense]

3. There is a lot he can do.

He should have started doing when he had a house and senate full of Democratic politicians. He should have changed the rules on filibusters and he would have been able to do almost anything he needed to do. But of course he didn't. I think it was more a matter of him not having the will to do any real progressive actions to address unemployment. If he had started the work when he 1st got into office, he would have been a whole lot better off today.

He had his chance and he blew it.

[newfie11]

7. I have never understood why he didn't change the filibuster rules when he could have

At that time he had the house and senate. It seems so odd that it wasn't done.

[Little Star]

8. That is the million dollar question. Why didn't he??????..

That would have been a first priority for me because it was the stumbling block to passing most anything.

It makes no sense to have let that stand unchallenged.

[badtoworse]

9. Only the Senate can change the fillibuster rule

Obama has no say in it.

[MineralMan]

10. No President can change the rules of the Senate.

Only the Senate itself can do that. Blame them, not President Obama, for that one.

[Romulox]

11. Senate rules are changed on a majority vote. Nor is the "fillibuster" mentioned in the Constitution

Not contradicting you, but let's get ALL the info out there, shall we? :hi:

[MineralMan]

14. I understand how the rules work. The only thing I'm addressing

is the President's role in Senate rules. It is non-existent. I'm just sticking to the subject. Senate rules can be changed by majority vote, but only at the beginning of the session. Later, it's harder to do so. Filibuster is not mentioned in the Constitution. You are correct about that. What is mentioned is that the Senate makes its own rules. The President has no say in the matter. That's by intent and is all part of the separation of powers.

Getting ALL the information out there would require a book. This is DU. I'm not writing a book here.

[Romulox]

15. Blah blah blah. The Democratic Senate has no desire to change the fillibuster. Fact.

That's the ugly truth. All the rest is deflection.

[MineralMan]

16. Whatever you say. Look at the title of this subthread.

This subthread is about the President and his power to do things. You can try to make it about something else, but you'll have to find someone else to play with. I'll stick to the subthread's subject. In some other thread, I'll write about the subject of that thread. You may do as you please.

[Romulox]

22. The title of the subthread ain't "defense of the status quo", so my point is relevant. nt

[newfie11]

18. I guess it was by Constitutional Option

That I was thinking about. I has seen where this might be considered early on but it did not work

[MH1]

19. Umm, because he doesn't have a friggin' MAGIC WAND that would do that?

what you think the President can just do whatever he wants? Maybe he could just expand the Senate to 200 senators and personally appoint 100 progressives to those new seats while he's about it? Gee, why not? And the same for the House of Representatives! Then he could get whatever bill he wants through!

No wonder the 'Left' is so angry with Obama, I guess if I didn't have a clue I would also think he can just do whatever the hell he wants.*

:banghead:

* (maybe they should think about actually electing a majority of 'progressive' reps and senators so that we COULD get legislation through ... but wait ... that's actually work, and it's actually difficult ...)

[newfie11]

20. Thanks for the snark!

Bye Bye

[killbotfactory]

26. I didn't know a President could change Senate rules.

I guess all it takes is an executive order?

[ixion]

4. exactly.

His plan was yet another lame one; To instruct Federal agencies to think of something.


Way to lose another round, Obama. :eyes:

This guy gets more disappointing by the day, seriously.

[Edweird]

5. Yet somehow job-killing 'freetrade' agreements have no trouble. Maybe the issue is Obama's *WILL*

to create jobs. He can't create ANY if he doesn't fight for it.

[uponit7771]

6. Nah, Obama is teh dictator that has a date with a man!!! /sarcasm

[Romulox]

12. The ONLY things the President is in charge in is a) War; b) "Free Trade"; c) Bankster bonuses.

Oh, and d) making us buy insurance from private corporation.

Other than that, he's powerless!

[NightWatcher]

13. Poor ol Obama, he can't do anything. He's so helpless

But he expanded the wars
But he's allowing the Tar Sands Pipeline
But he's prosecuting whistleblowers
But he's deported record number of illegals

Obama just can't do anything WE want. He gets what Big Money wants done, but plays the Helpless card and gives in (98%) to repukes when it's something for We The People.

[gordianot]

21. If he says pretty please.

Be complimentary, be positive, be conciliatory, be forgiving, be accommodating, be generous, be understanding!

Never show anger or passion!

[NorthCarolina]

23. He can't create jobs when we dont manufacture anything here in America.

From Wikipedia:

The "giant sucking sound" was United States Presidential candidate Ross Perot's colorful phrase for what he believed would be the negative effects of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), which he opposed.

The phrase, coined during the 1992 U.S. presidential campaign, referred to the sound of U.S. jobs heading south for Mexico should the proposed free-trade agreement go into effect.

Perot ultimately lost the election, and the winner, Bill Clinton, supported NAFTA, which went into effect on January 1, 1994.

The rest is History.

[Doctor_J]

24. No, but he can rally the 70 million people who worked for him in 08

by the leading charge against Teabagonomics. Start bashing Bush and the 2001-2007 Congress that got us into this mess. If 90 million or so people started marching, Congress would move. But without a leader and with no media presence, the vast majority of this country, who want changes, won't get them

[gordianot]

25. That would work for me but I have no hope of Obama confronting the problem.

I worked for him in 2008 will vote largely to preserve a rational ballance on the Supreme Court. I work phone banks no more nor do I donate a cent to any Obama campaign without a massive shift in the message.