It’s definitely full of all kinds of goodness, but above all else:
The President’s plan calls for legislation that would make it unlawful to refuse to hire applicants solely because they are unemployed or to include in a job posting a provision that unemployed persons will not be considered.
It also gives tax breaks for hiring the long-term unemployed. That is all discussed in section three, “Pathways back to work.”
Equally interesting, if not as delightfully on-point, is section two:
2. Putting Workers Back on the Job While Rebuilding and Modernizing America
A “Returning Heroes” hiring tax credit for veterans: This provides tax credits from $5,600 to $9,600 to encourage the hiring of unemployed veterans.
Preventing up to 280,000 teacher layoffs,while keeping cops and firefighters on the job.
Modernizing at least 35,000 public schools across the country,supporting new science labs, Internet-ready classrooms and renovations at schools across the country, in rural and urban areas.
Immediate investments in infrastructure and a bipartisan National Infrastructure Bank, modernizing our roads, rail, airports and waterways while putting hundreds of thousands of workers back on the job.
A New “Project Rebuild”, which will put people to work rehabilitating homes, businesses and communities, leveraging private capital and scaling land banks and other public-private collaborations.
Expanding access to high-speed wireless as part of a plan for freeing up the nation’s spectrum.
That right there is huge. The goal, as it was the first time Obama tried this, is to get broadband coverage to 98% of the country. It would be done by auctioning off bandwidth to be used for broadband, with some of the proceeds going to the expansion of broadband infrastructure and the rest paying down the debt.
I’m assuming that’s part of how the plan is already paid for, so that there’s no reasonable explanation to justify GOP opposition. Not that that will stop them, but maybe this will:
Because research shows that wireless equals jobs. “Recent data shows that making additional spectrum available for wireless will lead to 500,000 new jobs in America,” said Jonathan Spalter, chairman of the non-profit wireless industry think tank Mobile Future, in a written statement.
A report that Mobile Future released in August spelled it out: “Building on previous studies, we estimate that the reassignment of 300 MHz of spectrum to mobile broadband within five years will spur $75 billion in new capital spending, creating more than 300,000 jobs and $230 billion in additional Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
Awwww…who am I kidding?! They will stomp and pout and still say no; then they will gnash and wail and snivel when they’re voted out on their arses come 2012. Come to think of it, I double-dog dare them to say no! Care to join me? I’m going to call Boehner and ask point-blank when the vote on the bill will be. It is now with the relevant committees in each chamber of Congress.
Cross-posted from The People’s View .
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