LIUNA: House GOP Leaders Give Up on America

Job-Killing Transportation Bill Fails to Address Pressing Needs, Passes up Opportunity to Put Millions to Work

WASHINGTON, July 7, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Today LIUNA – the Laborers' International Union of North America – released the following response to the Surface Transportation Reauthorization proposal unveiled by House Republicans:

(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20110428/DC91600LOGO )

Today the Republican leadership in the House of Representatives gave up on the American economy and on the United States' role as a global economic leader. 

The multi-year outline that was unveiled by Committee Chairman Mica, based on the funding level called for in the House Republican budget, will slash transportation spending by more than 30 percent below current funding levels and will, in the first year alone, cost America 490,000 jobs.

These cuts will result in lost productivity as millions of Americans sit in unnecessary traffic jams; manufactured goods and agricultural products that are not able to get to market in a timely fashion; dangerous roads that result in needless deaths, injuries, and property damage; and a continued erosion of state and local economies.

Infrastructure investments return value to the American economy and make it possible to grow wealth for workers and businesses. As our global competitors continue to make new investments in transportation, energy, and communications networks, the conservative Republican leadership wants to make this a job-killing summer and drive the economy into the ditch.

By rejecting the traditional bipartisan support that has traditionally characterized infrastructure investments in the United States in favor of an ideological, rigid position designed keep the economy from moving ahead into the future, the Republican leadership has shown its true intentions: Keep the economy stagnant in the hopes that it will give Republicans a political advantage in the 2012 elections. 

It is time for Congress to stop worrying about the next election and start caring about the well-being of the country. All members of House and Senate should reject this inadequate and damaging proposal and demand that Chairman Mica produce a bill that truly invests in America's future.

Passing such a bill is a no-brainer – we can get our economy moving again with jobs that build America, strengthen our competitiveness in the global economy and leave real assets and a positive legacy for taxpayers and future generations.

The half-million members of LIUNA – the Laborers' International Union of North America – are on the forefront of the construction industry, a powerhouse of workers who are proud to build America.

SOURCE Laborers' International Union of North America

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