Where Are the Jobs?

As appeared in the February 17, 2021 edition of the Elizabethtown Advocate and Ephrata Review

As we continue to fight the COVID-19 pandemic helping get folks back to work safely, getting students back in the classroom, and crushing the virus by making the vaccine available to those who wish to receive it should be goals that transcend political boundaries. These goals should be the yardstick against which Congress should consider any additional relief legislation. Yet, as Congress continues to debate the nearly $2 trillion COVID-19 "stimulus" package being put forth by President Biden and congressional Democrats, sadly, their plan leaves a lot of unanswered questions, including, "where are the jobs?"

Last week, I joined my Republican colleagues on the House Committee on Ways and Means to ask President Biden's administration for an estimate of how many jobs their proposed $2 trillion package would create. As of this article's submission date, there has been no response from the Biden White House.

While they ignore our question, we must look at the other actions they took relating to job creation. As part of his first several executive orders, President Biden canceled the Keystone XL pipeline, eliminating 11,000 jobs. His executive order ending oil and gas leasing on federal lands will eliminate 120,000 jobs by 2025. On top of this, Biden and congressional Democrats' attempt to raise the minimum wage, will eliminate 1.4 million jobs according to the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO). The minimum wage has nothing to do with this pandemic, but congressional Democrats are using procedural tools to advance their partisan wish list attached to the COVID spending package.

In a report released this month, the CBO said that the nation's economy would return to the pre-pandemic unemployment rate in 2024. This is unacceptable. Congress should be adopting pro-growth policies to accelerate job creation, not stifle it.

Since January 2020, the federal government has already spent approximately $3.5 trillion to provide assistance to families, healthcare providers, schools, and our communities. Reports estimate that approximately $500 billion in funds appropriated by Congress have yet to be spent. Congress must ensure that any additional funds that are to be spent should be targeted to those most in need and impacted by COVID-19. Funding already appropriated needs to be spent first.

Unfortunately, it appears that congressional Democrats are not serious about helping Americans get back to work, but instead, President Biden wants to pay Americans to stay at home. During the House Ways and Means Committee's consideration of the "stimulus" bill, Democrat members shot down amendments to improve the legislation. My amendment to encourage employers to hire long-term unemployed individuals was voted down along party lines. Amendments offered by my Republican colleagues on the committee to protect Americans from fraud or making it easier for small businesses to open safely were also voted down.

After using soaring language to call for unity in his speech at the inauguration, President Biden's calls for unity ring hollow. All five major pieces of COVID-19 relief legislation passed last year, including the CARES Act, were passed with strong bipartisan support. President Biden and congressional Democrats have no interest in bipartisan legislating. Their "go-it-alone" approach, which advances their partisan wish list, is simply wrong and does not serve the American people well.

The American people know there is dignity found in work. The best stimulus check is a paycheck. President Biden and congressional Democrats would be wise to join House Republicans in helping hard-working Americans get back to work.