Washington, DC – President Barack Obama spoke before a joint session of Congress tonight and unveiled his ‘American Jobs Act.’ As unemployment remains stagnant at 9.1 percent with no new jobs reported in August, many wonder if the president’s plan will get people back to work and reinvigorate the American Dream.
‘Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness‘ is one of the most famous phrases in the United States Declaration of Independence and considered by some as part of one of the most well crafted, influential sentences in the history of the English language. According to the U.S. Declaration of Independence, the ‘pursuit of happiness’ is an essential human right and yet so few people in the nation right now have access to the basics needed to accomplish this aim.
The American Dream is a national ethos of the United States. It promises that with freedom comes the promise of the possibility for prosperity and success. According to the definition put forth in 1931 by historian James Truslow Adams, ‘The American Dream is that dream of a land in which life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement.’ For many Americans this translates to work hard and do the right thing and you will fulfill the American Dream. Unfortunately in recent years many have found this to not be the case for their lives. According to US Bureau of Labor Statistics, from 1948 until 2010 the United States' unemployment rate averaged 5.70 percent reaching an historical high of 10.80 percent in November of 1982 and a record low of 2.50 percent in May of 1953. However, the US Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on September 2, 2011, that the unemployment rate held at 9.1 percent. Broken down by the major worker groups, the Bureau reports that the unemployment rates for adult men (8.9 percent), adult women (8.0 percent), teenagers (25.4 percent), whites (8.0 percent), blacks (16.7 percent), and Hispanics (11.3 percent).
In tonight’s speech Obama said that:
The American Jobs Act will repair and modernize at least 35,000 schools. It will put people to work right now fixing roofs and windows; installing science labs and high-speed internet in classrooms all across this country. It will rehabilitate homes and businesses in communities hit hardest by foreclosures. It will jumpstart thousands of transportation projects across the country. And to make sure the money is properly spent and for good purposes, we're building on reforms we've already put in place. No more earmarks. No more boondoggles. No more bridges to nowhere. We're cutting the red tape that prevents some of these projects from getting started as quickly as possible. And we'll set up an independent fund to attract private dollars and issue loans based on two criteria: how badly a construction project is needed and how much good it would do for the economy. (Click here for the complete transcript of Obama’s jobs speech.)
In an advance text released by the White House, Obama said, ‘The people of this country work hard to meet their responsibilities. The question tonight is whether we'll meet ours. The question is whether, in the face of an ongoing national crisis, we can stop the political circus and actually do something to help the economy; whether we can restore some of the fairness and security that has defined this nation since our beginning.’
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