WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama Monday called upon Congress to schedule a vote on the American Jobs Act before the end of October.
Obama made the brief statement before a meeting with his Cabinet, which he said would focus on administrative action to help stimulate jobs.
He said he will speak to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), “insisting” that Congress take action on the $447 billion American Jobs Act this month.
He also called on congressional Republicans to outline what parts of the bill they are opposed to.
The Obama jobs plan includes an expansion of the payroll tax cut as well as an increase in infrastructure spending and more funding for unemployment benefits.
Obama has said the legislation will be paid for with an estimated $467 billion in tax hikes for oil and gas companies, hedge fund managers and American families earning more than $250,000 a year.
“I’m very much looking forward to seeing Congress debate this bill, pass it, get it to my desk,” Obama said. “Ultimately, they’ve got to do the right thing for the American people.”
In a statement, Boehner spokesman Brendan Buck pushed back on Obama’s suggestion that Congress is delaying taking action to stimulate job growth.
“As we’ve long said, we’d like to work with the President where we can find common ground, as well as discuss other ideas that will better support job creation,” Buck said. “In the meantime, we continue to pass jobs bills, including two regulatory reform bills scheduled for this week that have bipartisan support.”