It’s been a busy 100 days for us in Congress. From reigning in Wall Street excesses with comprehensive financial regulation reform to protecting and creating American jobs, we are working hard to fulfill the mandate given to President Obama and Congressional Democrats back in November of 2008. But the next 100 days promise to be even busier.
In Congress, we have been fighting back against the constant obstructions of the Republican minority. Instead of coming to the table with new ideas to get the American people to work, the GOP is still more interested in scoring cheap political points. Whether it’s arguing for repeal of health care reform that will help protect America’s families, apologizing to BP for Democrats’ efforts to hold them accountable for their actions in the Gulf, or denying a crucial extension of unemployment benefits for nearly three million American workers, it’s clear that Republicans are more interested in fighting for corporate interests than the interests of the American people.
Despite this obstructionism, we have made some important progress. The most obvious example is the Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. The White House blog conveniently lays out ten parts of the financial regulation package you may not be aware of, such as prohibiting mortgage brokers from selling unaffordable mortgages simply to make higher commissions, providing consumers with free credit reports, and putting an end to the "too big to fail" mentality by preventing financial institutions from growing to such a point that their collapse would trigger much wider economic collapse.
The financial regulation reform package will prevent the excesses of Wall Street and big banks that led to the financial meltdown in 2008 and protect consumers from confusing and deceitful financial service products. We established an independent Consumer Financial Protection Bureau with a mission of protecting common people from excessive interest rate hikes, misleading financial products, and the leveraged risk of packaged securities that resulted in the loss of people’s savings.
But the most important legislation we’ve been working on over the last 100 days may also be the least-heralded. In order for us to continue down the road to recovery, we must focus on job creation and fostering small businesses through tax cuts and incentives. That’s why House Democrats are working to end tax loopholes that ship American jobs overseas. Along the same lines, we in the House passed HR 5312, ensuring that Chinese companies are not able to receive US government contracts while American companies are locked out of competition for similar Chinese government contracts. By creating a level playing field with foreign countries, we can keep jobs and prevent the large-scale outsourcing of employees by corporations looking to exploit our tax system.
Against every trick in the book by Senate Republicans – who are up in arms over the long-planned phase out of President Bush’s tax cuts for the nation’s wealthiest – we passed essential unemployment benefit extensions for the millions of Americans still looking for work. Under the watch of President Bush and Congressional Republicans, record setting deficits were built up, reckless tax cuts were enacted, and Clinton-era surpluses were squandered. But now, with so many American families relying on unemployment benefits to help put food on the table, Republicans find it necessary to obstruct and delay. Frankly, this is hypocritical and malicious behavior to score points in an election year and it puts American families in danger.
Here in New Jersey – and especially in our shore communities – I hear time and time again from residents thanking me for fighting hard to prevent the expansion of offshore drilling. The BP disaster has highlighted for so many why offshore drilling, whether in the Gulf of Mexico or right here at the Jersey shore, is a losing proposition. Energy independence will not be accomplished through offshore exploration and a more comprehensive investment in renewable energy must be enacted.
In less than 100 days, the legacy of this Congress will be put to a vote. Americans will be asked whether they want to continue moving ahead with the Democrats or slide back with the Republicans. Well-funded corporate interests are mounting campaigns across the country to halt the progress we’ve made. But I know we’re planning on putting up a fight on behalf of America’s working men and women who are looking for real solutions to the problems they face every day – unemployment, environmental degradation, predatory lending, and lack of access to health care and high-quality education.
With less than 100 days until the General Election each one is crucial. We must continue to fight for progressive policies to move New Jersey and our nation into the 21st century. There is still much work to be done on energy legislation, campaign finance reform, and a slew of other issues affecting Americans. That’s why it is more important than ever to stay engaged and continue working towards success on Election Day.
