Big Ideas To Get America Working

Big Ideas to Get America Working What would a bold jobs agenda look like? The task is not simply to give the economy a stimulus, as if we were giving a charge to a dead car battery. We need to rebuild the engine and modernize the wiring, creating a new strategy for America in the global economy. We asked our writers and contributors to lay out the "big ideas" and framing you can use to push a jobs-first agenda to the forefront of the national debate.

The Jobs Question
By Robert Borosage
August 16, 2011

President Obama is, in the lingo of the day, “pivoting to jobs.” His bus tour through the Midwest began the process, with the president recycling his current jobs-lite agenda: payroll tax cut extended, infrastructure bank, trade deals, tax cuts for companies that hire veterans, and patent reform—“things the Congress could do right now,” but nothing near the scope of the need. Read more »

On Jobs, Tell It Like It Is

By Robert Borosage

August 30, 2011

Washington is waiting for President Obama. Next week, the president has scheduled a big speech to propose new measures to create jobs and get the economy going. more »

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So You Want To Talk About Jobs?

By Dave Johnson

August 30, 2011

Before leaving on vacation President Obama said he is going to talk about creating jobs in September. The latest word is he will give this speech next week. Campaign for America’s Future has put together some ideas for creating jobs. See our series Big Ideas To Get America Working: more »

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Today's Big Idea To Get America Working: Fix The Housing Crisis

By Liz Ryan Murray

August 23, 2011

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Today's Big Idea to Get America Working: Hire the Young to Build Their Own Future

By Richard (RJ) Eskow

August 22, 2011

Young Americans are a generation betrayed. Official unemployment is more than 25% for those aged 16-19. That means the real figure is much worse, especially in minority communities and depressed parts of the country. But jobs are scarce for everyone. College students are graduating with record levels of student debt before entering the worst job market for graduates in recent memory.

We're handing them a nation of crumbling infrastructure, lost ambitions, diminished prospects - and a seemingly endless parade of baby-boomer pop culture references, too. They deserve better than this legacy of dust and ashes. Since we've made such a mess of things, why not hire them to build the nation - and the future - that they deserve?

We can do it. Better yet, we can help them do it. A WPA-like program for younger Americans would give them a brighter future by hiring them to rebuild our infrastructure, develop imaginative new business ideas, create alternative energy sources, and become tomorrow’s artists and writers. We can give them control over their own destiny, too.

But first, a look at the mess we've created for them. more »

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Today's Big Idea To Get America Working: Revive American Manufacturing

By Dave Johnson

August 20, 2011

When President Nixon went to China in 1972, manufacturing was 22 percent of the nation's economy. It was still 20 percent of the nation's economy eight years later when China was granted most-favored-nation trading status. more »

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Today's Big Idea To Get America Working: Make Work Pay

By Anne Thompson

August 19, 2011

Significant job growth continues to elude the American workforce, as companies hold back from expanding and rehiring in the face of weak demand for their goods and services. more »

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The President’s Bold Jobs Bill (Maybe)

By Robert Reich

August 18, 2011

Robert Reich will be a featured speaker at the Take Back the American Dream conference, convening in Washington D.C., from October 3 to 5. The following was originally published at RobertReich.com. more »

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Today's Big Idea To Get America Working: Invest In Public Education

By Jeff Bryant

August 17, 2011

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