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Thursday, December 30th, 2010

Rebuilding America Can Create Jobs

Author:     MARION GOLDIN and MIKE CURZAN
Source:     Politico
Publication Date:     12/29/10 9:55 AM EST
 Link: Rebuilding America Can Create Jobs
Stephan:   It should be clear now, to even the dimmest, that American corporations do not have as a goal creating American employment. In this last year they have created less than a million jobs in the U.S. and 1.3 million aboard. Many of them also pay no income tax. So if we are going to stop America's precipitous decline, it is going to require a new approach, American based, and American built. Here is one possible way to do it using the railroads. We should all be clear the only thing that is going to get this implemented properly is public funding of campaigns and elections and draconian punishments for those corporations that break the rules. The leverage point upon which all social progressives should focus their attention is pressing to see public funding of the entire election process. Nothing is going to happen until the special interest money is taken out of the equation. Myron P. Curzan is the chief executive officer of UniDev LLC. He served as a legislative assistant for the late Sen. Robert F. Kennedy. Marion Goldin won an Emmy as producer for '60 Minutes.

What would it take finally to get serious about rebuilding America?

Another Minnesota bridge collapse, with 13 lives lost? Another gas-line explosion in San Bruno, Calif., with an entire community decimated? Another colossal levee failure, like the one that devastated New Orleans? While America falls apart, successive administrations fiddle. Officials wring their hands over our deteriorating infrastructure but profess powerlessness in the face of the monumental task.
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There is, however, a smart way to approach this enduring problem – a bold and comprehensive plan to attack our crumbling bridges, railroads, dams, and water, sewer and power lines as well as our energy grid. All funded by new, special-issue Rebuilding Infrastructure Bonds.

This program could put America back to work. It could create more than 315,000 meaningful, long-term jobs in its first full year – with the number increasing each year, as additional projects are brought on-line. Over the life of this program, we estimate that more than 1 million jobs would be created, assuming that each project ran an average of three years.

The strength of this plan is that it is long term. It would extend at least 10 years, offering real, stable jobs – not temporary, make-work ones. It would […]

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