Democrats Vow to Keep America Competitive in the Global Economy

DEMOCRATS VOW TO KEEP AMERICA COMPETITIVE IN THE GLOBAL ECONOMY

Senate Democrats today vowed to keep America competitive in the global marketplace and called for a real investment by the Federal government in research funding, education, job training, renewable and clean energy sources and small business development.

U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL), Byron Dorgan (D-ND), Maria Cantwell (D-WA) and Jeff Bingaman (D-NM) said that the President's budget does not match the public commitment he made to Americans during his State of the Union Address when he unveiled his American Competitiveness Initiative. The budget the President submitted to Congress fails to provide American researchers, entrepreneurs, and workers the tools necessary to keep America's edge in scientific and technological innovations.

"We know the solutions that would put America on the right track and continue to keep our country the innovative and technological leader of the globe, but this Administration has refused to make them a national priority," said Senator Durbin. "It is in our national interest to put more math and science teachers in our classrooms and to expand research that would end our dependence on foreign oil. We believe these necessary investments will make America more prosperous and secure in the 21st Century."

"At a time when American jobs are being shipped overseas and our trade deficit is at an all-time record, it is unbelievable that President Bush offers up these misplaced priorities in this budget. Instead of making Americans more competitive in the global economy, this report makes clear that the Bush budget would do just the opposite by proposing cuts that would hurt workers, students and entrepreneurs," said Senator Dorgan.

Senator Cantwell said, "America needs an aggressive national strategy to create high-quality jobs and keep our country on the cutting edge of innovation. Reliable, affordable energy sources are a must if we want jumpstart our economy and help America's businesses grow. Businesses need relief from today's sky-high energy prices and are counting on us to make affordable, home-grown alternative fuels a reality. We need to harness American ingenuity and expertise to break our dangerous over-dependence on foreign oil meet the demands of an ever-changing global economy."

"If we're going to continue to create the jobs of the future and retain our competitive edge in the global economy, our nation needs to make a serious commitment to funding education initiatives as well as scientific research and development. Unfortunately, the budget released by the White House does neither," Senator Bingaman said. "This is an issue of tremendous importance, and it's my hope that Congress will provide the leadership that the administration has not."

http://durbin.senate.gov/record.cfm?id=252413&&