WASHINGTON — President Barack Obama is keeping up his appeal for public support of his $447 billion proposal to boost jobs and consumer spending by urging Americans to press Congress to pass the legislation.
“No more division or delay,” he said.
In his weekly radio and Internet address Saturday, he focused on a message that has become central to a presidency struggling to address stubbornly high unemployment numbers and dipping approval of his handling of the economy.
“The No. 1 issue for the people I meet is how we can get back to a place where we’re creating good, middle-class jobs that pay well and offer some security,” he said.
In the Republican address, Rep. Peter Roskam of Illinois called on Obama to reduce regulations on businesses, saying government agency rules were choking off hiring. “Washington has become a red-tape factory,” he said.
He acknowledged Obama’s decision to scrub a clean-air regulation that aimed to reduce health-threatening smog. “He can cancel more,” Roskam said.
He pressed Obama to push the Senate to adopt House Republican initiatives, including legislation that would give Congress veto power over certain high-cost regulations.
The Associated Press
