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Opinion: Weekly remarks: Obama creating jobs by federal help; Renee Ellmers creating jobs by less regulation

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President Obama’s weekly remarks, as provided by the White House
Hello, everybody. Earlier this week, I spoke about our way forward in Afghanistan, and I said that because of the extraordinary work of our men and women in uniform, civilians, and our coalition partners, we will soon begin bringing our troops home, just as we’ve begun doing in Iraq. After a decade of conflict, we’re finally bringing these wars to a responsible end.

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That’s in the best interests of America’s security. And it’s also in the best interests of America’s economy. Even though we’ve turned our economy in the right direction over the past couple of years, many Americans are still hurting, and now is the time to focus on nation-building here at home.

Of course, there’s been a real debate about where to invest and where to cut, and I’m ...

... committed to working with members of both parties to cut our deficits and debt. But we can’t simply cut our way to prosperity. We need to do what’s necessary to grow our economy; create good, middle-class jobs; and make it possible for all Americans to pursue their dreams.

That means giving our kids the best education in the world so they have the knowledge and skills to succeed in this economy. It means rebuilding our crumbling roads, railways and runways. And it means investing in the cutting-edge research and technologies that will spur growth in the years ahead –- from clean energy to advanced manufacturing.

That’s why I’m here today at Carnegie Mellon in Pittsburgh, one of America’s leading research universities. Behind me is a display from a company called RedZone Robotics. The robots they make are used to explore water and sewage pipes, and find leaks and breaks before they become expensive problems. But the folks at RedZone aren’t just solving problems; they’re working with unions to create new jobs operating the robots, and they’re saving cities millions of dollars in infrastructure costs.

This company is just one example of how advanced manufacturing can help spur job-creation and economic growth across this country. That’s why this week, we launched what we’re calling an Advanced Manufacturing Partnership. It’s a partnership that brings our federal government together with some of America’s most brilliant minds and some of America’s most innovative companies and manufacturers.

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Their mission is to come up with a way to get ideas from the drawing board to the manufacturing floor to the marketplace as swiftly as possible, which will help create quality jobs, and make our businesses more competitive. But they also have a broader mission.

It’s to renew the promise of American manufacturing. To help make sure America remains in this century what we were in the last –- a country that makes things. A country that out-builds and out-innovates the rest of the world.

I know these have been tough years for American manufacturing, and all the workers and families who’ve built their lives around it. But being here in Pittsburgh, I’m hopeful about the future. I’m hopeful when I think about how companies like RedZone are reinvigorating manufacturing or about how what started as a small trade school is now a global research university.

We are a people who’ve always adapted to meet the challenges of a new time; who’ve always shaped our own destiny, and I’m absolutely confident that that’s what we’re going to do one more time. Have a great weekend.

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Weekly remarks by Rep. Renee Ellmers, as provided by Republican Party leadership
Hello, I’m Congresswoman Renee Ellmers from the great state of North Carolina.

I’m speaking to you today from the House Small Business Committee, where just about every week we hear from America’s job creators. These are leaders and entrepreneurs who take time out and come to Washington to explain how tough things are right now.

Their stories are different, but their message is the same: uncertainty, burdensome regulations and the fear of higher taxes are making it harder to create jobs and stay afloat.

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You know, if I weren’t in Congress, I’d be sitting right next to them. My husband and I own a small medical practice in Dunn, a small town 40 miles south of Raleigh. We’ve seen how government overreach can hurt a family-owned small business. We’ve worked to overcome it by relying on the same values that helped get our practice off the ground: freedom, opportunity and responsibility.

The job creators we hear from... they don’t have their hand out. They don’t want a bailout. All they ask us to do is get government out of the way.

Republicans have put forward a job-creation plan that would do just that. ‘A Plan for America’s Job Creators’ lives up to its name.

Our approach starts with reducing the regulatory burden small businesses face and making Washington bureaucrats factor jobs into their decision-making process.

Instead of knee-jerk reactions to high gas prices, we propose expanding domestic energy production to help lower costs and create jobs.

To make us more competitive, we want to open new markets to American-made goods.

And we’re ready to build on the budget we’ve passed to pay down the debt and see that Washington lives within its means. Because kicking the can down the road will only destroy more jobs by rattling confidence and causing more uncertainty over our fiscal condition.

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These are just some of the solutions included in our jobs creation plan. You can check out all the details at jobs.GOP.gov.

We’ve already made some headway. This week, the House approved a vital jobs bill on energy production. This legislation will make our domestic energy resources available while lowering gas prices and creating thousands of jobs. We hope the Senate will pass this important legislation and other jobs bills we’ve sent its way.

Unfortunately, the Democrats who run Washington say we should stay the course, keep spending money we don’t have, and raise your taxes –- all in the name of ‘stimulus.’ These Washington-knows-best policies haven’t worked. They have only made matters worse.

All told, there are now 2.3 million more people looking for work than there were in the month when President Obama took office. Americans were promised the ‘stimulus’ would keep unemployment below 8%, but it is now more than 9%.

You sent us here to focus on jobs, and we must show leadership worthy of your trust. That’s why we’re inviting President Obama to work with us and help enact our jobs-creation plan. Washington is at its best when it’s listening to the American people. And our people are at its best when they’re working, prospering, and laying the foundation for those greatest days that still lie ahead.

So I hope you’ll check out jobs.GOP.gov and let us know what you think. For now, thanks for listening.

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Michelle Obama, her mother, family and friends arrive in Botswana on an official visit Friday.

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The Capitol in Washington, D.C. Credit: Alex Wong / Getty Images

Rep. Renee Ellmers. Credit: Charles Dharapak / Associated Press

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