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Friday, September 9, 2011 – Daily News 9A Cut taxes, Obama tells Congress WASHINGTON (AP) — Attacking a deepening crisis on jobs, President Barack Obama challenged a reluctant Congress Thurs- day night to urgently pass a larger-than-expected $450 billion plan to ''jolt an econ- omy that has stalled.'' He urged lawmakers to slash Social Security taxes for tens of millions of Ameri- cans and for almost every business to encourage hir- ing. ''Stop the political cir- cus,'' an animated Obama told a joint session of Con- gress in a nationally tele- vised speech. Over and over he implored lawmakers to ''pass this jobs bill.'' Open to discussion but making no promises, Republican House Speaker John Boehner said Obama's ideas would be considered but the president should give heed to Republicans' as well. ''It's my hope that we can work together,'' he said. In announcing a plan heavy on the tax cuts that Republicans traditionally love, Obama sought to achieve multiple goals: offer a plan that could actually get through a deeply divided Congress, speed hiring in a nation where 14 million are out of work, shore up public confidence in his leadership and put Republicans on the spot to take action. Obama never estimated how many jobs would be created by his plan, which also includes new federal spending for construction, hiring and an extension of jobless benefits for the long- term unemployed. Despite his promise that it would all be paid for, he has not yet released the details on how. His message was unmis- takable to the point of repe- tition, as he told Congress more than 15 times in one way or another to act quick- ly. That was meant as direct challenge by a Democratic president to the Republicans running the House to get behind his plan, especially on tax cuts, or be tarred as standing in the way. The urgency of the jobs crisis is as pronounced as it's been since the early days of Obama's term. Employ- ers added zero jobs last month. A whopping num- ber of Americans — about eight in 10 — think the country is headed in the wrong direction. In the House chamber, Obama received a warm response but then the usual political pattern took hold, Republicans often sitting in silence on the applause lines that had Democrats roaring. Boehner had chummy moments with Vice Presi- dent Joe Biden at his side during the speech but was somber over Obama's shoulder as the president spoke. ''The people of this country work hard to meet their responsibilities. The question tonight is whether we'll meet ours,'' Obama said. ''The question is whether, in the face of an ongoing national crisis, we can stop the political circus and actually do something to help the economy.'' The newest and boldest element of Obama's plan would cut the Social Secu- rity payroll tax both for tens of millions of workers and for employers, too. For individuals, that tax has been shaved from 6.2 percent to 4.2 percent for this year but is to go back up again without action by Congress. Obama wants to deepen the cut to 3.1 per- cent for workers. Obama would also apply the payroll tax cut to employers, halving their taxes to 3.1 percent on their first $5 million in payroll. Businesses that hire new workers or give raises to those they already employ would get an even bigger benefit: On payroll increases up to $50 million they would pay no Social Security tax. Obama proposed spending to fix schools and roads, hire local teachers and police and extend unemployment benefits. He proposed a tax credit for businesses that hire people out of work for six months or longer, plus other tax relief aimed as snaring bipartisan support in a time of divided gov- ernment. The White House put the price tag of Obama's plan at $447 billion, with about $253 billion in tax cuts and $194 billion in federal spending. The president said he would make his case to the public and will waste no time taking his sales pitch on the road. His first stop will be on Friday at the University of Richmond in the Virginia congressional district of House majority Leader Eric Cantor, a fre- quent critic of the presi- dent's policies. Politics shadowed every element of Obama's speech. He appealed to people watching on TV to lobby lawmakers to act. He did the same thing before his speech in an email to campaign supporters, bringing howls of hypocrisy from Republi- cans who wondered why Obama was telling them to put party above country. The American public is weary of talk and wary of promises that help is on the way. And the window for action is shrinking before the 2012 presidential elec- tion swallows up every- thing. Under soaring expecta- tions for results, Obama sought to put himself on the side of voters who he said could not care less about the political conse- quences of his speech. ''The next election if 14 months away,'' Obama said, adding that the people who hired every elected leader in the room need help ''and they need it now.'' Administration officials bristle whenever critics of their original stimulus plan note that it did not live up to the job creation esti- mates the White House issued in 2009. As a result, the White House is leaving it to outside economists to render their verdict on the new plan. Mark Zandi, one of sev- eral economists asked by the White House to evaluate the president's proposal ahead of his speech, said that if enacted it would add 1.9 million jobs and reduce the unemployment rate by one percentage point. Zandi, chief economist for Moody's Analytics, said the expanded payroll tax cut would be responsible for the most increase in hiring, adding about 750,000 jobs. The tax cut for employers, he said, would add about 300,000 new jobs As to paying for it, Obama will ask a special debt panel in Congress to find enough savings to cover the costs of his ideas. He says he'll release specifics a week from Monday along with a pro- posal to stabilize the coun- try's long-term debt. The president said deepening the payroll tax cut would save an average family making $50,000 a year about $1,500 com- pared to what they would if Congress did not extend the current tax cut. ''I know some of you have sworn oaths to never raise any taxes on anyone for as long as you live,'' Obama said, a reference to the conservative tea party influence on many House Republicans. ''Now is not the time to carve out an exception and raise-middle class taxes, which is why you should pass this bill right away.'' No incumbent president in recent history has won re- election with the unemploy- ment rate anywhere near the current 9.1 percent. EVENTS Continued from page 1A • Look for the large American flag that will be flown from a Red Bluff FIRE Continued from page 1A shed, but firefighters were able to save her house. The siding on the back side of THREAT Continued from page 1A said there were no plans to change Obama's travel schedule on Sunday in light of the threat. The president is scheduled to mark the 9/11 anniversary with stops at New York's ground zero, the Pentagon and PARK Continued from page 1A for maintaining the buildings it uses. The state would continue to maintain unused buildings. "Think of it as a business," Linkem said. "First thing you need to do is come up with a plan to see how much of a gap there might be and go from there. We may be able to work out an agreement. We want to keep this open, especially for the school programs." Any group interested in operating one of the 70 parks slated to close would be free, with an agreement in place, to keep the park open for everything from seven days a week to just special events, Linkem said. Costs, including salaries, benefits, temporary help, operating expenses and on-going maintenance are about $120,000, Linkem said. Liability insurance could be anoth- er $20,000 depending on what type of agreement is made. If the group were to set up a contingency fund and pay for a state park employee, liability would still be the state's responsibili- ty, she said. "The biggest cost for our parks is labor and staff benefits, but any rev- enue you make you get to keep (if under an operating agreement)," Linkem said. Fire Department ladder truck near the intersection of Main Street and Ante- lope Boulevard. • Every person across America is being called upon to stop and remem- ber during a Moment of Remembrance for one full minute at 10 a.m. Cities, firehouses, churches and other institutions across the country are called upon to sound sirens and ring bells during that minute. The sirens and Votaw's house had started to melt, Gutierrez said. Some of the damage might have been avoided, however, he said. "Heavy dry grass in and around the structure were contributing fac- tors," Gutierrez said. Shanksville, Pa. He will also deliver remarks Sunday night at a memorial concert at the Kennedy Center in Washington. ''It's accurate that there is specific, credible but uncon- firmed threat information,'' Homeland Security Depart- ment spokesman Matt Chandler said in a state- ment. ''As we always do before important dates like bells will be a signal for each person to stop and remember the people lost and demonstrate the perse- verance Americans have shown since that fateful day. The fire was contained within an hour but crews worked longer to clear the scene. ——— Andrea Wagner can be reached at 527-2153, extension 114 or awagner@redbluffdailynews.com. the anniversary of 9/11, we will undoubtedly get more reporting in the coming days.'' The threat was received late Wednesday night, the counterterrorism official told the AP, and law enforcement has been inves- tigating its validity since. The threat came in a single piece of information and intelligence officials could School programs are at the top of the list for keeping active, Southwick said. While that would mean the park itself is closed, the park is public land, which the public has a right to access, Linkem said. Whether the gates would be left open, with or without the school pro- grams, is up in the air. "We've found with parks that are better off with people there," Linkem said. "It's like a park watch program." The state would like to see a three- year contingency fund, but the board was encouraged to submit a business plan with whatever it could offer, Linkem said. Closures are indefinite, but in three to five years parks could be reopened, depending on the economy, she said. Twenty-six school programs are held between February and May,with a five-year waiting list, drawing schools from more than five counties, Chakarun said. Adding days would depend on the availability of the docents and help with set-up and clean-up. Raising the price for school pro- grams, which has not been done since the 1980s, was suggested. "There's a fine line on how much we can charge because the schools are facing cuts too," Southwick said. "To get a bus, the cost doubles and schools have trouble getting parent drivers." About half the cost of taking trips is the cost of transportation, he said. The state would like a letter of intent with a business plan by Jan. 1, 2012, but no later than April 1, 2012 Linkem said. If the park closes, the state would pack-up things in May or June. If the association takes over, it would not have responsibility for the park until July 1, she said. The Save Our State Parks (SOS) campaign is underway with 12 pages of petitions being sent to legislators and about 50 postcards filled out at Adobe Days, said board member Caitlin Giddings. Those who missed filling out post- cards can stop by the park or send an e-mail to ideadobe@gmail.com to have them mailed. Businesses can get signs reading "Closing State Parks is bad for business" and schools can send large post cards. As of Oct. 1, hours will change to 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday through Sun- day. The park is slated to close July 1. For more information on how to get involved call Ide Adobe Park at 529- 8598. ——— Julie Zeeb can be reached at 527-2153, extension 115 or jzeeb@redbluffdailynews.com. Obama's jobs plan paid for? Seems not WASHINGTON (AP) — President Barack Obama's promise Thurs- day that everything in his jobs plan will be paid for rests on highly iffy propositions. It will only be paid for if a committee he can't control does his bidding, if Congress puts that into law and if leaders in the future — the ones who will feel the fiscal pinch of his proposals — don't roll it back. Underscoring the gravity of the nation's high employment rate, Obama chose a joint ses- sion of Congress, nor- mally reserved for a state of the union speech, to lay out his proposals. But if the moment was extra- ordinary, the plan he pre- sented was conventional Washington rhetoric in one respect: It employs sleight-of-hand account- ing. A look at some of Obama's claims and how they compare with the facts: OBAMA: ''Every- thing in this bill will be paid for. Everything.'' THE FACTS: Obama did not spell out exactly how he would pay for the measures contained in his nearly $450 billion American Jobs Act, but said he would send his proposed specifics in a week to the new congres- sional supercommittee charged with finding budget savings. White House aides suggested that new deficit spending in the near-term to try to promote job creation would be paid for in the future — the ''out years,'' in legislative jar- gon — but they did not specify what would be cut or what revenues they would use. Essentially, the jobs plan is an IOU from a president and lawmakers who may not even be in office down the road when the bills come due. Today's Congress cannot bind a later one for future spending. A future Con- gress could simply reverse it. Currently, roughly all federal taxes and other revenues are consumed in spending on various fed- eral benefit programs, including Social Securi- ty, Medicare, Medicaid, veterans' benefits, food stamps, farm subsidies and other social-assis- tance programs and pay- ments on the national debt. Pretty much every- thing else is done on credit with borrowed money. So there is no guaran- tee that programs that clearly will increase annual deficits in the near term will be paid for in the long term. ——— OBAMA: ''Every- Red Bluff Simple Cremations & Burial Service Family owned & Operated Honor and Dignity 527-1732 722 Oak Street, Red Bluff, FD Lic. 1931 thing in here is the kind of proposal that's been supported by both Democrats and Republi- cans, including many who sit here tonight.'' THE FACTS: Obama's proposed cut in the Social Security pay- roll tax does seem likely to garner significant GOP support. But Obama pro- poses paying for the plan in part with tax increases that have already gener- ated stiff Republican opposition. For instance, Obama makes a pitch anew to end Bush-era tax cuts for the wealthiest Ameri- cans, which he has defined as couples earn- ing over $250,000 a year or individuals earning over $200,000 a year. Republicans have adamantly blocked what they view as new taxes. As recently as last month, House Republi- cans refused to go along with any deal to raise the government's borrowing authority that included new revenues, or taxes. ——— OBAMA: ''It will not add to the deficit.'' THE FACTS: It's hard to see how the program would not raise the deficit over the next year or two because most of the envisioned spending cuts and tax increases are designed to come later rather than now, when they could jeopardize the fragile recovery. Deficits are calculated for indi- vidual years. The accu- mulation of years of deficit spending has pro- duced a national debt headed toward $15 tril- lion. Perhaps Obama meant to say that, in the long run, his hoped-for programs would not fur- ther increase the national debt, not annual deficits. ——— OBAMA: ''The American Jobs Act answers the urgent need to create jobs right away.'' THE FACTS: Not all of the president's major proposals are likely to yield quick job growth if adopted. One is to set up a national infrastructure bank to raise private cap- ital for roads, rail, bridges, airports and waterways. Even sup- porters of such a bank doubt it could have much impact on jobs in the next two years because it takes time to set up. The idea is likely to run into opposition from some Republicans who say such a bank would give the federal government too much power. They'd rather divide money among existing state infrastructure banks. ——— Associated Press writer Joan Lowy con- tributed to this report. not determine if it was relat- ed to previous intelligence, the official said. Thursday morning, Homeland Security Secre- tary Janet Napolitano told reporters that there was ''a lot of chatter'' around the anniversary of the attacks but that there was no infor- mation about a specific threat.