Sep 6, 8:33 AM (ET)

By JULIE PACE
http://apnews.myway.com/article/20100906/D9I2DUV01.html


WASHINGTON (AP) - Vowing to find new ways to stimulate the sputtering economy, President Barack Obama will call for long-term investments in the nation's roads, railways and runways that would cost at least $50 billion.

The infrastructure investments are one part of a package of targeted proposals the White House is expected to announce in hopes of jump-starting the economy ahead of the November election. Obama will outline the infrastructure proposal Monday at a Labor Day event in Milwaukee.

While the proposal calls for investments over six years, the White House said spending would be front-loaded with an initial $50 billion to help create jobs in the near future.

The goals of the infrastructure plan include: rebuilding 150,000 miles of roads; constructing and maintaining 4,000 miles of railways, enough to go coast-to-coast; and rehabilitating or reconstructing 150 miles of airport runways, while also installing a new air navigation system designed to reduce travel times and delays.

Obama will also call for the creation of a permanent infrastructure bank that would focus on funding national and regional infrastructure projects.

Administration officials wouldn't say what the total cost of the infrastructure investments would be, but did say the initial $50 billion represents a significant percentage. Officials said the White House would consider closing a number of special tax breaks for oil and gas companies to pay for the proposal.

Obama made infrastructure investments a central part of the $814 billion stimulus Congress passed last year, but with that spending winding down, the economy's growth has slowed. Officials said this infrastructure package differs from the stimulus because it's aimed at long-term growth, while still focusing on creating jobs in the short-term.

In a Labor Day interview on CBS'"Early Show," Labor Secretary Hilda Solis said the plan Obama was to unveil Monday would "put construction workers, welders, electricians back to work ... folks that have been unemployed for a long time."

With the unemployment rate ticking up to 9.6 percent, and polls showing the midterm elections could be dismal for Democrats, the president has promised to unveil a series of new measures on the economy.

In addition to Monday's announcement in Milwaukee, Obama will travel to Cleveland Wednesday to pitch a $100 billion proposal to increase and make permanent research and development tax credits for businesses, a White House official said.

While the idea is popular in Congress, coming up with offsetting tax increases or spending cuts has been a stumbling block. Similar to his proposal to pay for the infrastructure investments, Obama will ask lawmakers to close tax breaks for oil and gas companies and multinational corporations to pay for the plan.

Other stimulus measures the administration is considering include extending a law passed in March that exempts companies that hire unemployed workers from paying Social Security taxes on those workers through December. Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., has proposed extending the exemption an additional six months.

Obama is also continuing to prod the Senate to pass the small business bill that calls for about $12 billion in tax breaks and a $30 billion fund to help unfreeze lending. Republicans have likened the bill to the unpopular bailout of the financial industry. And the president wants to make permanent the portion of George W. Bush's tax cuts affecting the middle class.

Wary of the public's concern over rising deficits, the administration insists a second stimulus plan, similar to last year's $814 billion bill, is not in the works.

Moneys are sitting there in the house/senate waiting for the Repubs and blue dogs to get off their asses and vote to pass it~~if I were the president, I would get tougher, and tell those who do not want to work in getting this country back on track,during their break, if you don't want to work your laid off~don't come back!! no work/no money, there is a law that he can inject /enforce to get this done..He needs to get meaner/stricter, no more pussyfooting around..Let bush taxes expire, and go back to clinton taxes!

Fire up the Democratic party~ also Palin has dropped in the polls~

gypsy wrote:Moneys are sitting there in the house/senate waiting for the Repubs and blue dogs to get off their asses and vote to pass it~~if I were the president, I would get tougher, and tell those who do not want to work in getting this country back on track,during their break, if you don't want to work your laid off~don't come back!! no work/no money, there is a law that he can inject /enforce to get this done..He needs to get meaner/stricter, no more pussyfooting around..Let bush taxes expire, and go back to clinton taxes!

Fire up the Democratic party~ also Palin has dropped in the polls~

i beg to differ , the president cant fire or lay off a congressman or senator or even tell them how to vote, the house and senate actually hold a stronger position since obama is not that high in the polls, its all about getting reelected, and the make up of ur district, as to how a congressman votes and how ur state leans as to how the senators vote, but the dems are in a tough place now, so if this does not work, the dems have a problem, alot of the country is very scared of the amount of money we owe, thats mainly all i hear ppl talk about is how far in det we are, this would be new money because he is saying where he will get it from, its not money there now from previous programs, this is new, trying to save the coming elections, but it will not be long till we will know what the new house and senate will look like,
each of the 3 branches of government have powers, checks and balances its called, no one branch holds more power than the other,,, the house and senate candidates are worried about how to get elected, not worried about obama, its all in how ur district leans, and here they all mostly lean anti obama, although i may agree with this new spending many will not, it all has to be paid back is why by our kids and grandkids, if i had to guess i think the dems will be in big trouble in november, but i hope im wrong. even though i wanted the healthcare to pass, i actually wanted more government involement in the health care bill, but most ppl here is against the healthcare bill that passed, but this is republican territory here, i actually dont see this passing, but i could be wrong but i dont think so, the ppl are tired of all the spending, or here they are, and i will say that will reflect in the make up of the house and senate in november,,,,

There is stimulus money not spent yet by the states, for infrastructure,from the first stimulus
I also beg to differ, the President can make it tough on the senators and reps, Truman did it and so has a few other presidents,I can look it up, I will let you do the homework!! If the Repugs win in November, lets see what they will do,,repeal everything in the works now, so we can fall back to the last eight years?? Listen to your old senators, they want the same thing, that caused this failure//Listen close, they have no plan,if the American people vote for these same repugs that caused this, then they deserve what it,brings but we have to suffer along with them!! Wake Up America//Do we want the same old mess?

All the spending? now who started that? Look how much we owed when Obama became president, he is paying for two wars he didn't start!!

the only way a president can make it tough on a senator or house member is if the president is very popular, and would withhold campaigning for that congressman and senator, but obama is not very popular, the congress men and senators are actually running away from him and most dont want his help in the coming election, they dont even mention the healthcare bill in their campaigns as the majority of the country was against it, sure in some liberal districts it may have been but not ur state, or mine, even if they loose the house if they vote to turn back some laws like the healthcare, for the next 2 years anyways, obama can veto it, then it takes 2/3 to override, which will not happen, the republicans will not win that big, but many congressmen went out on a limb for the healthcare bill knowing there districts were not in favor of it, and will pay the price, same thing happened to clinton he lost both the house and senate many members of congress lost in clintons midterm for voting for the tax increase even though it was mainly for the rich, but had to go back and change some, like the tax on yachts, the yacht business died, so that was changed, the ppl that built the boats lost their jobs, ppl bought them from other countrys i think it was, but that tax was changed back, ,clinton lost congress , after hillarys fiasco with healthcare, and clintons dont ask dont tell gay thing in the military, .obama had congressmen up to the white house to preswade them to vote for the more government control health care, they came out to microphones and said they cant go along with obama, he is so weak he cant do anything, and its only going to get worse, ur living in a dream world, the middle that put him in office he has lost, he will be one term, im just stating how its going to go, wait and see, the first part is in a couple of months, i dont have to say more time will tell, u wait and see, i would like to be wrong, but im not,,i may be wrong but is not ran paul from ur state and a tea party guy and doing well, i read that i think but really not sure,

yes wait and see, I will say this for kentuckians if they vote Rand Paul in they are more stupid than I thought they were for voting Mitch, who has done nothing for the state of Kentucky~ I disagree on all that hype on how unpopular Obama is, the dems are running scared because they don't want to lose the election.all political humph.I believe everything Obama has done was to fix what was broke,also the news media makes it all to political, which it is.I want a person be it dem,or repub, that are for the people, Rand Paul certainly isn't,neither is your senator,that is in office now.I don't know who is running against him,but I don't like Sessions for sure..but it will be exciting~! for sure :)

jeff sessions will win easy he always does, ppl here are very conservative, and also richard shelby, they win pretty easy,