–Was ‘Right’ To Push For Year Payroll Tax Cut
–House Has Passed Multitude of Jobs Bills
–House Majority Leader Cantor: Will Be ‘Hyper Focused’ on Small Biz

By John Shaw

WASHINGTON (MNI) – Emerging from the first meeting of the year of
House Republicans, House Speaker John Boehner and Majority Leader Eric
Cantor said Wednesday that House Republicans will focus on job creation
measures this year.

In remarks to reporters, Boehner said the “number one issue” this
year will be boosting economic growth and bolstering job creation. The
focus of House Republicans, will be to “get our economy going again and
creating jobs.”

He said House Republicans passed more than 30 jobs bills last year
and sent them to the Senate where they languished.

“We passed jobs bill after jobs bill after jobs bill,” Boehner
said.

Boehner said this focus will continue and urged President Obama to
show his commitment to this goal by allowing the Keystone pipeline
project to go forward.

Boehner defended House Republicans efforts in December to
initially resist a two-month extension of the payroll tax cut package
and advocate a year-long package.

“We were picking the right fight,” Boehner said, but added that it
became clear the Senate was not willing to stay in Washington in late
December to negotiate a year long agreement.

The House Republican package would have extended for one year the
current 4.2% payroll tax rate for employees and renew unemployment
insurance benefits for workers who have been unemployed for more than
six months. It also would extend for two years the so-called “doc fix”
to prevent Medicare payments to doctors from being cut by more than 27%.

The House GOP plan would also remove barriers to construction of
the Keystone XL project and delay a new pollution standard for
industrial boilers.

The House GOP package would cost about $195 billion, with about
$120 billion of the cost coming from the payroll tax cut extension. The
package was paid for by a host of spending savings including minor
adjustments to the Social Security and Medicare programs and fees
imposed on Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. It would also freeze the salaries
of civilian federal workers through 2013.

Cantor, in his remarks Wednesday, said House Republicans will be
“hyper-focused” on initiatives to boost small business job creation
this year.

** Market News International Washington Bureau: (202) 371-2121 **

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