–Outgoing House Speaker Presses For Unemployment Insurance Extension
–2 Mln to Lose Unemployment Benefits by Dec 31 Unless Extended
–Extension ‘Has To Be Done’
By John Shaw
WASHINGTON (MNI) – House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said Wednesday the
seemingly separate efforts to extend Bush era tax cuts and extend
unemployment insurance benefits are “not unrelated.”
At a rally with labor leaders, Pelosi said unless Congress votes to
extend unemployment benefits, two million Americans will lose their
benefits by the end of the year.
“It has to be done,” Pelosi said of the extension.
Pelosi, who will remain House Speaker until early January, blasted
Republicans for pushing for a full extension of the Bush tax cuts, a
measure that would cost $4 trillion over a decade, while insisting that
an $18 billion package of unemployment benefits be fully offset.
Pelosi said extending unemployment benefits is both compassionate
and would “inject demand in our economy.”
An effort to extend the benefits in the Senate Tuesday night was
blocked.
There has been widespread speculation that the negotiations on
extending the Bush era tax cuts will eventually broaden and include an
extension of unemployment benefits and other items.
** Market News International Washington Bureau: (202) 371-2121 **
[TOPICS: M$U$$$,MFU$$$,MCU$$$]