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CNN Live Today

President Bush Focuses on Jobs, Economic Growth

Aired September 01, 2003 - 11:01   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: But first this hour on CNN, it is Labor Day. But the politicians are not taking a holiday. Today marks the traditional kick-off for the campaign season. And today, President Bush is on the road, focusing on jobs and economic growth.
CNN's Dana Bash traveling with the president today, joining us now on the phone from Richfield, Ohio with the very latest. Dana, hello.

DANA BASH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Heidi. And you know, the economy tops the list of priorities for Americans in most public opinion polls, much more even than terrorism these days. And administration officials do point to numerous figures that show the economy is recovering, but White House officials know that there is one figure that may mean more than any, especially politically, and that is the jobless rate. There are about 9 million unemployed workers in the U.S. right now. And as democrats are frequently pointing out, nearly three million Americans have lost their jobs since the president has been in office.

The president is here in Richfield. He will speak shortly to members of an engineering union on this Labor Day. He is expected to talk about the fact that he believes his economic programs have actually stemmed the effects of the recession. But some lead -- labor leaders and also democrats say that it is the president's policies, particularly his tax cut, that has made the jobless rate as high as it is right now.

And Heidi, this is the president's 11th trip to Ohio; it's a key swing state for him. He narrowly won here in 2000. It's a place that has had considerable job loss, particularly in the manufacturing sector. The president is expected very shortly to talk about the fact that, yes, of course there was a recession, but he will point to the war, corporate scandals, and, of course, the terrorist attacks of 9/11 for the slow economic recovery.

And he's also expected to say that he believes that there are other things beyond the tax cuts that can happen, like a broader prescription for economic recovery, like energy reform, free trade, and controlling lawsuits. He will talk about all of that, as he makes pretty clear, later today in just a short while, that he believes Americans will be and should be getting more jobs in the near future. Heidi?

COLLINS: And Dana, we will be talking in just a moment about the significance of his visit to Ohio in particular. But I want to ask you, what sort of specific hope do you think he may be offering to jobless Americans today in this speech?

BASH: Well, he is likely to be talking about the fact that the administration believes that there are programs that they have out there that are geared towards Americans, trying to help Americans find jobs. There are -- that there are signs of recovery in the jobless rates, and that he will likely be talking about that.

He will also be likely be talking about the fact that he believes that his economic policies, despite what we hear often from democrats, have actually helped because it has helped spur the economy. He believes it has helped, that the tax cuts have helped get money in people's pockets, which, he has frequently said and will likely say again today, will ultimately result in some job creation.

This is, of course, already getting some reaction, some blunt criticism from democrats over the past months, and we're likely to hear some more of that in the near future.

COLLINS: CNN's Dana Bash reporting by phone from Richfield, Ohio, with the president. Thanks so very much, Dana.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com






Aired September 1, 2003 - 11:01   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
HEIDI COLLINS, CNN ANCHOR: But first this hour on CNN, it is Labor Day. But the politicians are not taking a holiday. Today marks the traditional kick-off for the campaign season. And today, President Bush is on the road, focusing on jobs and economic growth.
CNN's Dana Bash traveling with the president today, joining us now on the phone from Richfield, Ohio with the very latest. Dana, hello.

DANA BASH, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hi, Heidi. And you know, the economy tops the list of priorities for Americans in most public opinion polls, much more even than terrorism these days. And administration officials do point to numerous figures that show the economy is recovering, but White House officials know that there is one figure that may mean more than any, especially politically, and that is the jobless rate. There are about 9 million unemployed workers in the U.S. right now. And as democrats are frequently pointing out, nearly three million Americans have lost their jobs since the president has been in office.

The president is here in Richfield. He will speak shortly to members of an engineering union on this Labor Day. He is expected to talk about the fact that he believes his economic programs have actually stemmed the effects of the recession. But some lead -- labor leaders and also democrats say that it is the president's policies, particularly his tax cut, that has made the jobless rate as high as it is right now.

And Heidi, this is the president's 11th trip to Ohio; it's a key swing state for him. He narrowly won here in 2000. It's a place that has had considerable job loss, particularly in the manufacturing sector. The president is expected very shortly to talk about the fact that, yes, of course there was a recession, but he will point to the war, corporate scandals, and, of course, the terrorist attacks of 9/11 for the slow economic recovery.

And he's also expected to say that he believes that there are other things beyond the tax cuts that can happen, like a broader prescription for economic recovery, like energy reform, free trade, and controlling lawsuits. He will talk about all of that, as he makes pretty clear, later today in just a short while, that he believes Americans will be and should be getting more jobs in the near future. Heidi?

COLLINS: And Dana, we will be talking in just a moment about the significance of his visit to Ohio in particular. But I want to ask you, what sort of specific hope do you think he may be offering to jobless Americans today in this speech?

BASH: Well, he is likely to be talking about the fact that the administration believes that there are programs that they have out there that are geared towards Americans, trying to help Americans find jobs. There are -- that there are signs of recovery in the jobless rates, and that he will likely be talking about that.

He will also be likely be talking about the fact that he believes that his economic policies, despite what we hear often from democrats, have actually helped because it has helped spur the economy. He believes it has helped, that the tax cuts have helped get money in people's pockets, which, he has frequently said and will likely say again today, will ultimately result in some job creation.

This is, of course, already getting some reaction, some blunt criticism from democrats over the past months, and we're likely to hear some more of that in the near future.

COLLINS: CNN's Dana Bash reporting by phone from Richfield, Ohio, with the president. Thanks so very much, Dana.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com