During his Detroit Labor Day visit
on Monday, President Obama said,
"For everybody who can always find a
reason why we can’t rebuild America,
I meet Americans every day who, in
the face of impossible odds they’ve
got a different belief. They believe
we can. You believe we can." (Photo
by Monica Morgan/Tell Us USA News
Network)
President
Obama talks tough at jobs address in Detroit but no details
for the
unemployed
workforce
By Karen Hudson
Samuels/Tell
Us USA
News
Network
DETROIT,
MI (Tell
Us Det)
-
Thousands
of
supporters
and
union
members
chanted
“Four
more
years”
as
President
Barack
Obama
took the
stage to
deliver
his
Labor
Day
address
in
Detroit,
east of
General
Motors
headquarters.
In a
wide
ranging
25
minute
speech,
the
President
praised
the
impact
of the
labor
movement
in
creating
the
middle
class,
provided
a
preview
of his
Thursday
jobs
speech
and
commended
Detroit
as a
city
“that’s
coming
back.”
The
President
said if
you ask
Detroiters
they
will
tell
you,
“Yeah,
it’s
tough,
but
we’re
tougher’
to which
the
audience
erupted
in
applause.
Obama
previewed
some of
what he
will
share
with the
nation
on
Thursday
night in
a highly
anticipated
jobs
speech
to a
joint
session
of
Congress.
Prior to
the
event
with the
President,
included
a mini
concert
musical
performance
by
Aretha
Franklin.
(Photo
by
Monica
Morgan/Tell
Us USA
News
Network)
The
President
said
“We’ve
got
roads
and
bridges
across
this
country
that
need
rebuilding.
We’ve
got
private
companies
with the
equipment
and the
manpower
to do
the
building.
We’ve
got more
than 1
million
unemployed
construction
workers
ready to
get
dirty
right
now.
There is
work to
be done
and
there
are
workers
ready to
do it.
Labor is
on
board.
Business
is on
board.
We just
need
Congress
to get
on
board.
Let’s
put
America
back to
work.”
Obama
was
joined
in the
Labor
Day
rally by
state
and
federal
officials
along
with
leaders
from
labor;
national
AFL-CIO
President
Rich
Trumka,
United
Auto
Workers
President
Bob
King,
Teamsters
President
James P.
Hoffa
and
Service
Employees
International
President
Mary Kay
Henry.
The
message
from
labor
unions
to
President
was
clear
“We need
jobs,
now.”
With
unemployment
in
Michigan
at near
depression
levels
and
collective
bargaining
under
attack
Teamster
President
James
Hoffa
told the
crowd.
“This
may be
Motown
but
today
its
Union
Town.
Hoffa
said “We
will not
become a
right
work
state.”
In
praise
of the
unions
Obama
said
“America
cannot
have a
strong
growing
economy
without
a strong
growing
middle
class
and
without
a strong
labor
movement.”
The
President
acknowledged
the
decades
of
struggle
by the
labor
movement
to help
“build
the
greatest
middle
class
the
world
has ever
known.”
He
pledged
to
continue
support
of
collective
bargaining
and said
unions
are the
bedrock
this
country
is built
on.
“Hard
work,
responsibility,
sacrifice,
looking
out for
one
another,
giving
everybody
a shot,
everybody
a chance
to share
in
America's
prosperity.”
Applause
erupted
throughout
Obama’s
rundown
of the
labor
movement’s
struggles:
“I’m
talking
about
the work
that got
us a
40-hour
workweek
and
weekends,
and paid
leave
and
pensions,
and the
minimum
wage and
health
insurance,
and
Social
Security
and
Medicare
-- the
cornerstones
of
middle-class
security.
That's
because
of your
work.”
The
President
rallied
the
crowd,
with his
message
for
Republicans
in
Congress,
“The
time for
Washington
games is
over.”
Obama
said
Congress
needs to
get on
board
with his
job
creation
plans;
he said
“Labor's
on board
and
businesses
are on
board”.
It was
clear
from
audience
response,
and
speaking
with
members
of the
crowd
after
the
speech,
that the
President
has the
backing
of
labor,
they
just
want
jobs and
their
rights
protected.