Congressman John D. Dingell

“It took the President six months to find someone who would lead the administration’s effort to save U.S. manufacturing jobs – and his choice has already sent jobs to China,” Dingell said. “This is not the right direction for American manufacturing policy.”

The Congressman said the appointment offers a glimpse into the President’s strategy on job creation in the manufacturing sector.

“First, the White House says outsourcing is good. Then, the Administration considers re-classifying burger flipping and milk shake mixing as manufacturing jobs. Now, the President’s first choice to lead America’s efforts to hold onto manufacturing jobs turns out to have already sent jobs to China,” Dingell said. “This nomination is a Whopper! No question that Mr. Raimondo would get a frosty reception from lawmakers in conformation hearings. After six months of searching, I guess it is tough to find a Republican who cares about protecting American jobs. I think Mayor McCheese could be moving up on the President’s short list of candidates.”

According to new figures from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the United States lost 3,000 manufacturing jobs last month alone and manufacturing employment is at a 53-year low.

Michigan has been particularly hard hit by Bush administration policies. The state has lost 128,900 manufacturing jobs since January 2001. Overall, unemployment in Michigan is up from 4.6% in at the beginning of 2001 to 6.6% this past January.

But besides the numbers, Congressman Dingell is concerned by the challenges facing America’s working families, including: the amount of time Americans are spending on unemployment, dropping wages and cuts in health care benefits from employers.  

“Americans don’t want to spend their golden years working under the golden arches. Fast food jobs, most of which pay minimum wage and offer no health care, are no substitute for the quality manufacturing jobs that are leaving this country in droves. We shouldn’t forget the white collar jobs that are going offshore as well. This manufacturing czar fiasco demonstrates again – creating quality jobs for Americans is just not a priority for the President.

“With 2.8 million manufacturing jobs lost since the beginning of the Bush Administration, and no private sector jobs created last month, America deserves new economic leadership.”