DAVID VITTER SAYS “NO THANKS” TO CREATING JOBS FOR OUT- OF-WORK LOUISIANANS FOR THE THIRD TIME IN LESS THAN ONE MONTH

Despite Louisiana Having Over 150,000 Unemployed Residents, Vitter Votes Against Bipartisan Bill In Senate Today That Will Put Louisianans Back To Work

Vitter Also Voted Against Stimulus Package Last Year - Bill Created Over 2 Million Jobs Last Year Alone, According To New Report From Nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office

For the third time in less than one month, Senator David Vitter continued to ignore the 154,000 unemployed residents of his state by voting “no” to the HIRE Act this evening, a bipartisan job creation package that will create thousands of good, new jobs across Louisiana and more than a million jobs across the nation by the end of this year alone. The bipartisan bill has four key provisions including a payroll tax holiday for businesses to encourage hiring, additional funds to help small businesses expand, an extension of the Highway Trust Fund to allow more infrastructure investments, and an expansion of the Build America Bonds program to allow states finance infrastructure projects. Today’s “no” vote comes less than a month after Senator Vitter voted “no” on the motion to proceed to the HIRE Act the first time around in late February, and on the final vote before the bill was sent to the House of Representatives for slight changes. The Senate will vote on final passage on the HIRE Act within the next 30 hours.

“This marks the third time in under a month that Senator David Vitter has turned his back on the jobless in his state by voting against a bipartisan bill that will create new, good jobs in Louisiana,” said DSCC National Press Secretary Deirdre Murphy. “Today’s vote shows that David Vitter continues to put political posturing over doing what is right for the people of Louisiana.”

According to a new report from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, which Senator Vitter also voted against, created over 2 million last year, has boosted the US economy by 3.5%, and has lowered the unemployment rate by up to 2.1%. The CBO projects that the stimulus will have an even greater impact in 2010.