Statement by Senator Coons on the supercommittee’s failure to reach a deal

Senator Chris Coons, a member of the Senate Budget Committee, was disappointed by the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction’s unwillingness and inability to reach a final agreement on a package of deficit reduction measures.

“The supercommittee’s failure to reach a $1.2 trillion deal, let alone a deal that found the $4 trillion we called for in the ‘Go Big Coalition,’ is a significant disappointment to me and to all Americans who had hoped that partisanship might finally be put aside for the sake of our country’s long-term economic security,” Chris said in a public statement. “This government cannot continue to function if only one party is willing to compromise for the good of our country. Both parties got us into this situation, and both parties must share in the sacrifice to get us out of it.

“The failure of the supercommittee, however, does not mean the end of Congress’ responsibility to enact real deficit reduction measures that ensure our country does not slip into the deep economic morass that is paralyzing Europe. Greece may have a math problem, but America has a leadership problem. We still have the opportunity to right our ship by making the bipartisan compromises necessary to confront the very significant challenges our nation faces. It is my hope that this moment brings more of my colleagues into the ranks of the bipartisan group of 45 senators who support comprehensive deficit reduction that shares in the sacrifice. Congress must move quickly to confront our nation’s fiscal challenges.”

Chris  has been an outspoken advocate for national fiscal responsibility. Last Thursday, he attended a press conference with more than 40 of his Senate colleagues encouraging the supercommittee to “go big” on deficit reduction.

Earlier this month, Chris joined 44 of his Senate colleagues on a letter to the supercommittee members urging for at least $4 trillion in savings.

Click here to learn more about Chris’ work on the Budget Committee.

Video: Senator Coons on ABC’s This Week

Senator Coons appeared on ABC’s This Week program Sunday morning to talk about the bipartisan AGREE Act he introduced with Senator Rubio, and the work of the Congressional supercommittee on deficit reduction.

Statement on the California Proposition 8 court ruling

A longtime advocate of marriage equality, Senator Chris Coons released the following statement on Thursday  on the California Supreme Court ruling that sponsors of Proposition 8 have the legal right to defend the discriminatory ballot initiative in federal court:

“I understand that today’s ruling by the California Supreme Court is a disappointment for many, especially for gay and lesbian Californians, who have already waited so long for marriage equality.  Proposition 8 is an unconscionably discriminatory measure, but the legal battle against it must go on.

“Proposition 8 may only directly impact California, but the questions it implicates are of national importance.  It has always been the case that the U.S. Supreme Court would eventually have to decide what our Constitution’s promise of equality means for gay and lesbian Americans.  By allowing the proponents of Proposition 8 to continue their defense of that law, today’s ruling by the California Supreme Court brings that day one day closer.”

Chris commended those who have carried the challenge to Proposition 8 to this point, “You have built a strong record at the trial court that the reasons against marriage equality do not withstand scrutiny.  This record, which will form the basis of future court decisions, gives equality the best chance to prevail.”

In August of 2010 a district court struck down Prop 8 — the California voter initiative passed in 2008 that defines marriage as between a man and a woman.

Because the State of California has refused to defend Prop 8, the 9th Circuit Court of appeals, a federal court, requested guidance from the California high court as to whether proponents of a state ballot measure have legal standing to do so in place of the state.

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ICYMI: News Journal Editorial: “Joint Coons-Rubio bill shows what can be done”

On Wednesday, The Wilmington News Journal published an editorial endorsing the bipartisan job creation bill introduced by Senators Chris Coons (D-Del.) and Marco Rubio (R-Fla.). The American Growth, Recovery and Economic Empowerment (AGREE) Act contains measures from both sides of the aisle — policies that tend to be associated with one party or another, but which Senator Rubio and Senator Coons agree can support job creation in the United States.

Who says bipartisan compromise is impossible?

Two freshman senators don’t think so. Chris Coons of Delaware and Marco Rubio of Florida have bridged the gap between Senate Democrats and Republicans to propose an admittedly small-scale but doable jobs bill.

They have taken some of the best bipartisan ideas for tax and regulation relief put forth by their colleagues in the House and Senate and put them in a single bill that has the look of a winner. It won’t solve all of our problems, but it would be a good start.

Their philosophy is simple: Why not act on the things they agree on?

Democrat Coons and Republican Rubio recognize that the partisan differences in Congress are wide. But the continuing problem of unemployment — 14 million Americans out of work — should force Congress to put aside the squabbling to pass proposals they already agree on.

For example, the bill would extend certain depreciation breaks and provide some Sarbanes-Oxley reporting relief for small businesses. The bill also would give businesses that produce goods in this country a higher research-and-development credit. If Congress doesn’t act soon, the current R&D tax credit expires at the end of December.

Sens. Coons and Rubio have proposed a mix of their and borrowed ideas that should be acceptable to big majorities in both houses of Congress.

If enough members agree, why can’t this or a similar bill be passed?

Not to do so is only further proof of a spiteful partisanship.

Congratulations to Sens. Coons and Rubio for … well, working together. It’s something American people want and expect from our leaders.

Read the editorial in The Wilmington News Journal.

Delawareans are encouraged to click here to review the bill and share their opinions.

Click here to download a more thorough summary of the bill.  

Click here to learn more about Chris’ work to create American jobs.

Video: Coons-Rubio TV roundup

Senators Coons and Rubio appeared on several TV programs Tuesday and Wednesday to sell their bipartisan AGREE Act to support job creation. You can watch them below:

CNN’s Situation Room with Wolf Blitzer on Tuesday evening:

CNBC’s Kudlow Report with Larry Kudlow on Tuesday evening:

MSNBC’s Morning Joe on Wednesday morning:

CNN’s American Morning on Wednesday morning:

Senator Coons urges supercommittee to “go big” on deficit reduction

Senator Coons joined more than 40 of his colleagues from both the Senate and the House at a bipartisan press conference today urging the 12-member debt-reduction super committee to “go big” in recommending ways to reduce our annual deficits and national debt.

The committee, consisting of Republicans and Democrats from both chambers of Congress, is working to develop a plan by November 23, 2011 to save at least $1.2 trillion over a 10-year period.

Deficit and debt reduction has been a top priority for Chris, who is also a member of the Senate Budget Committee.

Earlier this month, Chris joined 44 of his Senate colleagues on a letter to the super committee members urging for at least $4 trillion in savings.

Click here to learn more about Chris’ work on the Budget Committee. 

Video: Senator Coons, Rubio roll out bipartisan jobs bill

Senator Chris Coons (D-Del.) and Senator Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) hosted at a press conference on Tuesday to unveil their bipartisan bill to support job creation — the American Growth, Recovery, Empowerment and Entrepreneurship (AGREE) Act.  The AGREE Act stems from areas of common agreement between the President’s jobs plan, recommendations from the President’s Council on Jobs and Competitiveness, and plans put forward by both parties in Congress.

If enacted, the AGREE Act would do the following:

• Extend 100 percent bonus depreciation through 2012 for the full cost of qualified investments such as equipment and property.
• Extend Section 179 expensing levels for small businesses through 2012.
• Eliminate taxes on certain small business stock through 2012.
• Extend the Research & Development tax credit until 2013, increase the Alternative Simplified Credit (ASC) from 14 percent to 20 percent, and makes the ASC permanent.
• Provide veterans with a tax credit equal to 25% of the fee associated with starting a franchise up to $100,000.
• Provide a five-year exemption from Section 404(b) of Sarbanes-Oxley for the first five years of a company going public, or for those below $250 million in total gross revenue (whichever comes first).
• Eliminate the per-country numerical limitation for employment-based immigrant visas and adjusts the limitations on family based visa petitions from 7% per country to 15%.
• Protect intellectual property by clarifying the Trade Secrets Act, and making it explicitly clear that it is not a crime for federal officials, in the performance of their duties, to share information about suspected infringing products with the right holder of a trademarked good.

Delawareans are encouraged to click here to review the bill and share their opinions.

Click here to download a more thorough summary of the bill.  

ICYMI: Senators Coons & Rubio op-ed on bipartisan job creation legislation

On Tuesday, Politico published an op-ed coauthored by Senators Chris Coons (D-Del.) and Marco Rubio (R-Fla.) on their bipartisan legislation to encourage job creation, which was also introduced on Tuesday. The American Growth, Recovery and Economic Empowerment (AGREE) Act contains measures from both sides of the aisle — policies that tend to be associated with one party or another, but which Senator Rubio and Senator Coons agree can support job creation in the United States.

As freshman senators from states hit hard by the recession, we believe Congress can’t afford to spend the next year spinning its wheels — scoring political points in a debate that is more about protecting political jobs in 2012 elections than getting the jobless back to work. We should unite behind policy ideas we all agree on and that would likely be signed into law if we stop letting politics get in the way.

Today we are introducing legislation that includes some of these ideas. Our bill would extend tax relief for small businesses — to help them purchase new equipment so they can grow and create jobs. It includes modernizing and improving the research and development tax credit; encouraging hiring of returning veterans and reforming burdensome regulations.

It will take steps toward boosting high-skilled legal immigration, so we can attract and retain talented individuals with extraordinary capacities, to create high-paying jobs in America. It will also protect our businesses against the illegal theft of intellectual property, with strict enforcement of laws already on the books.

Our plan borrows heavily from legislation introduced by both parties and in both chambers of Congress — Republicans in the House, and Democrats in the Senate. All the provisions have garnered bipartisan support in today’s political climate, and all would help encourage job creation today.

Read the full op-ed in Politico.

Delawareans are encouraged to click here to review the bill and share their opinions.

Click here to download a more thorough summary of the bill.  

Click here to learn more about Chris’ work to create American jobs.

A bipartisan jobs plan

This morning, Republican Senator Marco Rubio of Florida and I introduced the American Growth, Recovery, Empowerment and Entrepreneurship Act — the AGREE Act — to help our businesses grow, create jobs, and put our neighbors back to work.

The AGREE Act contains measures from both sides of the aisle — policies that tend to be associated with one party or another, but which Senator Rubio and I agree can support job creation in the United States. Policies like extending tax and regulatory relief for America’s growing businesses, and encouraging cutting-edge research and innovation. The bill would also help veterans start their own businesses, and reduce the barriers that prevent highly skilled workers who have studied here from staying here.

I’m interested in what you think about our bill. Click here to learn more about it and to share your opinion.

I’m happy to be able to mark the one-year anniversary of my being sworn into the Senate with something reflective of my top three priorities — helping create jobs for Americans, doing so in a bipartisan way, and cutting our deficit via strong economic growth.

We can dwell on the partisan politics that have gridlocked this body and this town for much of our first year in office, continuing to trade barbs and exchange blame, or we can look forward and find ways we can work together.

Congress cannot sit on the sidelines and leave Americans to confront this jobs crisis on their own. That’s why I organized three job fairs throughout Delaware during my first year in office to help connect 5,000 of our neighbors with employers ready to hire.

Democrats and Republicans need to work together to help America’s unemployed. We need to help our businesses grow, create jobs, and that’s what the AGREE Act is designed to do.

I hope you’ll click here to learn more about the bill and share your opinion.

I know we can solve this jobs crisis if we work together.

The Senator’s week ahead schedule: November 14 to November 20

Monday, November 14 at 2:00 p.m. – The Senator will preside over Senate. Washington, DC – Open to press who wish to sit in the Senate Gallery.

Tuesday, November 15 at 9:30 a.m. — The Senator will host a press conference to announce bipartisan legislation for addressing our nation’s jobs crisis. United States Capitol Building, Washington, DC — Open to press.

Tuesday, November 15 at 10:00 a.m.  – The Senator will attend a Senate Budget Committee hearing on Economic Effects of Fiscal Policy Choices. The hearing will include testimony from Dr. Douglas W. Elmendorf, the Director of the Congressional Budget Office. 608 Dirksen Senate Office Building, Washington, DC– Open to press.

Tuesday, November 15 at 10:00 a.m. – The Senator will attend the Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee hearing. The purpose of the hearing is to review two bills pending before the Committee: S.1703, the “Quadrennial Energy Review Act of 2011” and S.1807, the “Energy Research and Development Coordination Act of 2011.” 366 Dirksen Senate Office Building, Washington, DC– Open to press.

Tuesday, November 15 at 2:15 p.m.  – The Senator will attend a Senate Foreign Relations Committee business meeting.  S-116 United States Capitol Building, Washington, DC – Closed to press.

Tuesday,November 15 at 2:30 p.m. – The Senator will participate in a press event for the Go Big Caucus. The bicameral event will show its support for the supercommittee and encourage the pursuit of a “big” deficit-reduction deal. United States Capitol Building, Washington, DC.

Tuesday,November 15 at 3:30 p.m. – The Senator will speak at a Yale CEO Caucus Forum entitled, “Putting America Back to Work.” The CEO Caucus is an interactive discussion among CEOs, scholars, economists, and elected officials to constructively confront national economic issues. Roof Terrace, 101 Constitution Avenue NW, Washington, DC – Open to press.

Wednesday, November 16 at 9:00 a.m. –The Senator will attend a Democratic Steering and Outreach Committee meeting. S-207 United States Capitol Building, Washington, DC

Wednesday, November 16 at 2:00 p.m. – The Senator will co-chair an event entitled, “A Conversation Between Congress and the African Diplomatic Corps.” Senator Coons will co-chair the event with Senator Isakson, Ranking Member of the African Affairs Subcommittee, and House Africa Subcommittee Chairman and Ranking Member, Congressman Chris Smith and Payne, with members of the African diplomatic corps. The event will feature diplomatic presentations on AGOA and trade, energy and infrastructure, agriculture, and food security. SVC 209-08 United States Capitol Visitor Center, Washington, DC – Closed to press. 

Thursday, November 17 at 10:00 a.m. – The Senator will attend a Senate Judiciary Committee business meeting. 226 Dirksen Senate Office Building, Washington, DC—Open to press.  

Friday, November 18 at 9:30 a.m. – The Senator will preside over Senate if in session. Washington, DC – Open to press who wish to sit in the Senate Gallery.

Note: Schedule is subject to change.

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