U.S. Business Leaders Looking Forward to President’s Remarks to Congress on Jobs & Economic Growth
February 28, 2017
Tax Reform, Infrastructure Investment & Regulatory Reform Key to Boosting Economy
Washington — President Trump’s speech tonight to a joint session of Congress offers an opportunity for the Administration and members of Congress to set shared priorities to bolster job creation and economic growth, Business Roundtable President and CEO Joshua Bolten said today. In a statement, Bolten said:
“Business leaders look forward to President Trump’s remarks to Congress — especially his ideas about creating jobs and economic growth. The joint session is the right place to lay out his plans for how the Administration and Congress can work together to enact an aggressive pro-growth agenda in such areas as tax reform, infrastructure investment and regulatory reform.
“The President should start with tax reform, the most powerful tool available to promote growth. Any plan must have two elements to succeed: competitive tax rates on business so American companies can compete more effectively in the global market and a modern international tax system that doesn’t leave trillions of investment dollars trapped overseas.
“America’s leading employers are also keenly interested in the President’s plans for infrastructure investment, another key to job creation and growth. A successful plan will target investment at projects with the greatest economic impact, expedite federal permitting and provide steady, long-term funding.
“Both the President and Congress have already taken important steps on the regulatory front, fixing rules to strike the right balance between protecting health, safety and the environment and promoting job creation and investment. Modernizing regulation is a long-term project that has to involve both the Administration and Congress. Business leaders believe the economic payoff can be enormous, helping put more Americans to work.
“Business Roundtable hopes that tonight begins the process of collaboration between the President and Congress to act on economic policies that serve all Americans.”