Gephardt stands up for workers
I'VE WORKED with Dick Gephardt for more than 11 years in the US House of Representatives, and I've seen him demonstrate time and time again the qualities I think would make an outstanding Democratic nominee and a great United States president. In 1993, I watched Dick lead the fight on the House floor to pass the Clinton budget plan, which we accomplished without a single Republican vote. That plan created 22 million jobs and the largest economic expansion in history. It allowed President Bush to be handed the strongest economy in a generation, built by the courageous leadership of Democrats and the hard work of the American people.
Under President Bush, our economy has lost more than 3 million jobs. In South Carolina, we now have more than 139,000 people out of work and more than 497,000 without health insurance. The American people need a change in leadership at the White House, and Gephardt has proven himself to be a fearless leader and the best equipped candidate to beat George Bush.
Gephardt has significant domestic and foreign policy experience and is offering bold, innovative solutions to the problems of middle-class Americans. His health care plan will guarantee health insurance for every single American that can never, ever be taken away. His plan will stimulate the nation's economy and put more money in the pockets of American workers than George Bush's failed tax cuts.
Gephardt has a clear, consistent record of standing up for American workers and fighting against bad trade agreements like NAFTA and the China Trade deal. We are seeing the ill effects of those bad trade deals right now all across the country with the staggering loss of textile and manufacturing jobs to foreign competition.
Whether its fair trade, creating jobs, guaranteeing healthcare coverage for every single American or challenging the president's failed tax cuts, Dick Gephardt always stands up for middle-class Americans. He is the only candidate in this race who can go head-to-head with George Bush in the South, beat him in the Midwest, and win the general election on Nov. 2.
Jim Clyburn is a US representative from South Carolina.
