Los Angeles (Obama.net) – The fight to resurrect the America economy has been going on for over two years. Numerous programs and initiatives have been put into place as an effort to create jobs and get more people off of the unemployment line and back into the workforce. Grants have been given to companies in addition to a new trade strategy to increase exports and reduce imports. But President Barack Obama is very aware that the job has not been completed by any means just yet.
To intensify the fight against the ailing economy, Obama decided on Monday that he would be freezing the salaries of all federal employees for the next two years.
Congress will soon be going over the President’s proposal to see if it is best for America.
Over the next decade, Obama’s decision to freeze the salaries will help the American government save $60 billion and help fight the national debt. However, analysts are suggesting that for the debt to return to stable form, it needs to be reduced by six trillion dollars, essentially cutting it in half.
Obama said that the salary freeze is still a step, regardless of how big of a road the ahead is. Obama said, “The hard truth is that getting this deficit under control is going to require some broad sacrifice. And that sacrifice must be shared by the employees of the federal government.”
Those serving in the military will not be affected by the freeze. However, all federal employees outside of the military will feel the effects in one way or another. The total number of American’s going to be hit by the freeze is projected to be two million.
Obama’s office also said that the “freeze is not to punish federal workers or to disrespect the work that they do. It is the first of many actions we will take in the upcoming budget to put our national on sound fiscal footing.”
The White House spoke of all American’s having to sacrifice in order to help the nation as a whole recover.
One potential sacrifice might come in the form of tax cuts not being given. If American’s who make at least $250,000 annually do not get their tax cuts extended, $700 billion will be saved by the nation over the next ten years. And if the middle class does not get their Bush era tax cuts extended, $3 trillion will be saved in the next decade.
With tax cuts being a hot issue, some if not many Americans may not be happy with the choices of the government in the coming weeks.
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