White House Jobs Forum: The Final Report and Follow-up

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White House Jobs Forum: The Final Report and Follow-up
Posted by Jesse Lee on January 21, 2010 at 05:13 PM EST
On December 3rd the President hosted a jobs forum with leading economic experts of all stripes. Since then, in addition to the community jobs forums held all over the country, the economic team has been digesting the information and feedback from the forum. Over the past couple days, Senior Advisor Valerie Jarrett has been following up with participants -- the email she has sent out is below, which included the final report from the forum.

•Read the report (pdf)
Subject: Thank you, and follow-up from Jobs and Economic Growth Forum

Dear Colleagues –

I hope you had a wonderful holiday season and your new year is off to a good start.

I want to thank you for your participation in the White House Forum on Jobs and Economic Growth last month. As the President said, it was a thought-provoking and idea-filled afternoon, and we are grateful for your time and energy.

This e-mail is intended to update you on some of our efforts since the Forum, and to let you know what we will be doing to keep you engaged in our ongoing work to help create jobs and economic growth. In order to summarize the efforts and continue the conversation, I have included a report with the ideas compiled from each of the breakout groups during the Forum.

On December 8th, during a speech at the Brookings Institution, the President outlined some of the job creation ideas he’d like to see implemented. The President outlined three key areas:
1. Helping Small Businesses Expand Investment, Hire Workers and Access Credit
2. Investing in America’s Roads, Bridges and Infrastructure
3. Creating Jobs Through Energy Efficiency and Clean Energy Investments

[The full text of his speech and additional background materials are included at the end of this email.]

As you can see, many of the ideas from the Forum informed his thinking, and some of them we have already put into action. You may also have heard that we broadened the efforts you initiated through Community Jobs Forums across the country involving more than 50 mayors, dozens of state legislators, and thousands of citizens – we’ll be completing the report based on their feedback in the coming weeks.

Moving forward, we are planning to continue the conversation through the President’s Cabinet, who remain heavily involved in this effort. Over the coming weeks, Cabinet officials will be reaching out to participants to schedule follow-up calls or meetings on specific ideas. As you have in the past, we hope that you will find time in your schedules to stay involved, and please keep us informed of your own job creation efforts and stories.

I also have a short public service announcement. Many people have been asking what they can do to help with the Haiti rescue and relief efforts. Last Saturday, President Obama was joined by President George W. Bush and President Bill Clinton where they announced the creation of the Clinton Bush Haiti Fund, a partnership by Presidents Bush and Clinton “to help the Haitian people reclaim their country and build back not only their infrastructure but also their unwavering spirit.”

Please visit www.clintonbushhaitifund.org , and share with your colleagues, friends, family, and employees. Please also keep us informed of your Haiti support efforts, and thank you in advance for your help in this time of great human need.

Thank you again for your involvement. This is a vital issue and an important time, and our work together will help create stronger businesses and improve the lives of many Americans.

All the best.

Valerie Jarrett
Senior Advisor to the President