GOP senator spars with Obama on jobs

President Obama may have campaigned on job creation, but his administration has produced “no measurable end results” and done little to reverse the trend of unemployment around the country, Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) said Saturday in the weekly Republican address.

“As we all know, the most important issue facing our nation today is job creation,” Scott said. “Unfortunately, it’s been that way for the last six years. But instead of tackling the causes of unemployment and underemployment, too many politicians are focused only on the effects and on making political points.”

{mosads}The South Carolina lawmaker called for an overhaul of the Obama administration’s 35 job training programs that are designed to teach people the skills they need to find well-paying jobs, because he said they are ineffective and very expensive to maintain.

He believes consolidating duplicate programs into one job training initiative would save money and create a more “responsive” system that helps states better target the unemployment problems they face.

“Instead of throwing billions of dollars each year at these programs with no measurable end results, let’s give states and localities the flexibility they need to develop targeted plans to help low-income families, young folks, those with disabilities and, of course, the unemployed, the long-term unemployed and the underemployed,” Scott said, plugging his SKILLS Act, a bill that would streamline federal job-training programs and help people find work.

“As a former small business owner, I know the importance of ensuring that the next generation of Americans is the most well-trained, best-educated workforce the world has ever seen,” he continued.

Scott pointed out that there are about 4 million jobs available around the country, but companies can’t fill them because there are not enough qualified workers that have the skills they need for these jobs.

“Instead of watching 4 million jobs sit empty, let’s make sure those who want to work are learning the skills they need to succeed,” Scott said.

“That’s 4 million families that could sleep a little better at night and thousands of businesses that could become more profitable and offer more opportunities for their employees,” he added.