Democratic Accomplishments
President Obama and our strong Democratic Majority have made extraordinary progress for the American people:
Economy
- Economic Recovery Act: Saved the economy from the brink by creating and saving 3.5 million American jobs, providing tax cuts for 95% of American workers, and beginning to rebuild America’s road, rail, and water infrastructure, with unprecendented accountability.
- HIRE Act: Creating 300,000 jobs with tax incentives for businesses hiring unemployed Americans, spurring small business investment, and unleashing investments to rebuild infrastructure
- Cash for Clunkers: Jump-starting the U.S. auto industry, with consumer incentives for trading in an old vehicle for one with higher fuel efficiency -- spurring the sale of 700,000 vehicles.
- Credit Cardholders' Bill of Rights: Ended predatory credit card practices.
Clean Energy
- Made the largest investment in green technology in history.
- Raised fuel standards after years of stagnation and objection.
Education
- Student Aid & Fiscal Responsibility Act: Largest investment in college aid in history -- including expanding access to student loans -- while reducing the federal deficit by ending wasteful student loan subsidies to banks.
Fiscal Responsibility
- Statutory Pay-As-You-Go: Restoring 1990s law that turned record deficits into surpluses; Congress must offset new policies that reduce revenues or expand entitlements.
Fighting Discrimination
- Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act: Made equal pay for equal work more than a platitude.
- Enacted the Matthew Shepard Hate Crimes Act and passed "Don't Ask, Don't Tell."
Health Care
- Health Insurance Reform: Historic legislation putting American families and small business owners -- not the insurance companies -- in control of their own health care; lowering costs for middle class and small business; expanding health insurance for 32 million Americans; strengthening Medicare and lowering prescription drug costs; creating up to 4 million jobs; and reducing deficit by largest amount in almost two decades.
- SCHIP: Expanded health coverage to 4 million more low income American children and preserved coverage for 7 million children already enrolled.
Our strong Democratic Majority in the House of Representatives has also passed these historic measures:
- A Clean Energy Jobs bill that will make this generation a steward of the environment for generations to come.
