President Bush and his expected Democratic challenger, Senator John Kerry, are both stressing the creation of new jobs as a key priority of their economic plans. Opinion surveys show that jobs are one of the issues American voters care about most ahead of the November election.
President Bush says his tax cuts have stimulated the economy and expanded the small business sector -- setting the stage for the creation of new jobs. He has also proposed legislation that would make it easier for foreign workers to find temporary legal work in the United States.
Mr. Bush says his tax cuts allow average Americans to save and invest more money. In his State of the Union address this year, he asked Congress to make the tax cuts permanent.
Senator Kerry has vowed to roll back Mr. Bush's tax cuts for the wealthiest Americans in order to invest in health care and education.
He also has criticized President Bush for the loss of more than two-million American jobs under his watch over the past four years.
Senator Kerry says he will restore those jobs during his first 500 days in office. He said his employment plan would also create 10-million new jobs over the next four years through manufacturing job credits and investing in new industries.
