Senate Republicans, House Democrats line up jobs plans

The GOP package includes completion of three pending free-trade agreements with with Korea, Colombia and Panama. The Obama administration has readied two — Korea and Panama — and is waiting for Colombia to complete a list of goals before it’s ready for the next step. 

Republicans are urging completion of all three trade deals in quick succession before the July recess.

That GOP plan rolled out on Tuesday touches on aspects of the budget, taxes, regulations, trade, energy and healthcare.

The proposal calls for spending cuts, a reduction of the corporate tax rate to 25 percent, lowering taxes on capital gains and dividends, completing medical malpractice reform, prohibiting the Environmental Protection Agency from regulating greenhouse gases and making tax credits permanent for research and development and small-business investment.

“In contrast to the plan proposed by Senate Republicans, Washington has turned to more government spending, higher taxes, while pushing for overly burdensome regulations on job creators and manufacturers — slowing our economic recovery,” Portman said. 

Meanwhile, House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-Md.) said the Democrats’ plan will create jobs and increase exports as a way to reach President Obama’s goal to double U.S. exports by 2015. 

“The president has indicated he wants to double exports,” Hoyer said during his weekly briefing with reporters. “The way you double exports, obviously, is to have goods and services for that matter which can be exported overseas, and we intend to pursue that.”