It is a good thing the “Creating American Jobs and Ending Offshoring Act,” which died in the Senate today, was never supposed to pass. That’s because it would have neither created American jobs nor ended offshoring (a word that never should have become a verb). The bill, sponsored by Senate Democrats, had three parts: It would [...]

So far, two tax plans aimed at boosting hiring this year are on the table: one from President Obama and another from senators Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Orrin Hatch (R-UT). Which would do a better job at increasing employment? I’m betting on Obama’s.

To the surprise of nobody, President Obama has proposed new tax subsidies for businesses that hire additional workers by the end of the year. Structured as a payroll tax holiday, the plan would give companies a $5,000 credit against their share of Social Security payroll taxes for each net new hire, plus a “bonus” 6.2 percent credit for real increases in overall wages. Because the subsidy would be capped at $500,000, small business would be the big winner.

With Democrats crying for a jobs bill they can bring to voters before the November elections, it looks like President Obama may be about to propose a new version of a jobs tax credit. We’ll take a close look at the proposal once it is released, but in case you want to learn more about the issue, [...]

At Brookings today, President Obama laid out his vision for Stimulus II. At first glance, this seems to be a collection of odds-and-ends, only some of which will help the economy grow and create jobs.

Just abut every conversation I’ve had with a Democratic elected official or staffer in the past few weeks came around to the same urgent question. And, no, it was not about health reform. It was about jobs. When, they ask with more than a hint of panic in their voices, will the jobs come back?

Good to see comments on the New Jobs Tax Credit from two authors of papers on the subject, Timothy J. Bartik of the Upjohn Institute and John H. Bishop of Cornell. In response to my criticism of Barack Obama’s call for an employer credit to encourage hiring, both argue that the Carter-era version of this idea—the 1977-78 New Jobs Tax Credit—succeeded in creating as many as 700,000 new jobs in the first year.