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WASHINGTON,
D.C.
–
In
the
Weekly
Republican
Address,
Sen.
Tim
Scott
of
South
Carolina
talks
about
what
he
describes
as
the
most
important
issue
facing
our
nation
today
–
job
creation.
Scott
discusses
legislation
he’s
introduced
that
would
help
the
unemployed
and
underemployed
learn
new
job
skills
and
consolidate
duplicate
federal
workforce
training
programs
“into
one
flexible
Workforce
Investment
Fund.”
“Unfortunately,
Senate
Democrats,
for
some
reason
–
I
can
only
imagine
a
political
reason
–
blocked
its
passage
this
week.
Simply
put,
the
American
people
deserve
better
than
that.
A
modern,
efficient
workforce
development
system
is
essential
to
our
future.”
Scott
says.
The
Weekly
Republican
Address
is
available
in
both
audio
and
video
format
and
is
embargoed
until
6:00
a.m.
ET,
Saturday,
April
5,
2014.
The
audio
of
the
address
is
available
here,
the
video
will
be
available
here and
you
may
download
the
address
here.
A
full
transcript
of
the
address
follows:
“Hi,
I’m
U.S.
Senator
Tim
Scott
from
the
great
state
of
South
Carolina.
“As
we
all
know,
the
most
important
issue
facing
our
nation
today
is
job
creation.
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.
We
should
without
a
doubt
make
sure
folks
get
a
hand
up,
but
more
importantly,
that
they
have
a
solid
foundation
on
which
to
stand.
“As
someone
who
grew
up
in
poverty,
I
know
the
hard
choices
facing
so
many
families
every
night.
And
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.
“There
are
currently
4
million
open
jobs
in
America,
including
65,000
in
my
home
state
of
South
Carolina.
These
are
good
jobs
that
for
a
variety
of
reasons,
including
a
lack
of
workers
trained
for
their
specific
industry,
go
unfilled
day
after
day,
week
after
week.
“That’s
four
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.
“So
let’s
tackle
this
problem
head
on.
A
more
responsive
and
efficient
system
will
ensure
our
workforce
competes
and
wins
in
the
21st
century.
Less
bureaucracy
means
more
resources
helping
those
in
need,
rather
than
getting
caught
up
in
the
quagmire
pit
of
red
tape
and
regulation
that
big
government
creates.
“Instead
of
having
35
separate
federal
workforce
training
programs
with
expensive
overhead
and
administrative
costs,
let’s
simplify
them
into
one
flexible
Workforce
Investment
Fund.
“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.
“And
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.
“My
SKILLS
Act
will
do
all
of
this.
That’s
why
it
has
already
passed
the
House
of
Representatives
under
the
great
leadership
of
Congresswoman
Virginia
Foxx
and
why
I
introduced
it
as
an
amendment
to
the
Senate
unemployment
insurance
bill.
“Unfortunately,
Senate
Democrats,
for
some
reason
–
I
can
only
imagine
a
political
reason
–
blocked
its
passage
this
week.
Simply
put,
the
American
people
deserve
better
than
that.
A
modern,
efficient
workforce
development
system
is
essential
to
our
future.
“I
believe
in
America,
and
I
believe
that
our
greatest
days
still
lie
ahead.
The
SKILLS
Act
is
a
straightforward,
common
sense
solution
for
American
families
and
for
helping
get
America
back
to
work.
“Thank
you
and
God
Bless
America.”
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