What Job Seekers Are Hoping to Hear in Obama's Jobs Speech

MAKING SENSE -- September 8, 2011 at 5:34 PM EDT

What Job Seekers Are Hoping to Hear in Obama's Jobs Speech

When President Obama outlines his jobs plan Thursday evening before a joint session of Congress, many of America's unemployed will be listening for specifics that will help them out of the unemployment line and into a job.

We interviewed folks at a monthly networking meeting for unemployed executives in the Chicago suburbs to find out what they are hoping the president will say in his speech.

What do you think President Obama should say? Let us know on twitter with #myjobsplan, on Facebook or in the comments below.

Julian Blumenthal, unemployed 15 months

"I don't think that people realize that we are in a really good situation to bring manufacturing back to this country. I believe the government should be helping that process."

Laura Beal, unemployed two months

"[President Obama] really needs to step it up. I mean, one of his goals was to get America more highly educated because our rating internationally has fallen in the past several years and I have not seen that really happen."

Peter Sturdivant, unemployed three years

"What I want to hear is not a couple hundred million, because the current contractors can absorb that amount of work. I really want to hear $500 billion."

Linda Spinelli, unemployed over a year

"I would certainly like to hear from the president how they're going to support shovel-ready projects in the state and local areas so we can put all our construction employees back to work."

Leonard Lamkin, unemployed two and a half years

"I would like to see something in the president's statement where I could withdraw from my 401 (k), tax-free, penalty free, if I use it to pay for my mortgage, and to get health insurance."

This entry is cross-posted on the Making Sen$e page, where correspondent Paul Solman answers your economic and business questions. Follow Paul on Twitter.

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