Mayors Cry Out for Help With Infrastructure, Job Creation

MSNBC has posted a really useful survey of over 200 local mayors, many of whom are calling for increased public investment to create jobs and meet public needs. You can read each mayor's individual response at the MSNBC web site.

For those of who care about jobs, our task is clear - let's help Main Street find its voice in national policymaking!

As one concrete step, the National Jobs for All Coalition urges state and local governments to pass The Drive For Decent Work Resolution, calling on Congress to step up investment in creating jobs, and addressing infrastructure and service gaps.

From the MSNBC report:

America's mayors are crying out for help from President-elect Barack Obama, seeking immediate relief from a national economic crisis that has slammed budgets in big cities, suburbs and small towns.

Responding to an informal survey by msnbc.com, many mayors called for a program in the style of President Franklin D. Roosevelt's Works Progress Administration to put people back to work and rebuild neglected roads, bridges and schools. The economy was by far the most frequently mentioned problem, and fixing the nation's infrastructure the most frequently mentioned solution.

Msnbc.com queried more than 1,000 mayors by e-mail just after Election Day, seeking their top two suggestions for the president-elect's "to do" list. They have a lot to say. We heard from 205 mayors in 48 states and Puerto Rico, ranging from big cities such as Phoenix all the way down to tiny Creedmoor, N.C. (population 2,232).

You can see their responses on our online map, or read all the responses in one text file. And you can read suggestions from our readers, or offer your own ideas for
the new president.

This is great online journalism - kudos to reporter Bill Dedman for pulling this great piece together!

Posted by Chuck Bell at 6:08 PM