When I was growing up, my parents taught me the value of an honest day's work. I talk to constituents every day who share those values but just can't find work, though not for lack of trying.
As your representative, it's my job to do what I can to make that a little bit easier.
That's why, on June 26, I hosted a job fair where hundreds gathered at Oxford Valley Mall to connect with dozens of local employers, from green energy companies to health care organizations.
ARCCA Inc., a Wrightstown company developing products to increase military vehicle safety, was there looking for engineers. Gamesa, located in Fairless Hills, was there looking to hire workers to help build its wind energy turbines.
Dozens of job seekers approached me throughout the event, thrilled to get face time with employers rather than leaving another voice mail or sending another unanswered e-mail.
Yet, in a stunning display of cynicism and arrogance, a guest column (June 29) from a campaign worker for Mike Fitzpatrick's campaign mocked the job fair as a "stunt" and a waste of time.
It belittled the job offerings as mostly "entry-level" positions. Jobs like security guards. Or health caregivers. Apparently, these careers aren't good enough for Fitzpatrick.
I heard from job seekers who were hurt and insulted by that characterization.
My father still works as a security guard, as he has for over a decade. It's an honest job that he's proud to have, one that puts food on the table and pays the bills.
Maybe those in the Fitzpatrick camp have been living under a rock for the past couple of years. Otherwise, it's hard to understand how they could be so incredibly out of touch.
Eight years of failed Bush economic policies put American families through the wringer. Those economic policies, which Congressman Fitzpatrick supported, cost our country 8.2 million jobs.
Families have seen their 401(k)s devastated and college savings accounts depleted.
Fitzpatrick talks a lot about creating jobs, but he's stood against the very investments that are necessary to grow our economy.
He opposed tax credits that helped green energy companies like Gamesa expand - the same company with a table at last Saturday's event announcing 10 open positions.
He opposed tax incentives that helped Y-Carbon expand and move to Bucks County, another company with a table at the job fair looking for engineers and managers for its spin-off companies.
The truth is, Fitzpatrick isn't just out of touch with what folks are facing today. He simply never has and never will make it a priority to fight for middle-class families.
After all, this is the guy who sat on the very congressional committee tasked with overseeing Wall Street but did nothing while big banks played Russian roulette with our savings and drove our economy off a cliff.
This is the guy Dick Cheney turned to when he needed the tie-breaking vote on a trade agreement that sent American jobs to Honduras and Nicaragua.
This is the guy who wants to "take our country back." Back to what?
We can't afford to go backward. We need to fight every day to move our nation forward, create jobs and provide tax relief for middle-class families, not millionaires.
Will one job fair turn around this recession? Of course not. But it's another step in getting people back to work, which is why I'll be hosting another job fair at Truman High School on July 13 from 1 to 4 p.m.
Former Congressman Fitzpatrick may want to wait out the economic crunch, but I believe you elected me to fight to get people back to work.
He would rather obstruct and criticize efforts to dig us out of the mess he helped create. I believe you want Democrats and Republicans working together to stabilize our economy, which is why I've spearheaded a number of bipartisan economic development initiatives with local political and small-business leaders.
I have helped bring 3,000 jobs back to our community, and I will continue working hard every day to bring back even more.
U.S. Rep. Patrick Murphy represents the 8th Congressional District, comprising all of Bucks County, small parts of Abington, Upper Dublin and Upper Moreland townships in Montgomery County and a couple of wards in Northeast Philadelphia.
