Now that you've submitted a five-point plan to the Jobs Summit (the "official" position of the labor movement), it is time to plan a return-trip to the White House for a less formal session with President Obama. Below are listed a few ideas that you can take with you (your staff can undoubtably come up with several more). Be sure to bring with you a stack of holiday shopping catalogs we are all receiving these days - almost all from apparel companies. Challenge our leader to find one item made in the U.S. (FTC regs require these ads to label goods "imported") - if it takes him more than three minutes, you have made a sobering point.
Some ideas:
Green cards for greenbacks - or, the-Other-as-brother program: get a bunch of Saudi & Gulf millionaires to invest in small businesses in U.S. (It's a twofer: do it in a noisy way to spook Ahmadinejad.) Business ideas can be gleaned from the files of venture-capitalists who're too timid to act - plunk a bunch of the projects in the "urban enterprise zones" that Bill Clinton created & promptly forgot about (also, put some in Red States - you know why).
Pressure on rich, liberal institutions: How many rich prep schools and private colleges just in the North East U.S.? 600? I know that their endowments just took significant hits BUT -- BHO should guilt-trip them on weatherizing buildings... most of the faculty housing, older campus buildings, &c. - have them draw up concrete plans for complete overhaul in 5 years, starting with 30% in first year - use bully pulpit and these administrators will wilt under pressure. Tens of thousands of jobs just for the asking - have a presidential tour of the NE & invite college/prep prezzes to regional meetings (town meeting-style - 150 at a time) and bring the hammer down. Then, draw up plans for Spring assault on Upper Midwestern institutions.
New "homestead" Green Card legislation - Foreigners in places like Turkey, Chile, Taiwan, &c. probably cannot believe how much distressed housing stock there is in the U.S. - grant Green Card for investment in fixing up & living in some of these blighted neighborhoods - woo them with special programs to give their kids immediate in-state tuition status at state colleges and universities.