Top White House advisers took their sales pitch of President Barack Obama?s jobs plan to a skeptical audience Thursday afternoon: Senate Democrats, many of whom have already been openly critical of the $447 billion plan.
White House senior adviser David Plouffe and Gene Sperling, the director of the National Economic Council, spoke to Senate Democrats during a 90-minute private meeting, during which they showed polls and focus-group results that showed the public?s backing for Obama?s jobs plan.
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Democrats on the Hill aren?t rushing to embrace the package, which the White House is desperately trying to sell both on the road and to congressional Democrats as an elixir for an ailing economy.
Several senators openly acknowledged that Democratic members had quibbles with the bill. Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.), the Senate?s messaging chief, insisted to reporters that the meeting showed Democrats were ?unified? on Obama?s jobs plan, but added that there were ?lots of concerns,? which he refused to specify.
?It was informative and we?re on the same page and we?re on the same team,? Schumer told reporters. ?People brought up their concerns, which people always have.?
Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin, struck an overall upbeat tone on the jobs bill but acknowledged ?controversy? on Obama?s proposals on how it would be paid for.
?Not surprisingly, the people who are from the oil-producing states are not wild about the elimination of oil subsidies,? Durbin told reporters. ?So you know, we?re not going to get 100 percent of our caucus.?
Several congressional Democrats in recent days have publicly criticized elements of the Obama?s American Jobs Act, whether it was how it was paid for, that it didn?t include enough infrastructure projects or that it contained a payroll tax cut that could drain funds from Social Security.
Republicans have seized on the criticism, pointing to the remarks as evidence that support on Capitol Hill of Obama?s jobs plan was widespread and crumbling.
But Senate Democrats sought to push back on that notion on Thursday.
?There?s a lot of support in our caucus,? added Sen. Debbie Stabenow (D-Mich.), who?s up for reelection in 2012. ?I wouldn?t say they were there to alleviate concerns; I would say they were there to explain it.?
Sperling and Plouffe both kept their remarks minimal after emerging from the meeting.
?We?re just focused on making sure we convince the American people that this is the right way to go to create jobs [and] convince as many Democrats here as we can,? Plouffe said. ?And I think the vast majority of them are excited about doing it.?
Manu Raju contributed to this report.
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