Fresh from delivering a State of the Union speech that netted him a mixed bouquet of roses and thorny barbs, President George W. Bush found the reception he received inside the Outback Theatre of Mesa Community College more to his liking. Standing in front of a sign that read :¡±Jobs for the 21st Century,¡± the President used the appearance to promote his new jobs initiative program, explain the need for a guest worker program and reiterate his vow to stay in Iraq until the job was done. His January 21st visit was a stark contrast to his November trip to the valley when he came to promote his controversial healthcare plan which became law last year. Appearing tired but relaxed, It was smooth sailing for the president as he deftly allowed three students to testify on behalf of a need for his $250 million dollar program that will need congressional approval before it is implemented. The idea is to encourage displaced workers to forsake their previous employment path and enter the information technology (IT) industry.
Mr. Bush cited several factors as reasons for requesting the program. The tragedy of 911, widespread corruption in our financial institutions and a growing recession inherited from his predecessor: William Jefferson Clinton. ¡°W¡± also suggested to the audience that our educational system has failed to keep up with the demands of new technology concerns and he warned of ¡°leaving people behind,¡± if our nation doesn¡¯t make quick and dramatic changes.
Mesa Community College was the ideal site for the speech . MCC has partnered with business, industry, and the community throughout its four decades of service to the East Valley. In the past decade, the college¡¯s Business and Industry Institute has developed ties with technological giants such as Motorola and Sun Microsystems.
Institute graduate Stacey Leedom, a single mother, testified that she toiled at a dead end job until she took advantage of the MCC program and now she holds a higher paying job which affords her the ability to provide a better life for her young daughter and herself. Ms. Leedom got a quick response from the President when she informed
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