This is the VOA Special English Economics Report, from voaspecialenglish.com One year ago, President Obama signed the economic recovery bill aimed at pulling the country out of recession. The bill promised jobs — including many in the nuclear energy industry. In February, the president announced plans for the government to guarantee more than eight billion dollars in loans for two new nuclear energy centers in the state of Georgia. The Southern Company plans to build the nuclear power centers. The first would start operations in twenty sixteen. Mister Obama announced the plan at a job training center in Lanham, Maryland. The message was that nuclear energy projects will create jobs. President Obama said It is a plant that will create thousands of construction jobs in the next few years, and some eight hundred permanent jobs — well paying permanent jobs — in the years to come. In February, the Federal Reserve predicted that unemployment will remain near current levels through the year. The present rate is nine point seven percent. The central bank said unemployment could remain high for the next two years. President Obama has received sharp criticism from Republicans over the lack of progress in job creation. The seven hundred eighty-seven billion dollar American Recovery and Reinvestment Act is also unpopular because of its cost. Critics said the money is being spent too slowly with less than sixty percent being spent so far. But the administration said the measure has …
