When it comes to maintaining and improving its roads, bridges and other transportation facilities, the United States is falling behind even developing nations and Congress is showing no will to address the crisis, according to a report released this week by the Urban Land Institute. Further:

Despite the nation’s unemployment woes, the vast job-creation potential of infrastructure projects is being sidetracked by concerns about government spending appetites and potential cost overruns.

China’s currency manipulation should be the main focus of talks this week between high level U.S. and Chinese government officials, says Scott Paul, executive director of the Alliance for American Manufacturing (AAM).

U.S. economic and trade policies over the past three decades have led to jobs lost offshore and a shrinking middle class, and the United States must address this economic bleed through trade policies and investment in infrastructure and manufacturing, AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka said today.

Two recent items on the economy struck home in the past few days. One, the United States no longer is the world’s major goods producer. Our nation has now been eclipsed by China, which ended the United States’ 110-year run as the largest goods producer.

The U.S. Commerce Department announced today that our trade deficit reached $497 billion last year, including a new record $273 billion deficit with China.

Leveling the playing field by enforcing our trade laws against  currency manipulation is a no-cost action that will create jobs, AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka said today.

This is a cross-post from the Alliance for American Manufacturing.

President Obama travels to Manitowoc, Wis., this afternoon. In Wisconsin, he’ll no doubt encounter a lot of struggling paper mills (along with workers who’ve been laid off from those mills). This is a result of unfair competition from China’s heavily subsidized paper industry.

Several disturbing items out now as Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner gets set to meet next week with Chinese President Hu Jintao.