We're not surprised to see that No. 11 on The Huffington Post's America Needs Job series is "Buy American -- If you can." HuffPost reporter Dan Froomkin says that "Buy American" was one of the most common email responses he received from readers on how to solve the job crisis in America.

Froomkin quotes AAM Executive Director Scott Paul who said:

"There are 5 billion cell phones in the world, and we don't make any of them. We don't make any laptops. No flat-screen TVs. The big-box stores are so ubiquitous that their sourcing policies sort of dictate where a lot of things come from."

Froomkin also points to the increasing difficulty of buying American, a problem which needs to be addressed if the average consumer is going to be able to make informed, as well as economical, decisions about their purchases.  He also quotes AAM book author and Manufacturing & Technology News editor Richard McCormack on the fact that Americans have simply stopped producing the products that they continue to purchase.  

It seems as though the Obama administration is on board, as Froomkin draws White House support of Buy America straight from the horse's mouth:  

The White House's position is that Buy America is a fine idea, but that the key is having a lot more things made in America in the first place.  President Obama on August 6, for instance, spoke of his desire to "rebuild our economy around three simple words - Made in America.  That is what I'm committed to doing, and that's what I hope members of both parties will join me in doing in the days ahead and beyond."

See AAM's recent study on why 'Buy America' works.