Greg Sargent at the Washington Post reports that the U.S. Chamber of Commerce has issued a joint statement with the AFL-CIO in support of President Obama's pitch for more infrastructure investment.  This is an interesting item, not least because the two groups are often at odds.

The statement from Chamber president Tom Donohue and AFL-CIO president Rich Trumka states:

America's working families and business community stand united in applauding President Obama's call to create jobs and grow our economy through investment in our nation's infrastructure. Whether it is building roads, bridges, high-speed broadband, energy systems and schools, these projects not only create jobs and demand for businesses, they are an investment in building the modern infrastructure our country needs to compete in a global economy.

The Alliance for American Manufacturing (AAM) agrees on infrastructure investment, and we’ve been working with labor and business for four years to make exactly this point. 

Our January 2009 study on infrastructure investment and what it means to the U.S. economy reported the significant job creation that would result from much needed improvements to the nation's bridges, roads, and waterworks.  Manufacturing in particular would see a boost, with job creation felt throughout the economy in such industries as fabricated metals, concrete and cement, glass-rubber-plastics, steel, and wood products.

The report also observed that manufacturing employment gains from such an infrastructure program could be improved significantly if the percentage of U.S.-made material inputs were increased. Simply put, a higher share of domestically produced supplies would have a significant impact in terms of generating new manufacturing jobs.

Read more on the need to invest in the nation's infrastructure.