Peoria Journal-Star, Caterpillar finds Victoria, Texas, ‘ideal’“: “PEORIA Caterpillar Inc. will build its new hydraulic excavator plant in Victoria, Texas, the company announced Thursday. Caterpillar will create more than 500 new jobs at the plant, on which construction will begin next month with completion expected by mid-2012. The plant will triple the company’s existing capacity of hydraulic excavator production in the United States.”

CNBC, July 13, “CNBC’s Top States For Business 2010And The Winner Is Texas“: “Texas powers past the tough times on the strength of its economytop-ranked in our Economy category four years in a row. The Texas economy is the 15th largest in the world, according to government figures; larger, for example, than all the Scandinavian nations combined.”

Jack Stewart, California Manufacturers and Technology Association, Employment debate focuses on creaky wheels of industry Factory jobs critical to growth”: “Since the latest budget revision was signed late last month, there has been a loud chorus decrying the compromise struck between Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and the Legislature because it contained no new taxes on business. The leaders of this ‘tax business’ chorus have submitted an initiative aimed at repealing business tax reforms enacted in February that were meant to level the playing field for California employers. Raising taxes on business, however, is no way to help the state’s economy or its manufacturing base.”

Bloomberg, US Retail Sales Rise Less Than Economists Estimated“: Sales at U.S. retailers rose less than forecast in July, indicating a lack of jobs is prompting Americans to hold back on spending. The 0.4 percent increase, led by autos and gasoline, followed a revised 0.3 percent drop in June, figures from the Commerce Department in Washington showed today.”

Investor’s Business Daily editorial, The Cabinet From Another World: “There’s never been an administration led by so few people with any experience in the private sector including the president, the vice president and even the treasury secretary, who last week wrongly called it a ‘myth’ that raising taxes on high-income Americans would hurt small business.”

Commerce.gov news release, July 15, Hightower to Step Down as Deputy Commerce Secretary“: “Deputy Commerce Secretary Dennis F. Hightower announced today that he plans to step down effective August 27. Hell be returning to the private sector to resume his work on corporate governance and training and developing the next generation of global business leaders. At Commerce, Hightower brought skills he learned at the top levels of the business world to help shepherd some of Commerces most complicated initiatives, including satellite acquisition, cybersecurity and the Recovery Acts Broadband Technology Opportunities Program.”