Our nation is facing major challenges a jobs crisis, a turbulent stock market, exploding deficits, and a struggling economy. Now more than ever, we must put politics aside and come together as Americans to face our challenges head on.

I, for one, am willing to work with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to forge commonsense solutions to our problems. Some may believe that Washington is too broken to accomplish anything. Well, Washington may be broken, but it will not break me, and you should not let it break you. We are Americans, and we dont run away from challenges – we confront them head on.

I have made it clear to my Democratic and Republican colleagues that it’s time we focused on rebuilding America, and strengthening our future with a renewed commitment to job creation, fiscal responsibility, and good governance.

In fact, this week I launched a “Rebuilding America” tour, during which I came home to listen to your commonsense ideas, priorities and concerns as well as share my ideas about our path to rebuilding America. Each place I went, I heard concerns about our economy and the nation whether at meetings with the Chambers of Commerce in Charleston and Marion County, labor leaders in Huntington, or residents in Parkersburg and Fairmont.

West Virginians are becoming more worried about their futures and their children’s futures. They are demanding that Congress and the President take immediate action to set the economy on the right path. These fears were only intensified by the first-ever downgrade of America’s debt by S&P and a wild week on Wall Street.

I could not agree more.

In fact, I strongly believe our nation’s problems can’t be put on the back burner until Congress reconvenes in September. We must act now before this economic crisis worsens. It is why I made it clear that I believe the Congressional recess should be cancelled, and that the President and Congress should meet and come together to solve our nation’s problems.

I can speak from my experience as governor of West Virginia: Nothing matters more than working together to make commonsense decisions that will not only cut our deficits and create jobs, but will restore confidence. West Virginians don’t look at their problems through the eyes of political parties as red or as blue. We think in red, white and blue and that is how Washington should start thinking, too.

As I said in every stop I made this past week, I am going to do all that I can to get Washington to focus on commonsense solutions. It’s time for Washington to focus on job creation, cutting regulations, getting our debts under control, working toward energy independence, and investing in this nation, not others.

Now more than ever, it’s time for us to do what we were sent to Washington to do. It’s time to rebuild America.