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By Katherine Peralta July 1, 2014 | 4:21 p.m. EDT + More * * * * * * * President Barack Obama called for “economic patriotism” – bipartisan action to boost American growth – in remarks on the economy at the Georgetown Waterfront Tuesday. Obama used the Key Bridge as the literal background to push for congressional action to replenish the quickly depleting Highway Trust Fund. The account provides funding for highway, bridge and road repair and is slated to run out of money by the end of August. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx sent letters Tuesday to state departments of transportation warning of the urgency of the situation and noted that without congressional action, the Federal Highway Administration soon might not be able to make same-day payments to reimburse states for infrastructure projects. [READ: The U.S. Workforce Is Going Gray] This puts nearly 700,000 jobs at risk, Obama said. “It’d be like Congress threatening to lay off entire population of Denver, Seattle or Boston,” he said. Through business tax reform, the Obama administration has proposed a four-year, $302 billion transportation reauthorization plan called the GROW AMERICA Act to help address the fund's shortfall. “It’s not crazy, it’s not socialism, it’s not the imperial presidency,” Obama said. “We’re just building roads and bridges the way we’ve been doing for 50, 100 years.” Obama called Republican inaction on economic issues like the Highway Trust Fund and raising the minimum wage “not just a political stunt” and that it has tangible effects on the American middle class. [ALSO: Census Shows White Deaths Outpace Birth] “The economy doesn’t grow from the top-down, it grows from the middle-up. We could be doing so much more if Republicans in Congress were doing more,” he said, adding that he’ll continue to forge ahead without the support of Congress to implement economic proposals. “I’d rather do things with [Congress] – pass some laws, make sure the Highway Trust Fund is funded so we don’t lay off hundreds of thousands of workers. Middle-class families can’t wait for members of Congress to do stuff. So sue me,” he said, referencing Republican House Speaker John Boehner’s recent announcement that he’s suing Obama. “As long as they do nothing, I’m not going to apologize for trying to do something,” he added. TAGS: Obama, Barack Obama administration infrastructure Congress Boehner, John minimum wage economy * * * * * * + More * Katherine Peralta Katherine Peralta is an economy reporter for U.S. News & World Report. You can follow her on Twitter or reach her at kperalta@usnews.com. 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