Dow Corning CEO Stephanie Burns sees the absurdity of manufacturing polycrystalline silicon in the U.S., seeing it shipped offshore for the manufacture of wafers and modules, which are then transported back here, destined for solar panels placed on buildings and power projects. And she got to tell President Obama directly on Thursday at the “job summit” held in Washington. “Our goal is to have that value chain and those manufacturing jobs here in the U.S. for the U.S. market,” Burns said, as she made herself available to media after the event.

There was at least one specific policy proposal that the business leaders in this part of the job summit. The advanced manufacturing tax credit, currently capped $2.3 billion is inadequate to support new and re-equipped facilities construction and should be at least doubled. Dow Corning has stepped up in the solar energy field, investing more than $5 billion in solar investments the company and its joint ventures at the Hemlock Semiconductor Group in Michigan and Tennessee, creating a total of 1,500 jobs.

Burns said she and other leaders said they still expect carbon regulation by Congressional action next year and would look for some certainty and fair implementation in regards to setting its price, particularly in a way that “balanced for global competitiveness and predictability.”

Green jobs were a centerpiece in the American Reinvestment and Recovery Act, the $787 billion stimulus package, which included renewable energy grants and tax credits. In the intervening 10 months since the stimulus was passed, larger macroeconomic forces have swallowed up much of the momentum created over the past couple years in the green economy. Project finance has stalled for many wind projects, for example. So much of the discussion, while helpful in setting longer-term goals, still relates to what has been slow to develop: green jobs now.