Whitehouse.gov Feed

11:53 A.M. EDT

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  Hey.  Hey, guys.  We sadly don’t have a lot of time.  So, let me just do this at the top really quickly, and then I’ll turn it off — turn it over.

So, we do have some news for you at the top.  On Monday, April 22nd, the President will travel to Virginia to celebrate Earth Day.  We will have more details, obviously, to share in the upcoming days.  But the President is looking forward to celebrating Earth Day next week.

I do want to give a qu- — a statement about what we saw in Arizona yesterday.

For the second time, Republican elected officials in Arizona have — have blocked efforts to repeal the state’s extreme and dangerous abortion ban from 1864.

This law, which includes no exceptions when a woman’s health is at risk or in tragic cases of rape or incest, threatens doctors with jail time and will put the health and lives of women in Arizona at risk.  It is outrageous.

After the Arizona Supreme Court’s ruling paved the way for this Civil War-era ban to go into effect, Republican elected officials tried to dance — to distance themselves from their own extreme agenda to rip away women’s freedom.  But when Democratic elected officials in Arizona offered a bill to repeal this arcane law, Republicans said no twice.

The President and the Vice President stand with the vast majority of Americans who support a woman’s right to choose.  And the administration will continue to fight to protect access to reproductive healthcare and call on Congress to pass a law restoring the protections of Roe v. Wade for women in — in every state.

I know the Admiral doesn’t have a topper, but he’s happy —

MR. KIRBY:  No topper.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  — to take any of your questions on the Middle East.

Q    So, John, we saw the Iran sanctions this morning.  Why were these targets not already sanctioned?  They were involved in Iran’s UAV industry, which has been helping Russia fight its war in Ukraine.  Why are there any targets that ha- — that —

MR. KIRBY:  Look, sanctions — sanctions — the whole sanctions process is an iterative process, and they can be cumulative too.

I would remind you that, over the last three years, we’ve done 600 sanctions across a wide range of entities and individuals and organizations and businesses across Iran.  These are specifically targeted at their drone capability.  And — and we’ll keep the option open for, you know, anymore that we need.

Q    Quickly, about the meeting today over Rafah — the virtual meeting. 

MR. KIRBY:  Yeah.

Q    Who is leading the talks from the U.S. side and —

MR. KIRBY:  Jake.

Q    And — and are you planning to discuss Israel’s plan to attack Iran?  I mean, to what extent is that getting discussed?

MR. KIRBY:  The meeting is going on right now, so we’ll give you a readout when it’s over.  I’m not going to get ahead of it.  The main purpose really is to talk about Rafah and to continue to have a conversation with the Israelis about their intentions and to also share our — our continued concerns over a major ground offensive there.

Q    And — and a quick one on — on, you know, the President’s decision to impose tariffs on China.  I mean, di- — had he mentioned that to President Xi when he spoke to him a few days ago on, you know, the decision to impose higher tariffs on steel?

MR. KIRBY:  I’ll just say that, broadly speaking, the President did talk to President Xi about unfair trade practices and — and the flooding in the global market of certain commodities that make it hard for American workers and families and businesses. 

Q    John —

Q    What was his response?

MR. KIRBY:  I’ll leave it at that.

Q    John, can you give an update on discussions regarding hostage negotiations — those Israeli hostage and American hostages that are being held in Israel? 

And also, as part of that, is there proof of life for — that’s been given to the Israelis as it relates to those who were abducted on October the 7th of last year?

MR. KIRBY:  Proof of life for all of them?  I wish we had more information, Jon.  We don’t.  That’s been the case since October 7th.  We just don’t have the ability to know the individual condition of any one hostage.  So, we’re — we’re obviously doing the best we can to try to g- — gain as much information as we can.  But we don’t.

As for the status of negotiations, as I said earlier, I mean, for us, this is still an active effort.  There’s still a proposal on the table.  We urge Hamas to take that proposal.  And we’re waiting to see what they do about it.

Q    Can I — can I just ask a follow-up?  If — if you don’t have any information regarding proof of life, how can the Israelis negotiate, you know, in — in fairness with —

MR. KIRBY:  They know who has been taken. 

Q    Okay.

MR. KIRBY:  They know who has been taken. 

Q    Right.

MR. KIRBY:  And — and we want them all back.

Sadly, if that means that not all of them come back alive, then they still need to be with their families.  We just don’t know the condition of each and every one of them.  You can’t count on Hamas to be perfectly honest about — about all their conditions.  But we want them all back regardless. 

Q    The U.N. Security Council vote tomorrow on recognizing statehood for the Palestinian territory.  What’s the U.S. thinking on that?  And are you prepared to use your veto?

MR. KIRBY:  We completely believe in the two-state solution and a state for the Palestinian people.  We believe the best and the most sustainable way to do that is through direct negotiations between the parties. 

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  Sorry, guys.  We’re going to have to sit.  Thanks, everybody. 

(Cross-talk.)

Q    We didn’t address the cannibals.

Q    A couple of questions.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  Okay. 

Q    Can we see the “cannibal” tab in your book?  (Laughter.) 

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  There is no “cannibal” tab.  What are you talking about?  (Laughter.)  Is that what you — is that what you’re asking me about?

Q    I mean —

Q    Yeah.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  Okay.  Look, I’ll just — and I think we shared this with some of you, so I’m just going to kind of repeat.

Look, you saw the President.  He was incredibly proud of his uncle’s service in uniform.  You saw him at the war memorial.  It was incredibly emotional and important to him. 

You saw him respond to all of you when asked about the moment, yesterday, and his uncle who lost his life when the military aircraft he was on crashed in the Pacific after taking off near in New Guinea.  The President highlighted his uncle’s story as he made the case for honoring our sacred commitment to — to equip those we send to war and to take care of them and their families when they come home. 

And as he reiterated that the last thing American veterans are are “suckers” or “losers,” and he wanted to make that clear.  He wanted to make —

Q    By embellishing the story? 

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  I mean, look, I — I don’t have anything beyond — but what I just laid out.  But it was a really proud moment for him.  It was incredibly emotional.  I think some of your colleagues, as — as you know, Zeke, were there, and they got to witness the President pray at the — at the war memo- — war memorial, look for his uncle’s name, honor him. 

And I think we can’t — we can’t forget that moment.  And we cannot also forget what it means to be a commander-in-chief, what it means to lift up our service members, what it means to make sure that we respect their service.  And he made that contrast very clear as to what we saw from the former — former President. 

(Cross-talk.)

Sorry, guys.  Thank you. 

12:00 P.M. EDT

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This Education and Sharing Day, USA, we remember the life and legacy of the Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Menachem Mendel Schneerson, as the leader of the Chabad-Lubavitch movement and recommit to our shared values of honesty, dignity, and equal justice that he long championed and that have made America strong.

Forced to flee Nazi-occupied Europe during one of history’s darkest moments, the Rebbe found a new home and purpose in America.  In the wake of the Holocaust, he led hundreds of thousands to deepen their faith.  As a prolific scholar and teacher, his calls for new schools and community centers inspired people to build them in all 50 States and across the globe, and they moved generations to embrace education not only as a means of self-improvement but as an essential path to a more just society.  Here in America, he also offered counsel to some of my predecessors as President, always advocating for our Nation’s role as a beacon of hope in the world.   

We honor the Rebbe’s birthday every year, but we know this year is different.  Violence and cruelty have reminded us that hate never goes away — it only hides.  Silence is complicity, and America will not be silent.  As Americans, we reject terrorism and will keep working unequivocally to combat antisemitism at every turn.  My Administration remains dedicated to Israel’s security, and here at home, we have been implementing America’s first-ever National Strategy to Counter Antisemitism.  We will give hate no safe harbor.

The Rebbe knew that education is fundamental to cultivating understanding and acceptance.  It opens us up to one another, and it builds not just knowledge but character, as well as an awareness of something bigger than ourselves.  The Rebbe’s beliefs are reflected in the American creed that every person is created equal and deserves to be treated equally throughout their lives, starting with access to a quality education — a mission my Administration shares.

As we approach the 30th anniversary of the Rebbe’s passing, we honor his work by celebrating our common faith in our Nation and by working to ensure that every American has a chance to learn, grow, and thrive — in the classroom and as caring and courageous people.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim April 19, 2024, as Education and Sharing Day, USA.  I call upon government officials, educators, volunteers, and all the people of the United States to observe this day with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities.

 IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this eighteenth day of April, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty-four, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-eighth.

                             JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR.

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Less than a week ago, Iran launched one of the largest missile and drone attacks the world has ever seen against Israel. Together with our allies and partners, the United States defended Israel. We helped defeat this attack. And today, we are holding Iran accountable—imposing new sanctions and export controls on Iran.
 
The sanctions target leaders and entities connected to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Iran’s Defense Ministry, and the Iranian government’s missile and drone program that enabled this brazen assault. As I discussed with my fellow G7 leaders the morning after the attack, we are committed to acting collectively to increase economic pressure on Iran. And our allies and partners have or will issue additional sanctions and measures to restrict Iran’s destabilizing military programs.
 
During my Administration, the United States has sanctioned over 600 individuals and entities—including Iran and its proxies, Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis, and Kataib Hezbollah. And we will keep at it. I’ve directed my team, including the Department of the Treasury, to continue to impose sanctions that further degrade Iran’s military industries.
 
Let it be clear to all those who enable or support Iran’s attacks: The United States is committed to Israel’s security. We are committed to the security of our personnel and partners in the region. And we will not hesitate to take all necessary action to hold you accountable.

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On April 16, Assistant to the President for Homeland Security Liz Sherwood-Randall and Deputy Assistant the President and Senior Advisor for Energy and Investment Amos Hochstein travelled to Mexico City to meet with President Andrés Manuel López Obrador and with Foreign Secretary Alicia Bárcena to advance the extensive economic and security cooperation between our two countries. 

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Principal Deputy National Security Advisor Jon Finer spoke on the phone today with President Irfaan Ali of Guyana to discuss regional security and stability as well as ways to deepen our bilateral relationship, including our unwavering support for Guyana’s sovereignty.  During the call, Mr. Finer welcomed Guyana’s leadership as the current Chair of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM).  They both reiterated the importance of urgently increasing international support for Haitian-led efforts and the Multinational Security Support mission to help Haitians restore security and pave the way toward free and fair elections in Haiti.   They also discussed other shared priorities, including energy security and climate change.

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Today, U.S. Deputy National Security Advisor for International Economics Daleep Singh and Norwegian Minister of Trade and Industry Jan Christian Vestre signaled their intent to move forward with a U.S.-Norway Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) Concerning Cooperation on High-Standard, Market-Oriented Trade of Critical Minerals. The MoU is an important step  towards further strengthening the United States and Norway’s future strategic cooperation regarding critical minerals. Under this MOU, the United States and Norway intend to build on months of constructive dialogue through a coordinated approach to the challenges and opportunities that characterize markets for critical minerals. Key focus areas of this cooperation will include advancing high-standard labor and environmental conditions in global critical minerals supply chains and examining and identifying appropriate responses to non-market policies and practices in third countries that have contributed to volatile, distorted market conditions.  With this MOU, the United States and Norway intend to deepen our partnership in pursuit of the long-term commercial viability of sustainable, high-standard, market-oriented critical minerals mining and processing activities in the United States, Norway, and globally.

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The East Room

Thank you, Julie.

When we first asked Julie about this, we thought she would be joining us on one of these screens – on a video call from Germany.

But your husband knew that you had to be here, because you’ve worked too hard on this issue to miss this. And I agree – I think we all do.

And I heard you met your boss, Daniel, in person for the first time!

Bosses like Daniel, who support military spouses on their teams, are critical to making sure spouses can continue in their careers no matter where they may move.

Julie, you’ve fought to make this moment possible – and you’ve helped so many other spouses through the process…as their best advocate, as their expert, as their lifeline. Thank you and your family for your service.

Welcome to the White House!

It’s great to see so many old friends here – to celebrate this moment with people who have been with Joining Forces since the beginning.

Today is only possible because of you and the many others who have been working for decades to make sure military and veteran families, caregivers, and survivors have what they need to thrive.

I’m grateful for your ideas, your hard work, and your collaboration.

Congresswoman Crockett – thank you for your leadership and your tireless support of military spouses.

And a special thank you to Deputy Secretary Verma and Deputy Secretary Hicks for all the work your departments have done to bring us to this milestone.

After an Executive Order is signed and the excitement has faded, the work begins – the implementation. That’s where lives change. And that’s what we’re seeing today. Thank you both.

For just a moment, I want all of you to picture a mom of three kids on a base overseas.

She seems to have it all under control.

Her hair is tied back, so that little hands have nothing to grab, and she seamlessly moves between distracting her toddler and keeping her eight-year-old from stealing another cookie from the snack table.

She smiles when she tells you how proud she is of her husband’s service. What an extraordinary opportunity it is to be able to travel the world and live in another country. How her kids are adjusting to their lives abroad so well.

It’s not until you turn the conversation to her that you see those tiny cracks in her wall of strength.

How is she doing?

Well, she does miss her work. She couldn’t take it with her when she moved overseas. Yes, she’s applied to other jobs, but with no luck.

Application after application, she feels like her degrees and experience are going to waste.

After months of trying to find a job, she’s ready to take anything – after all, there are bills to pay – but it won’t be the job she loved.

It won’t be the career she’s worked so hard to build.

I can’t tell you her name, because I’ve met her more times than I can count.

Since we launched Joining Forces more than 10 years ago, I meet her and spouses like her everywhere I go.

And I meet their service members too.

They’re stressed about how difficult it is to make ends meet on one income, questioning how long they can serve their country when their spouse is unhappy or unfulfilled.

We can’t allow our military families to meet these challenges alone.

When I brought these stories back to my husband, President Biden, he listened.

And then he took action. That’s what Joe does, he sees a problem and then he gets to work fixing it. He doesn’t waste any time.

So, last June, Joe signed an historic Executive Order to address the barriers that military spouses face when trying to find work – by making it easier for the federal government to hire them, encouraging federal employers to give spouses time off when they have to move, and reducing child care costs for military families.

A critical part of the Executive Order is allowing military spouses who work for the federal government to take those jobs with them if they have to PCS overseas. With today’s agreement, we’re making that a reality.

It’s common-sense. It’s simple. And it’s long overdue.

We know that the work doesn’t end today.

Child care, jobs with private employers, being able to start your own business, or transfer your professional license to different states – we won’t stop until these are solved.

Our military spouses – so many of you here – may not wear a uniform, but you serve our country too, and it’s our responsibility to support you.

This isn’t just a moral obligation, it’s a national security imperative.

For more than 50 years, our military has been made up entirely of volunteers. We don’t demand service of our citizens – you step forward.

But we put that principle at risk when we force our service members to choose between their love of country and their love of the families who serve alongside them. We must give them the support they need to choose both.

That’s what today is all about.

Our service members deserve nothing less. And neither do all the spouses like Julie, on every base around the world, who are looking to carve out a life while supporting the people they love most.

With all my heart: thank you for your service and your sacrifice.

And now, I’d like to invite the Deputy Secretaries over to the signing table.

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United Steelworkers Headquarters
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

2:29 P.M. EDT

 THE PRESIDENT:  Hello, Pittsburgh.  (Applause.)  Please have a seat.

 Robert, thank you for that introduction and for sharing your story about being a third-generation steelworker and a Marine Corps veteran.  Where are you?  Are you over on this side?  There you are.

 Well, I want to thank you for the — your new president, by the way.  Dave McCall has been a friend of mine and a friend of a former president.  We — we miss him, but it’s great to have you, Dave.  You’ve been a good friend.  And we’re both longtime friends — (applause) — we’re both longtime friend of Tom’s as well.  We miss him dearly.

 Dave, you’re doing a great job in his footsteps and — and it’s just going to get better, in my view.

 There’s an expression that comes to mind: “You go home with them that brung you to the dance.”  And you brought me to the dance.  (Applause.)  No joke.

 The Mayor and I are buddies.  I told the Mayor — and I mean it sincerely — the first outfit ever to endorse me as a 29-year-old kid running in a tough year for United States Senate, making me the second youngest man ever elected to the Senate, was a guy named Hughie Carcella.  And back in those days, the s- — we had a big steelworkers — we had a lot of steelworkers in Claymont, Delaware, where I was from, because they worked in Worth Steel Company. 

And — and I’ll never forget coming to me and saying, “We’re going to get you help.”  And I came out to Pittsburgh and you — and the steelworkers endorsed me.  It changed everything.  (Applause.) 

Nixon won my state — Nixon won my state of Delaware with 60 percent of the vote, and I won with an astounding 3,100 majority — (laughter) — 3,100 majority.  And it’s thanks to you.  I really mean it.

 I’m Pittsburgh and — because of — and I really mean it: My love for Pittsburgh goes back to my Scranton days.  My Grandfather Finnegan always talked about Pittsburgh.

 Any rate, to make a long story short, the bottom line, for all kidding aside, is I’m president because of you guys.  I really am.  And I’m proud, as was mentioned earlier — I’m proud to be the most pro-union president in American history, for real.  (Applause.)

 Where I was raised, it ain’t labor; it’s unions — unions.  (Applause.)

 I had an uncle.  He’d say, “Joey, you are union from belt buckle to shoe sole.”  (Laughter.)

 Well, I want to thank some folks who had my back and — and had to stay back in Washington and couldn’t be here today.  Representatives Summer Lee and — you know, I — she — by the way, there are votes going on — and Chris DeLuzio.  And Senator Bobby Casey is one of my closest friends, as his dad was.  And John Fetterman, who I want to stay on his side no matter what.  (Laughter and applause.) 

 And thank you to all the state and local leaders here, including the Mayor of Pittsburgh, Ed Gainey.  Ed, you’re the best buddy.  You’ve — you’ve really stepped up.  (Applause.)

 And a great leader, JoJo Burgess, an Army veteran from a steelworking family.  He was my guest at the State of the Union just a couple of years ago.  He came back home to Washington, Pennsylvania, and decided to run for mayor, and he won.  (Applause.)  And he’s still working as a steelworker.  But that’s America.

 Look, folks, it was — I was — almost exactly five years ago that I began my campaign for president right here in Pittsburgh, where I announced.

 I said one of the reasons I was running was to rebuild the backbone of America, the middle class.  And it was already mentioned — it’s been mentioned a thousand times, thankfully, since then — that the backbone of America has a steel spine.  It really does have a steel spine.

 You heard me say it before: Wall Street didn’t build America; the middle class didn’t build — built America, and you guys built the middle class.  Unions built it.

 And that’s why I’m here today to announce a series of actions that I stand by you, the American steelworker.

 Look, first, U.S. Steel has been an iconic American company for more than a century.  And it should remain a totally American company — (applause) — American owned, American operated, by American union steelworkers — the best in the world.  And it’s — that’s going to happen.  I promise you.  (Applause.)

 Second, American steelworkers can outwork, outcompete as long as they have fair competition.  But for too long, the Chinese government has poured state money into Chinese steel companies, pushing them to make so much steel — as much as possible — subsidized by the Chinese government.

 Because Chinese steel companies produce a lot more steel than China needs, it ends up dumping the extra steel into the global markets at unfairly low prices.  And the prices are unfairly low because Chinese steel companies don’t need to worry about making a profit, because the Chinese government is subsidizing them so heavily. 

 They’re not competing.  They’re cheating.  They’re cheating.  And we’ve seen the damage here in America.

 You know, back in the early 2000s, the Chinese steel began floating the mar- — flooding the market wi- — in steel towns all across Pennsylvania and Ohio, who were hit very hard.

Between those years, 2000 and 2010, more than 14,000 steelworkers [and ironworkers] in Pennsylvania and Ohio lost their jobs — 14,000.

 Let me ask you: Are we going to let that happen again?

 AUDIENCE:  No!

 THE PRESIDENT:  I promise you that I’m not going to let that happen again.

 Look, right now, my U.S. Trade Representative is investigating trade practices by the Chinese government regarding steel and aluminum.  If that investigation confirms these anti-competitive trade practices, then I’m calling on her to consider tripling the tariff rates for both steel imports and aluminum imports from China.  (Applause.)

 And we know that Chinese steel and aluminum are being imported into America through Mexico that avoids the tariff.  And just yesterday, I had a delegation down in Mexico meeting with AMLO, the Mexican president, to address this issue. 

Mexico and the United States are going to work together to solve it, I promise you.  I promise you.

 My administration is also taking a real hard look at the Chinese government’s industrial practices when it comes to global shipbuilding, which is critical to our economy.  We depend on a fleet of commercial shipping vessels that carry American products around the world.

 Shipbuilding is critical to our national security, including the strength of the United States Navy.

 That’s why my administration takes it very seriously that U.S. Steelworkers, along with four other unions, have asked us to investigate whether the Chinese government is using anticompetitive practices to artificially lower prices in the shipbuilding industry.

 We’ve heard you.

 And if the Chinese government is doing that and the unfair tactics to undermine free and fair trade competition in the shipping industry, I will take action.  That investigation is going on.

 Taken together, these are strategic and targeted actions that are going to protect American workers and ensure fair competition.

 Meanwhile, my predecessor and the MAGA Republicans want across-the-board tariffs on all imports from all countries.  That could badly hurt American consumers.  It’s estimated it would cost the average American family an average of $1,500 a year if they succeeded in doing that.

 Trump simply doesn’t get it.

For years, I’ve heard my — many of my Republican and even Democratic friends say that China is on the rise and America has been falling behind.  You may have noticed, the last two years, I’ve been the only one disagreeing with that.

I’ve always believed we’ve [they’ve] got it all wrong.  America is rising.  And we have the best economy in the world, which we do.  (Applause.)

And since I’ve come to office, our GDP is up, our trade deficit with China is down to the lowest level in over a decade, and we’re standing up against the Chinese government unfair economic practice and industrial over-capacity.

 And we are the strongest economic — economy in the world.

 In addition — and, by the way, China has got more — I always say to my colleagues — when I meet other world leaders, I say, “Would you trade places with China?  Would you trade places with their problems?”  They’ve got a population that is more people in retirement than working.  They’re not in- — they’re not importing any — they’re not bringing — they’re xenophobic — no — nobody coming — else coming in.  They’ve got real problems.

 I’m not looking for a fight with China.  I’m looking for competition, but fair competition.

In addition, we’re standing up for peace and stability across the Taiwan Straits.  I’ve revitalized our partnerships in — and our alliances in the Pacific with India, Australia, South Korea, the Philippines, and other Pacific Island nations.

 I’ve made sure that we have the most advanced technologies that we’ve developed and invented, and they can’t be sent to China or undermine our — because it’ll undermine our national security.

 When I spoke with Xi Jinping, he said, “Why?”  I said, “Because you use it for all the wrong reasons, so you’re not going to get those advanced computer chips.”

 Finally, for all this tough talk on China, it never occurred to my predecessor to do any of that.

 The bottom line is that I want fair competition with China, not conflict, and we’re in a stronger position to win the economic competition of the 21st century against China or anyone else because we’re investing in America and American workers again, finally.  (Applause.)

 You know, there’s a law, back in the ‘30s, that passed when we — about whether unions could exist.  There’s a provision that no — very few people — very few presidents ever paid attention to.  If a president is sent money from the Congress to do something for the public, he must use American products and must use American workers, unless you couldn’t find them.  Well, guess what?  A lot of them didn’t find them, except me.  (Laughter and applause.)  No, I mean it.  Not a joke.

 Everything we build, we build with American product and with American workers, period.  (Applause.)  And it doesn’t violate any trade agreement. 

 Thanks to my Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, we announced over 51,000 new infrastructure projects all across America — (applause) — so far — we’re just getting started — including roads, bridges, ports, airports, clean water systems, high-speed affordable Internet, all across America.

 You may remember, my predecessor promised “Infrastructure Week” after week after week — (laughter) — for four years and never built a damn thing.  (Applause.)  Nothing.  No, I’m serious: Nothing.

 And, by the way, these projects are going to be using — using American-made materials, like American steel and American concrete, creating good-paying American jobs — union jobs.  (Applause.)

 Why?  As I said — I’ve already said it, but since the ‘30s, the law has said we could do that.  And that’s exactly what I’m doing. 

 And we’re buying American.  We are selling American.  It’s all about America.  We buy America.

 And past administrations, including my predecessor, failed to uphold that “Buy American” provision.  Not anymore.  That’s — that’s over.  We — American products and American workers.

 Look, folks, you know, I signed the Inflation Reduction Act, the most significant law taking on climate change ever anywhere in the world — anywhere in the world. 

We didn’t get anybody to vote for it, other than my Democratic friends.  Okay?

 Well, guess what?  That includes billions of dollars in investments in industries of the future, including clean American steel.  It’s clean because the way we produce it here emits much less carbon than the steel made in China.

 Last month, my administration announced the largest investment ever in clean manufacturing in American history — in all of American history.  (Applause.)  It included up to $1.5 billion in six clean steel projects across America — $1.5 billion.  It’s going to create and support thousands of union jobs, including at — at Butler Works in — in Lyndora, Pe- — over in Lyndora, Pennsylvania.

 My predecessor and his Republican friends in Congress want to repeal that law that would cut those jobs.  And it would cut the jobs if you repeal the law.  I’m serious. 

The — I know when I say these things, you wonder can that — could they be — possibly be that stupid?  (Laughter.)  I — I shouldn’t say it that way.  (Laughter.) 

But I’m serious.  Think about it.  Just check it out.  That’s what they want to do.  But that’s not all.

My predecessor rolled back protections for American workers.  He opposed the increase overall for federal minimum wage.  He put union busters on the National Labor Relations Board.

AUDIENCE:  Booo —

THE PRESIDENT:  For real.  Well, you know he did.  Think — think of what the board looked like before I became president.  Not a joke.  Not a joke.

Meanwhile, since I was sworn in as president, because of you, look at what we’ve achieved together.  Through my American Rescue Plan, I enacted the Butch Lewis Act, the most significant law — (applause) — the most significant law for union workers and retirees in 50 years. 

Think of what would happen if we didn’t get that passed.  And none of them wanted to help me.  But we got it done.

It protected the hard-earned pensions of more than 120,000 steelworkers.  (Applause.)  Folks, you’ve had my back, and I promise I have your back.

We made that happen while my predecessor never lifted a finger to help.

 I also increased the federal minimum wage for federal contracts.  The people I’ve appointed to the National Labor Relations Board actually care about American workers.

 So far, we’ve created 15 million — as mentioned earlier — new jobs — a record in a — in a term of a president — (applause) — 492,000 new jobs so far in Pennsylvania alone.  (Applause.)  Under my predecessor, who is busy right now — (laughter) — Pennsylvania lost 275,000 jobs.  I mean, let’s — let’s look at the facts.

 On my watch, unemployment hasn’t been this low for this long in 50 years.  (Applause.)  That’s 50 years.  Wages are rising.  American manufacturing is booming.  We’ve created up close to 800,000 new manufacturing jobs since I became president, including 28,000 manufacturing jobs right here in Pennsylvania. 

 We’ve attracted $680 billion — let me say it again — $680 billion in private-sector investment in advanced manufacturing and clean energy here in America, including $4 billion just here in the state of Pennsylvania so far.

 Folks, instead of importing foreign products and exporting American jobs, we’re exporting American products and creating American jobs.  Think about — think of all the time — think — think of the last years where they’d go — American — corporate America wanted to go find the cheapest labor in the world, send the jobs overseas, and then import the product home.  Not anymore.

Together, we’re doing what’s always worked best for this country.  We’re investing in all of America, in all Americans. 

And we’re building an economy from the middle out — not — and the bottom up, not the top down.  Because when we do that, the poor have a ladder up and the middle class do well and the wealthy still do very well.  (Applause.)  We all do well.  No, for real.

 Look, let me close with this.  I just came from my hometown, Scranton, Pennsylvania, a place like Pittsburgh that sort of climbs into your heart and never leaves you.  And it really doesn’t.

 My mom didn’t live in — in Scranton since she was — 1954, but when you’d ask Mom where is she from, she’d say, “Scranton.”  “Scranton.”  (Laughter.)  Well, where you learn basic — a basic value set, like you do here. 

 Money doesn’t determine your worth, I would always be told.  Everyone is entitled to be treated with dignity and respect. 

My dad used to say, “A job is about a lot more than a paycheck — worth a lot more than a paycheck, pal.  It’s about your dignity.  It’s about respect.  It’s about being treated with respect.” 

 And he’d say — he’d always — and I give you my word.  These are phrases he’d always use.  He’d say, “You know, not only being able to give — have respect, but being able to look your kid in the eye and say, ‘Honey, it’s going to be okay,’ and mean it — mean it.”

 Look, everyone — everyone deserves a fair shot — just a fair shot.  And we’re going to leave no one behind.

 Folks, that’s my view of the economy — from Scranton, from Pittsburgh, from the thousands of working- and middle-class neighborhoods all across America.  It’s a future we are building together.

 As I said, I always think of my dad.  I really mean it.  My Dad, during the war, he didn’t get to go to college.  He got a — he was from Bal- — as they say in Baltimore, Baltimore — (pronounced in an accent) — (laughter) — he was from — he was from Baltimore, and then his father, then, worked for American Oil Company and moved to Wilmington and then to Scranton to open up business — to open up stations. 

 And — but he always would come home and — and he’d go back and close the business.  He didn’t own it; he was a — managed a dealership.  And he’d say, “A job is a lot more than a paycheck.”  And it really is.  It’s about treating people with dignity.  It’s about treating them with respect.  And, look, it’s going to be okay.  It’s going to be okay.

 Folks, because of you, the American worker, I’ve never been more optimistic about America’s future.  And I mean it.  I really, truly am.

 When my son died, I decided I wa- — he had spent a year in Iraq, and he — unfortunately, his hooch was next to a burn pit.  And he went one of the most fit guys in his — in his regiment, and he came home with stage four glioblastoma.  They’re more brain injuries for — for folks fighting in Iraq than any other place in the world.

 Remember what happened to all those firemen in 9/11?  Same thing happened because these burn pits are just awful.  They put everything from human waste to — anyway —

And — and I — and so, I wasn’t going to run.  But what happened was, when he passed, you remember that — right after that — well, you don’t remember him passing in 2015.  And I w- — I wasn’t going to run.  I was going to write a book about inflection points in American history, where the actions we take in a short period of time determine what happens in the next five or six decades.  Well, that’s one of the places we’re at right now. 

And when those folks came walking out of those fields — down in Charlottesville, Virginia — carrying Nazi banners, singing the same garbage that they sang in Hitler’s streets in Germany in the ‘30s, carrying torches, accompanied by the Ku Klux Klan, and a young woman was killed, I decided that I had to run.  I had to run.  Our democracy is at stake, and it really is.

But you know what changes it?  When you make the economy grow.  When you stand up and ordinary people have an even shot and they’re not at all susceptible to the garbage that’s fed from these guys.  It’s pure garbage. 

I’m supposed to stop.  I — I shouldn’t keep going.  (Laughter and applause.)

Well, folks, look — look, we’ve got to just remember who we are.  And I can’t — well, when I left Scranton today, I wanted to go to the war memorial that has the names of all the Scrantonians who died in World War Two etched into a granite wall, because I wanted to see where my uncle — “Uncle Bosie,” Ambrose J. Finnegan — where his name was etched.

Back a- — when D-Day occurred and — on Sunday, the next day, my mother’s four brothers all went down to the recruiting station and joined the military.  Every one of them volunteered. 

And my uncle — they called him Un- — Ambrose — instead of “Brosie,” they called him “Bosie.”  My Uncle Bosie was a hell of an athlete, they tell me, when he was a kid.  And he became an Army Air Corps, before the Air Force came along.  He flew those single-engine planes as reconnaissance over war zones.

And he got shot down in New Guinea, and they never found the body because there used to be — there were a lot of cannibals, for real, in that part of New Guinea. 

And — and then my son volunteered to go to Iraq for a year.  And he came back with stage four glioblastoma.  And they — and they gave — like many of you, risked your lives and you know people who gave their lives for the country.  They’re heroes. 

But one of the things that I — as I was doing that today, I was reminded of what my opponent said in Paris not too long ago.  They asked him if he would go visit American gravesites.  He said, “No,” he wouldn’t do it, because they were all “suckers” and “losers.” 

 I’m not making that up.  His staff who was with him acknowledge it today.  “Suckers” and “losers.”  That man doesn’t deserve to have been the Commander-in-Chief for my son, my uncle. 

So, folks, we got a lot of work to do, but I’m confident we can do it.  And I mean it.  I’ve never been more optimistic about our possibilities as a nation. 

So, let’s go out and get (inaudible).  (Applause.)

We’re the United States of America.  There’s nothing beyond our capacity — nothing.

Thank you, thank you, thank you.  (Applause.)

2:50 P.M. EDT

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I strongly support this package to get critical support to Israel and Ukraine, provide desperately needed humanitarian aid to Palestinians in Gaza, and bolster security and stability in the Indo-Pacific. Israel is facing unprecedented attacks from Iran, and Ukraine is facing continued bombardment from Russia that has intensified dramatically in the last month.

The House must pass the package this week and the Senate should quickly follow. I will sign this into law immediately to send a message to the world: We stand with our friends, and we won’t let Iran or Russia succeed.

###

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Wilkes-Barre Scranton International Airport
Avoca, Pennsylvania

12:05 P.M. EDT

Q    Mr. President, will you talk about the war memorial you were just at very briefly?  What did you see?  What did you hear?

THE PRESIDENT:  I wanted to see where my uncle, Ambrose J. Finnegan, was memorialized.  And there was a World War Two memorial built for those who lost their lives in World War Two. 

And when D-Day occurred, the next day, on Monday, all four of my mother’s brothers went down and volunteered to join the military.  And four of them — three of them made it.  One was 4-F — couldn’t go.

And Ambrose Finnegan — we called him “Uncle Bosie” — he — he was shot down.  He was Army Air Corps before there was an Air Force.  He flew single-engine planes, reconnaissance flights over New Guinea.  He had volunteered because someone couldn’t make it.  He got shot down in an area where there were a lot of cannibals in New Guinea at the time. 

They never recovered his body.  But the government went back, when I went down there, and they checked and found some parts of the plane and the like.

And what I was thinking about when I was standing there was when Trump refused to go up to the memorial for veterans in Paris, and he said they were a bunch of “suckers” and “losers.”

To me, that is such a disqualifying assertion made by a president — “suckers” and “losers.”  The guys who saved civilization in the 1940s — “suckers” and “losers.” 

And I just wanted to go and — we have a tradition in our family that my grandfather started.  When you visit a gravesite of a family member — it’s going to sound strange to you, but — you say three Hail Marys.  And that’s what I was doing at the site.

My — my gran- — my uncle, Ambrose Finnegan — Uncle — Uncle Bosie was a hell of a guy from what I — I never met him, obviously.

And — but I just wanted to see where he was memorialized.

Q    And, Mr. President, what do you think about these separate bills for Ukraine and Israel aid?  Are you confident that it’s going to get through?

THE PRESIDENT:  I’m getting briefed on it when I get on the plane.  That’s why I was talking to my staff.  I’ll tell you then.

Thank you.

     12:08 P.M. EDT

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Via Teleconference

MODERATOR:  Thank you.  Good morning, everyone.  Thank you for joining us today for an NSC backgrounder call on the situation in Venezuela and U.S. actions that we’ll be taking.

At this time, participants, please note that we have — just for your awareness, not for reporting — on the line, we have [senior administration official], [senior administration official], and [senior administration official].

Again, that is just for your awareness, not for reporting.  The contents of the call will be attributable to “senior administration officials,” and it will be embargoed until 3:30 p.m. 

With that, I will — I would like to turn it over to [senior administration official].  

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL:  Great.  Thank you very much, and it’s a pleasure to be here with everyone this morning.  Thank you to everyone for calling in and for your interest.  Venezuela is a very important issue for this administration, and it’s a critical time, so I’m really pleased to be here with my colleagues from the other agencies. 

The purpose of this call is to share with you that later today, Treasury will announce that General License 44 will not be renewed, and we will instead issue General License 44A, authorizing a 45-day wind-down period for transactions related to oil and gas sector operations in Venezuela.  I will let my colleague speak to some of the technical aspects of this decision and some of the current concerns that we have about the current situation in Venezuela.  

But I did want to provide a few words at the top to explain why we made this decision and its implications.  General License 44 — or what we refer to as “GL 44” — was issued in October of last year to support commitments that were made in the Barbados Agreement, an agreement that was signed by representatives of Nicolás Maduro in Venezuela and members of the political opposition.  This Barbados agreement was signed on October 17th, 2023. 

Since the GL 44 was issued last October, we have been consistent in our public messaging and our private messaging that maintaining this sanctions relief in Venezuela’s oil and gas sector depends on Maduro’s commitment to uphold the Barbados Agreement.  And over the past six months, the U.S. administration has been closely monitoring the situation in Venezuela, and we’ve remained in very close touch with a range of stakeholders to assess the Venezuelan authorities’ progress on implementing the Barbados Agreement, which is intended to allow for an inclusive and competitive election in 2024.  

Over the past several months and weeks, we have completed a very careful review, and we have determined that although the Venezuelan authorities have met some key commitments, they’ve also fallen short in several areas.  The areas in which they have fallen short include the disqualification of candidates and parties on technicalities and what we see as a continued pattern of harassment and repression against opposition figures and civil society. 

We were particularly concerned by the fact that the Venezuelan authorities also blocked the leading opposition candidate María Corina Machado from running and also did not allow her designated alternative candidate, Dr. Corina Yoris, to register as a candidate for the presidency. 

As a result of those actions, while Maduro and his representatives have upheld certain aspects of the Barbados Agreement with respect to beginning to update the electoral registry, of starting a process to allow international election observation, and establishing an electoral timeline, Maduro and his representatives have not followed through with one of the most critical commitments, which was — (a fire alarm sounds) — (inaudible) the right of all candidates to run.  

And, apologies, we have an alarm going off here. 

In order to ensure that the expiration of GL 44 does not provoke uncertainty in the global energy sector, the administration —

[Moderator], I’m just going to hold here until this alarm ceases.  You can go to the other speakers, and I’ll come back on the line.  Thanks.  

MODERATOR:  Sounds great.  Apologies for the interruption here, guys.  We’ll go on to [senior administration official].  

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL:  Thanks very much.  And as [senior administration official] shared, we issued GL 44 to support commitments made in the Barbados Agreement.  Unfortunately, Maduro and his representatives did not fully comply with the spirit or the letter of the agreement. 

In public statements, we outlined many of these undemocratic actions.  Maduro and his representatives maintained the disqualification of opposition primary winner María Corina Machado.  When María Corina Machado expressed her willingness to identify a consensus substitute with other opposition members, Maduro representatives prevented the democratic opposition from registering Dr. Corina Yoris. 

Maduro representatives unjustly detained multiple opposition political members in civil society, and we witnessed a disturbing campaign of harassment and an intimidation of opposition actors solely for exercising their political rights to assembly and campaign. 

While our focus today is on GL 44, I want to stress the enormous courage, resiliency, and pragmatism of the opposition under these difficult circumstances.  

We are in regular contact with opposition representatives, and I want to highlight that it’s quite clear that they and the vast majority of Venezuelans still want and are making every effort to achieve a competitive election with a serious opposition candidate on the 2024 ballot. 

Our action on GL 44 should not be viewed as a final decision that we no longer believe Venezuela can hold competitive and inclusive elections.  We will continue to engage with all stakeholders — including Maduro representatives, the democratic opposition, civil society, and the international community — to support the Venezuelan people’s efforts to ensure a better future for Venezuela. 

The Barbados Agreement still represents the best available path toward a more democratic, secure, and prosperous Venezuela if fully implemented.  

MODERATOR:  Thank you very much, [senior administration official].  

We will — [senior administration official], are you still on the line?  Okay.  Sounds like we’re having some technical difficulties with [senior administration official]. 

We will go now to [senior administration official].  

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL:  Great.  Thanks so much. 

Hi, everybody.  This is [senior administration official].  And while my colleagues have discussed the policy today, I wanted to take just a moment to go over some of the technical aspects of today’s action. 

General License 44A issued today will replace General License 44, which means that any activity that was previously allowed under General License 44 with respect to the oil and gas sector of Venezuela will need to be wound down by May 31st.  New activity that was — any new activity that was previously covered by General License 44 will no longer be allowed. 

So, we routinely allow for these types of wind-down windows to allow people to wrap up their business in an orderly manner and not cause unwanted spillover effects. 

As you may know, our general licenses are broad, public, and self-executing authorizations, which means that as long as an activity conforms with what’s laid out in the text of that public license, companies don’t need to ask OFAC permission to engage in any of the covered activities.

In all of our section’s programs, OFAC also has the authority to issue what we call specific licenses.  Now, these are a little bit different.  They are non-public authorizations that are issued on a case-by-case basis based on the facts of the application, and they deal with individual circumstances. 

With the wind-down today of the public general license, individual companies may now apply for specific licenses related to activities in Venezuela’s oil and gas sector, which will then be evaluated on a case-by-case basis, similar to how we handle licenses in any other OFAC program. 

So, the process of evaluating a specific license includes — is not public, but it does include taking into consideration the national security interests and foreign policy interests of the United States through close consultation with and receipt of foreign policy guidance from our State Department. 

Today’s action will not affect other existing authorizations related to Venezuela’s oil and gas sector, such as Venezuela General License 8M or General License 41. 

And back over to you.  

MODERATOR:  Thank you very much, [senior administration official]. 

We’ll try it again.  [Senior administration official], are you back on our line?  

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL:  Yes, thank you.  I’m back on the line.  It wasn’t a technical difficulty exactly, but I had — did have to pause for a moment.  But I think that my colleagues covered the rest of the issues expertly.  So, I’m happy to go to Q&A.  Thank you.  

MODERATOR:  Great.  Thank you.  [Operator], would you please go over instructions on how to ask questions?  

OPERATOR:  Sure.  

MODERATOR:  And we can open up for Qs and As.  Thank you.  

OPERATOR:  Okay.  And we do have several questions here. 

All right.  We’ll go ahead and take the first.  

Q    Hello?  

OPERATOR:  Yes, please go ahead.  

Q    Yeah, this is Josh Goodman from the Associated Press.  I wanted to see, in addition to the discussion of the sanctions, whether you could talk a little bit about some of the actors in the political process unfolding now in Venezuela around the election. 

Has the U.S. had any direct contact with former gov- — with Governor Manuel Rosales?  He was a presidential candidate who once ran against Hugo Chávez.  He did not compete in the opposition primary process; however, you know, he is registered to compete. 

Do you consider him a real alternative to Maduro or, as some in the opposition suggest, more of a stooge, someone who serves the interests of the government?  Thanks.  

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL:  So, thanks for that, Josh.  Through our Venezuela Affairs Unit as well as folks here in Washington, we have contact with a broad, broad range of political actors inside Venezuela.  And I don’t want to get into the specific nature of those discussions, but I do want to stress that our goal is to support the democratic opposition in Venezuela broadly. 

And to that end, we cast a — a wide net in our conversations.  And I encourage the democratic opposition, through the unitary platform and — and other venues, to come together and reach shared positions on their way forward.  And I’ll just leave it at that.  

OPERATOR:  Okay.  We’ll take our next question. 

Just a reminder, please remember to state your name and outlet before your question.  Thank you.  

Q    Hi.  Thanks for doing this.  This is Jennifer Hansler with CNN.  I was wondering if there is any way you can quantify how many businesses or how much — what sort of transactions were made in the time that this general license was in effect and what impact you expect this to have financially on Venezuela’s oil and gas sectors?  Thank you.  

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL:  Hi, this is [senior administration official].  We don’t have the figures on what exactly — what level of business was — was conducted under the auspices of the general license.  There’s not a reporting requirement, so we don’t have those exact figures.  Over.

OPERATOR:  And we’ll move to our next caller.  

Q    Hi, good morning.  Do you hear me?  

OPERATOR:  Yes, please go ahead.  

Q    Okay.  This is Juan Hernando from TV Colombia.  Just to be clear, so this period of 45 days is only to wind down operations of enterprises that already have commitments or business with (inaudible)?  It doesn’t allow new enterprises to make business during that period of 45 days? 

And the other question is: How coordinated was this decision with the Colombian government and Gustavo Petro, taking into account that he has been engaging directly with Nicolás Maduro?  Thank you.  

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL:  This is [senior administration official] again.  I’ll take the first part of that.  Under — under a wind-down general license, it is to wind down and to have an orderly completion of transactions that were in progress under the general license — that was General License 44 — that was issued in October. 

If it’s about activity that was outside the scope or otherwise authorized that wasn’t under the general license, it’s not going to be affected by this wind-down.  So, if folks took on new activity that needed General License 44 to be compliant with our sanctions, it’s that activity that we would expect to be wound down under our — under our wind-down authorization that we’re issuing today. 

Over.  

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL:  This is [senior administration official].  I’ll start on the first part of the — of the question on the engagement with — with Colombia. 

So, from the beginning, it’s been extremely important to us that we — we maintain close contact and collaboration with a wide range of partners and allies on issues with respect to Venezuela.  And that inc- — certainly include- — includes those in the region, including Colombia. 

And so, we have engaged with Colombia on this.  They are aware of and — and tracking, at a minimum, the difficulties that we’ve seen and our perspective on Venezuela’s overall compliance with the Barbados Agreement. 

And then, I’ll share with my colleague [redacted] for any other perspective.  Thank you. 

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL:  Nothing to add.  

OPERATOR:  Okay.  We’ll go ahead and take our next question.  

Q    Hi, this is Rafael Rojas from BBC Mundo.  I wanted to ask whether you had any information on the possible facts, going back to the previous question, that Colombia might play a role as an overseer in the election.  And what — what news does the U.S. have on — on a role of overseer from the partners in the Venezuelan election?  

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL:  So, we support the presence of international electoral observers in Venezuela, and we understand that Colombia has been invited to send observers for the process.  That would be in addition to the invitations to the European Union and the Carter Center and other organizations. 

Having an international presence we consider positive.  Colombia, as a border country to Venezuela, has important relationships and interests.  That means that their engagement is something that’s important to the Colombian government and people.  And I think it can be a positive impact on — on the way forward toward a more democratic Venezuela.  

OPERATOR:  Moving to the next caller.  

Q    Yes.  Hello, this is Matt Spetalnick with Reuters.  So, a couple questions, please.  What, if any, considerations were given in the sanctions decision on the impact it might have on spurring higher global oil prices, including at the pump in the U.S., and on the number of Venezuelan migrants flowing to the U.S.-Mexico border? 

And separately from that, is the administration leaving in place the separate license that removed the secondary trading ban on certain Venezuelan sovereign bonds (inaudible) PDVSA’s debt equity?  

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL:  I’ll take the first part of that.  So, in making this determination of whether or not Venezuelan authorities were in compliance with the Barbados Agreement, we really focused on the political circumstances and situation in Venezuela. 

But, of course, there was an interagency process that accompanied this that was able to bring in a wider array of interest and issues, which were, of course, part of the overall context of this — of this decision.  But fundamentally, the decision was based on the — the actions and non-action of the Venezuelan authorities. 

OPERATOR:  And we’ll take the next caller now.  

Q    Thank you for this opportunity.  I’m Carla Angola from (inaudible) Network, and my question is: The extent of the authorization for Chevron in Venezuela arose from agreements in Mexico, which were part of a concession to the Maduro regime to motivate them to sit at a negotiating table.  Are those Chevron licenses going to be reviewed as well?  In any case, what is the difference between that license and License 44 if Maduro’s failure to comply with the agreements is the same? 

And regarding the hostage exchanges with the Maduro regime, when Alex Saab was sent to Venezuela, Madura released arrest warrants against members of María Corina Machado’s Vente Venezuela political party.  But three months later, Maduro reissued those arrest warrants against them.  And today, they are either in a prison or torture center, or they are taking refuge in an embassy. 

It looks like you handed over Alex Saab in exchange for no one, because those people are still persecuted today.  How serious is it for you?  That seems to have been just a disguise by the Maduro regime.  Thank you so much.  

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL:  [Senior administration official], do you want to take the first part, and I’ll take the second part?  

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL:  Sure.  Happy to do it, [senior administration official].  So, on — on the question about the Chevron-related license — that’s General License 41 — as we’ve said before in — in evaluating this most recent batch of sanctions relief that came in October, what we’ve said is that we would look at that and any calibrations to it, up or down, to be proportional with the progress made under the Barbados Agreement. 

And so, I would just say: Recall that the Chevron predated that by a period of time, and that was a base-level commitment to reengage in the talks, which did happen.  And so, this — this decision point, which is, you know, with the commitments under Barbados and since October, has there been a meeting of those commitments, and, if not, what is our proportional response, that’s what you see today in the issuing of the wind-down.   

MODERATOR:  [Senior administration official], did you want to take the next other part?  

OPERATOR:  I’m looking at the line here.  We may have lost [senior administration official]. 

Oh, yes, I see he’s reconnecting now.  Just a moment.  

MODERATOR:  Could we go to the next question and maybe come back if he can answer that second part of the question?  

OPERATOR:  Certainly. 

MODERATOR:  Thanks.

OPERATOR:  We’ll go ahead and take the next caller for now.  

Q    Hello, it’s Michael Stone here from the Financial Times.  Thank you for doing this.  I understand that the Chevron license continues intact, but could you clarify whether the licenses that were issued to Trinidad and Shell for gas and to Repsol and Maurel & Prom for oil, whether those also continue or whether those have been canceled? 

And, secondly, what impact do you believe the totality of the package announced today is going to have on Venezuelan oil production and output over the coming months?  What sort of reduction will there be as a result of these measures?  

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL:  Gotcha.  This is [senior administration official].  I’m happy to take the — the first part. 

I think you’ve asked about a couple of different items that may have come in.  As I mentioned in my, sort of, opening remarks, we have two types of licenses that we give.  Some are general licenses.  Those are public.  But we also allow individual parties with particular fact patterns that ask to come in, and we evaluate them on a case-by-case basis for specific licenses.  And those are — are non-public and protected through — through law, as far as discussing the details of them, although the — any party that submits that can release that. 

So, I don’t have more to share on those particular items related to specific parties.  

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL:  Hey, this is [senior administration official].  My — I got dropped from the call earlier, but I’m back.  

OPERATOR:  Okay.  [Senior administration official], did you want to address the portion of the question that you were going to?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL:  Happy to do so.  So, we are very concerned about the arrest of Henry Alviarez and Dignora Hernández and the issuance of arrest warrants for seven other advisors to María Corina Machado, the harassment of opposition members, and the detention of other civil society actors, including Rocío San Miguel. 

We are continuing to raise those issues with the other side.  But we’re also proud that, through this process, we’re able to obtain the release of six wrongfully detained American citizens, to secure the release of and return of others who are in jail in Venezuela, including the return of a fugitive from justice from the United States. 

We continue to believe that the Barbados Agreement represents the only important and viable path forward, but the other side has failed to comply with its obligations.  And for that reason, we’ve taken the steps that we’re taking today. 

And we will continue to talk to our friends and allies and make common cause with them to try to secure the release of all those who are wrongfully detained or arrested or jailed in Venezuela for expressing their fundamental human rights and civic rights in that country.  

OPERATOR:  Okay.  We’ll go ahead and take the next caller here.

Q    Hi.  Good morning.  Thank you so much for doing this.  I have a question.  Does President Biden continue to believe in Nicolás Maduro’s goodwill as it has been described on several occasions before?  And will this administration change or is trying to change its current policy on Venezuela? 

And, also, what are the concerns about the — just (inaudible) on that question about immigration, what are the concerns of the Biden administration on an eventual increase of Venezuela migrants arriving at the border due to a possible outcome of the elections in July? 

Thank you.  And Jorge with Voice of America.

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL:  I’ll take the first crack at that.  So, the — the Biden administration remains very committed to and focused on ensuring a restoration of democracy in Venezuela and — and working to see that the upcoming elections that will take place there later this year are as free and fair and competitive — as competitive as they — they can possibly be. 

And, of course, we’re very attuned as well for the welfare of the Venezuelan people and would prefer to see a situation where the people in Venezuela are able to live in a prosperous and secure setting and certainly not suffer the humanitarian challenges and the deep insecurity that — that exists today. 

And so, that’s — that’s our overall objective.  That’s what we’re focused on.  We do believe that securing greater space for political freedom and for this election to be as democratic as it can possibly be an important step towards that.  

With respect to some of the broader issues that you raise, of course, we are very aware of the migration flows that have emanated from Venezuela over the past several years.  Those flows are not only affecting the United States, but they’ve really had broad impacts across the region, including in Venezuela’s close neighbors, such as Colombia and Brazil, and other parts of Latin America and Central America. 

And so, this administration is also very committed to working cooperatively with our partners throughout the hemisphere on migration management to make sure that it’s more effective, that it’s humane, and that the need for people to or desire for people to cross their borders without documentation can be vastly reduced.  That’s something that we are working on with all of our partners in the region.  And that is something that will remain a priority for the Biden administration.  

OPERATOR:  Okay.  I believe we have time for one more question.  We’ll go ahead and take the next caller here. 

And, caller, you can go ahead.  Please make sure that your device is also unmuted.  

Q    Okay.  Sorry.  Hi, Juan Carlos López from CNN Español.  Thank you for the call. 

So, there were recent meetings between the U.S. and Venezuela and Mexico.  There was also meetings between Colombia and Venezuela.  Is there anything the Venezuelan government, the Maduro government, can do from here to May 31st to reverse this decision?  Or is this decision a sign that there is no going forward with them? 

And what happens if these elections go forward?  Do you have any leverage that you can use against Venezuela?  And on the license that was — that is not being renewed, since you don’t know figures, does that license benefit any American companies, or would that only benefit the Venezuelan government? 

Thank you.

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL:  I’ll take the — the first part of the question.  So, we’ve been very committed to engaging with a wide range of Venezuelan stakeholders to try to move and to help move the political process forward in Venezuela.  And that includes, at certain junctures, direct engaging with the Venezuelan authorities.  Certainly, it includes maintaining a constant level of communication with Venezuelan civil society, opposition figures, with partner nations in the Western Hemisphere, and partners more broadly, internationally. 

And so, that is — that is going to remain our focus.

With respect to the current General License 44 that we are discussing, this was a license that was granted for six months and had an expiration date.  And so, this was a question that we had to address, essentially, today and over the past several days and weeks of whether or not the progress that has taken place in Venezuela merits the renewal of the license.  

We determined that Venezuela has thus far fallen short of its commitments in terms of opening up the democratic and electoral process and, therefore, made the decision not to renew the license and to allow it to expire, as my colleagues have described.  However, that does not mean that we are not going to still continue to engage in a constructive and pragmatic way to try to move the election back towards a better course. 

And I think there’s some near-term decisions that the Venezuelan authorities will be taking that we will be watching and monitoring very carefully.  We also realize that members of the political opposition and various political parties have decisions of their own to make, and we are committed to ensuring that we have the best and most relevant understanding of the political process in Venezuela and that we’re working with our partners internationally to ensure that the will of the Venezuelan people can be heard at the ballot box when an election takes place later this year.  

MODERATOR:  Thank you very much. 

Thanks again to everyone for joining the call today.  Thanks, [Operator], for all your support. 

As a reminder for everyone, this call was on background for attribution to “senior administration officials.”  The call is embargoed until 3:30 p.m. this afternoon.  We will also be sending an embargoed statement that the State Department will release later this afternoon.  The embargo for the statement and this call will both lift at 3:30 p.m. 

Thank you again to our speakers for joining us.  And thanks, everyone.  Have a great day.  

OPERATOR:  Thank you to all of our speakers, and thank you all in the audience for joining us today.  Again, this call was off the record. 

The call has concluded, and you may disconnect.

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Bob Graham was a colleague, friend, and devoted Floridian whose nearly 50 years of service to his beloved home state and to our country have made America a safer and stronger nation.

Bob chose a life of service, working his way up from state legislator, to governor, senator, and presidential candidate. He and I served together in the U.S. Senate, as respective chairs of the Intelligence and Foreign Relations committees in the wake of 9/11, working to heal a shattered nation and to protect America in a changing world. Bob stood on principle against the Iraq War. He cosponsored my landmark Violence Against Women Act, transforming the way our nation responds to domestic abuse and sexual assault. He was committed to education and to the environment, continuing work that he’d begun as governor to support public schools and universities, and to protect the water supply, wetlands, and wildlife of Florida’s iconic Everglades. He was full of humor and humanity, and I’m grateful for the support that he gave me over the years.

Bob loved people, and he knew that politics at its core is about learning from and serving others. That’s why he spent more than 400 “workdays” on the job with constituents, doing everything from picking tomatoes, to handling baggage, to patrolling the streets with police. He knew it matters to walk a mile in other folks’ shoes. In recent years, he sought to instill that same ethic and empathy in a new generation of public servants through his center in Gainesville, and by working to require civics classes in public schools. He inspired his own daughter, Gwen, to serve in Congress as well; and I’m proud to have her in my Administration today, as an Assistant Secretary of Education. Bob was so proud, too.

Our hearts today are with Bob’s beloved wife of 65 years, Adele; with their four daughters, Gwen, Cissy, Suzanne, and Kendall; with their grandchildren and friends; and with the people of Florida, whom Bob served so well in so many ways for so long.

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We applaud Senate leadership for moving swiftly toward a vote on H.R. 7888, the Reforming Intelligence and Securing America Act, which would reauthorize Section 702 of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Act – a critical intelligence collection authority – before it expires on April 19.  This legislation, which passed the House with robust bipartisan support, ensures that the U.S. government has the tools to protect our national security, while dramatically enhancing protections for privacy and civil liberties. We call on the Senate to quickly send the bill to the President’s desk. 

As the Senate considers this legislation, we urge the Senate to reject mischaracterizations of an amendment to the definition of “electronic communications service provider” that was adopted by a bipartisan majority in the House. This amendment is a technical fix designed to account for changing technological realities – the definition of “electronic service providers” adopted when Section 702 was first enacted in 2008 does not account for the technologies of 2024. This provision is also directly responsive to encouragement from a federal appellate court to update the definition of the private-sector companies with which the U.S. Government can work, under supervision of federal judges and with extensive oversight by four congressional committees, to obtain the communications of non-Americans abroad. 

Furthermore, it is important to remember the limits on Section 702 collection.  Section 702 authorizes the targeting of foreigners outside the United States.  Americans, as well as foreigners in the United States, cannot be targets of such collection.  Adding yet additional protections, the amendment explicitly carves out a wide range of entities such as a “dwelling,” “community facility,” “public accommodation facility,” “food service establishment,” and more, from the revised definition of electronic communication service provider.

To be clear: nothing in this amendment changes the fundamentals of Section 702, which can be used to target for collection only the communications of non-Americans located outside the United States.  That will remain unchanged—period.  The Senate should pass immediately the Section 702 reauthorization and reform bill sent over by the House, before the current law lapses on April 19.

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The President is announcing his intent to nominate two individuals to the District of Columbia Court of Appeals—both of whom are extraordinarily qualified, experienced, and devoted to the rule of law and our Constitution.

These choices also continue to fulfill the President’s promise to ensure that the nation’s courts reflect the diversity that is one of our greatest assets as a country—both in terms of personal and professional backgrounds.

The President has now announced five nominees to serve on the D.C. Court of Appeals.

The President is also announcing his intent to nominate one individual to serve as U.S. Marshal. This official will be indispensable to upholding the rule of law and was chosen for her devotion to enforcing the law, her professionalism, her experience and credentials, and her dedication to pursuing equal justice for all.

The President has now announced 29 nominees to serve as U.S. Marshals.

District of Columbia Court of Appeals Announcements

1. Carmen G. Iguina González: Nominee for the District of Columbia Court of Appeals

Carmen G. Iguina González has been a counsel at Kaplan Hecker & Fink LLP in Washington, D.C., since 2022 and Director of the Howard University School of Law Civil Rights Clinic since 2024. She previously worked at the ACLU Immigrants’ Rights Project as a Senior Staff Attorney from 2020 to 2022 and at the ACLU of Southern California as a Staff Attorney from 2014 to 2017 and an Equal Justice Works Fellow from 2012 to 2014. She also worked as an associate at Jones Day from 2018 to 2020. Ms. Iguina González served as a law clerk for Justice Sonia Sotomayor on the U.S. Supreme Court from 2017 to 2018, Judge Stephen R. Reinhardt on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit from 2011 to 2012, and Judge Kiyo A. Matsumoto on the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York from 2010 to 2011. She received her J.D., magna cum laude, from New York University School of Law in 2010 and her A.B., magna cum laude, from Harvard University in 2005.

2. Joseph R. Palmore: Nominee for the District of Columbia Court of Appeals

Joseph R. Palmore has been a partner at Morrison Foerster LLP in Washington, D.C. since 2014. He currently co-chairs the firm’s Appellate and Supreme Court practice. Previously, Mr. Palmore served at the U.S. Department of Justice as an Assistant to the Solicitor General from 2010 to 2014 and at the Federal Communications Commission as Deputy General Counsel from 2007 to 2009 and as special counsel from 2005 to 2006. Mr. Palmore worked as an associate at Sidley Austin LLP from 2002 to 2005. He served as a law clerk for Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on the U.S. Supreme Court from 2001 to 2002, Judge Dennis Jacobs on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit from 1998 to 1999, and Judge John Gleeson on the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York from 1999 to 2000. Mr. Palmore received his J.D. and his M.A. from the University of Virginia in 1998 and his A.B., magna cum laude, from Harvard University in 1991.

United States Marshal Announcement

1. Miranda Holloway-Baggett: Nominee for United States Marshal for the Southern District of Alabama

Miranda Holloway-Baggett served as a Deputy United States Marshal in the U.S. Marshals Service from 2001 to 2023 and has been Chief Inspector and Discipline Deciding Official for the Agency since 2023. During her 23-year career in the Marshals Service, Ms. Holloway-Baggett has held various leadership roles in Marshals Service offices in Ohio, Tennessee, Mississippi, Missouri, and Alabama. These roles include Deputy U.S. Marshal, Supervisory Deputy, Assistant Chief Deputy and serving from 2019 through 2023 as Chief Deputy U.S. Marshal for the Southern District of Alabama. She received her Master’s Degree in Management from the University of Phoenix in 2009 and her B.S. in Criminal Justice and Corrective Services from Jackson State University in 2002.

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Call to triple the tariff rate on steel and aluminum imports from China

United States Trade Representative to investigate China’s unfair shipbuilding practices

President Biden knows that steel is the backbone of the American economy, and a bedrock of our national security. American steel fueled the country’s industrialization and helped build the middle class. American-made steel remains critical for our economic and national security. American companies must lead the future of more sustainable steel. This green steel will fortify the infrastructure that supports our communities, form the ocean vessels that transport American goods, power the electric vehicles of our clean-energy future, and support thousands of hardworking American families.
 
President Biden is making historic investments in American steel and manufacturing that are a sharp contrast with the previous Administration. While the previous Administration failed to deliver an infrastructure bill, President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, CHIPS and Science Act, and Inflation Reduction Act are spurring hundreds of billions of dollars in private-sector manufacturing and clean energy investments. Under President Biden, investments in construction of new factories have more than doubled—after falling under the previous Administration even before the pandemic—while nearly 800,000 manufacturing jobs have been created and construction employment is at a record high. Our trade deficit with China is the lowest it’s been in over a decade—lower than any year under the previous Administration. President Biden’s strategic trade and investment agenda protects workers, consumers, and businesses from unfair competition.
 
At the same time, American workers in the steel and aluminum industries face a significant challenge from Chinese exports of steel and aluminum which are among the most emissions-intensive products in the world. China’s overcapacity and non-market investments in the steel and aluminum industries mean high-quality U.S. products have to compete with artificially low-priced alternatives produced with higher carbon emissions.
 
Steel is a critical input for our domestic shipbuilding industry—from the commercial shipping vessels that carry American products, to the U.S. naval vessels that keep global seas safe. Commercial shipyards provide industrial capacity for maintaining the U.S. Navy’s dominance and support thousands of suppliers and jobs.
 
The Biden-Harris Administration recognizes growing concerns that unfair Chinese trade practices, including flooding the market with below-market-cost steel, are distorting the global shipbuilding market and eroding competition. These concerns were outlined in a petition to the U.S. Trade Representative from five labor unions requesting an investigation into Chinese acts, policies, and practices in the maritime, logistics, and shipbuilding sectors.
 
In response to China’s unfair practices, today the Biden-Harris Administration is taking new, historic actions to support American steel manufacturing and shipbuilding.

• President Biden is calling on the USTR to consider tripling the existing 301 tariff rate on Chinese steel and aluminum. The current average tariff on certain steel and aluminum products is 7.5% under Section 301. American workers continue to face unfair competition from Chinese imports of steel and aluminum products, which are among the world’s most emissions-intensive. Chinese policies and subsidies for their domestic steel and aluminum industries means high-quality U.S. products are undercut by artificially low-priced Chinese alternatives produced with higher emissions. To the extent consistent with the United States Trade Representative’s (USTR) review of Section 301 tariffs and findings of her investigation, President Biden is calling for USTR to consider enhancing the effectiveness of tariffs on Chinese steel and aluminum products by tripling them.

• President Biden’s Department of Commerce is taking action against countries and importers that do not play by the rules and flood the market with cheap products. Since President Biden took office, the Department of Commerce has imposed over 30 anti-dumping and countervailing duties on steel-related products. These are tariffs on steel imports that are priced below the fair and competitive value. The Department of Commerce has also conducted nearly 27 investigations into anti-competitive actions by Chinese exporters and efforts by countries like China to evade trade rules.

• President Biden is directing his senior team to work with Mexico to jointly prevent China’s and other countries’ evasion of tariffs on steel and aluminum that is imported from Mexico into the United States. This is a growing challenge that must be addressed to prevent Chinese and others’ steel exports from gaining access to the U.S. market and evading Section 232 or Section 301 tariffs. President Biden recently sent senior members of his administration to Mexico to address this issue.

• The United States Trade Representative is initiating an investigation into China’s unfair trade practices in shipbuilding, maritime and logistics sectors. This investigation follows a petition filed by the United Steelworkers (USW) and four other unions who claim the Government of China’s drive to dominate the global shipbuilding, maritime, and logistics sector is built on non-market policies that are far more aggressive and interventionist than any other country. President Biden believes it is critical to understand China’s uniquely aggressive set of interventions in these sectors, and to take actions that address distortions to the global market for commercial vessels, maritime shipping, and logistics that harm American workers and shipbuilders.

• President Biden is committed to maintaining strong American steel companies powered by American steel workers. In light of the proposed sale of U.S. Steel to Nippon Steel, President Biden will continue to make clear that U.S. Steel has been an iconic American steel company for more than a century, and that it is vital for it to remain an American steel company that is domestically owned and operated.

• President Biden is investing in clean American-made steel. Today’s announcements build on the Administration’s commitments to green steel production. The Biden-Harris Administration, through the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the Inflation Reduction Act, recently announced up to $1.5 billion for six clean iron and steel projects as part of a historic broader investment to lower emissions from energy-intensive industries. These projects are set to demonstrate innovative technologies that can eliminate the vast majority of emissions from steelmaking, and enable the industry to phase out more traditional carbon-intensive production methods. They will support the economic comeback of steel communities in Pennsylvania, Ohio, and the South and Midwest, so the U.S. steel industry can remain competitive as the global leader in low-carbon iron and steel products.
  
  These investments include up to $75 million for the only high-silicon grain oriented electrical steel plant in the U.S. in Lyndora, Pennsylvania that is sustaining more than 1,000 United Autoworker jobs at the Cleveland-Cliffs Butler Works plant and up to $500 million for the Cleveland-Cliffs plant in Middletown, Ohio to produce clean steel for the auto supply chain.

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April 17, 2024

Today, the Biden-Harris Administration is announcing a permanent memorandum of agreement (MOA) between the Department of Defense (DoD) and State Department to strengthen the Domestic Employees Teleworking Overseas (DETO) program for military spouses who work for the federal government. As directed by President Biden’s Executive Order (EO) on Advancing Economic Security for Military and Veteran Spouses, Military Caregivers, and Survivors, this MOA will help military spouses who are Federal employees maintain their careers and keep their families together when their servicemembers are stationed overseas. Later today, First Lady Jill Biden will be joined by Deputy Secretary of Defense Kathleen Hicks and Deputy Secretary of State Richard Verma to sign the MOA during a ceremony at the White House.

With this Agreement:

• DoD and the State Department will work together to facilitate approval of DETO arrangements for federal employees who are spouses of military and DoD civilian employee sponsors, and who plan to work remotely from their military-managed residences while overseas;
• DoD will provide a range of security services normally carried out by Regional Security Officers at U.S. embassies and consulates, such as emergency planning, evacuation assistance, and initial incident response for serious incidents—streamlining residential safety and security screening requirements by eliminating State Department inspections of military housing, significantly shortening the DETO approval process; and,
• The State Department will now accept DoD safety and security standards where DoD has approved accompanied assignments and Military Housing Offices (MHOs) serving the military installation community, easing the burden on military families by ensuring that all required security or safety upgrades are covered by existing housing allowances.

The President and First Lady, as a military family, recognize the commitment and resilience of military families as essential to the recruitment, retention, and readiness of our Armed Forces. Since Day One of the Biden Administration, Dr. Biden, through her Joining Forces initiative, has worked to eliminate barriers to employment and increase economic opportunity for military families. Meeting the economic, social, and emotional needs of our military and veteran families, caregivers, and survivors is a national security imperative.

Although military spouses are talented, diverse, and resilient, they find themselves facing a 21 percent unemployment rate, a rate that has not significantly changed over the past decade. With more than 16,000 military, veteran, and surviving spouses working for Federal departments and agencies, the Biden-Harris Administration is taking comprehensive steps to enable the Federal government to be the model employer for military spouses. Since President Biden signed the EO last June, the First Lady’s Joining Forces initiative, together with the National Security Council staff and federal departments and agencies, have made significant progress implementing the nearly twenty new actions aimed at enhancing career stability, expanding employment resources, and improving transition assistance support for military-connected spouses. Key actions to-date include:

• Increased Federal Agencies’ Promotion of Military Spouse Hiring Authorities on USAJobs. As of April 2024, the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) reports that 84% of federal agencies are advertising jobs with the military spouse hiring authority, up from 70% in December 2023. Under the EO, OPM is developing a data-driven approach to increase transparency and accountability in hiring and retention — including by encouraging agencies to: set goals for hiring under the Military Spouse Noncompetitive Appointment Authority established by 5 U.S.C. 3330d and for hiring individuals eligible for derivative preference, to use data internally to improve performance, and to use data to publicly report on progress.

• Launched the Fast-Track Action Committee on Data about Military-Connected Federal Employees, Led by Military Spouses. In March 2024, the National Science and Technology Council established a Fast-Track Action Committee to identify ways for agencies to expand Federal datasets to track outcomes for military and veteran spouses, military caregivers, and survivors employed by the Federal government. This committee is led by military spouses with deep expertise in data, including the Deputy U.S. Chief Technology Officer for Tech Capacity, a Presidential Innovation Fellow, and a Program Director in OPM. Its membership includes data practitioners from ten Federal agencies, most of whom are themselves military-connected. The Committee’s work will enable Federal agencies to better use data to expand opportunities for military-connected Federal employees. 

• Released the First-ever Government-Wide Military-Connected Strategic Plan. In February 2024, OPM published the Government-Wide Military-Connected Strategic Plan, the first whole-of-government hiring and retention strategy focused on leveraging the talent of military and veteran spouses, military caregivers, and survivors. This plan includes guidance to help federal departments and agencies: set standard metrics of success for the recruitment and retention of military-connected families; leverage existing tools to retain military-connected employees in federal careers; eliminate barriers to hiring military-connected employees; increase understanding of the talent, experience, and diversity of military-connected employees; and track specific data on hiring and retention of military-connected employees.

• Published the Guide to Recruiting and Hiring Military Spouses. In February 2024, Joining Forces released a Guide to Recruiting and Hiring Military Spouses to: equip federal hiring managers and their staff with the knowledge, tools and resources to strengthen their recruitment of military spouses; build their understanding of the diverse skillsets and strengths of military spouses; and, share leading hiring and retention practices from successful teams across the Federal government. OPM has published this new guide on the FedsHireVets website and is providing the resource as part of annual training for agency human resources personnel and hiring managers.

• Established Tax-Free Dependent Care Spending Accounts for Service members. In January 2024, DoD began implementing Dependent Care Flexible Spending Accounts to allow servicemembers and their families to use their pretax dollars to help cover the cost of child care and adult dependent care.

• Reduced Child Care Costs for Military Families. In January 2024, DoD reduced the amounts that lower-earning servicemembers pay out of pocket for child care, lowering child care costs for the families of more than 32,000 children aged 0-12 enrolled in installation Child Development Programs. Military families earning $45,000 would see a 34% decrease in the amount they pay for child care.

• Released Chief Human Capital Officer Guidance Memo. In November 2023, the Office of Personnel Management issued a Chief Human Capital Officer Guidance Memo encouraging federal agencies to improve work-place policies to help strengthen the recruitment and retention of military-connected federal employees.

• Expanded the Military Spouse Employment Partnership. In October 2023, DoD inducted 130 new businesses as partners in the Military Spouse Employment Partnership (MSEP), a recruitment and employment initiative that directly connects companies looking to grow their workforce with military spouses looking for work. Since MSEP launched in 2011, it has grown to include members from more than 700 businesses, nonprofits and federal agencies, which have collectively hired more than 275,000 military spouses.  

• Launched Entrepreneurship Training Course for Military Spouses. In July 2023, the Small Business Administration launched the Military Spouse Pathways to Business Program, which provides a tailored curriculum through online and in-person courses to assist military spouses in starting and maintaining their small businesses as they transition duty-stations or relocate due to their spouses’ military service.

These actions represent the Biden-Harris Administration’s holistic commitment to ensuring that the Federal government is a leader among employers, modeling approaches to recruit, hire, and retain military spouse talent—but our work is not done. The First Lady’s Joining Forces initiative, in partnership with the National Security Council, will continue to lead federal departments and agencies in implementing the Executive Order on Advancing Economic Security for Military and Veteran Spouses, Military Caregivers, and Survivors. President Biden and Dr. Biden recognize that the commitment and resilience of military spouses and their families are essential to the recruitment, retention, and readiness of our Armed Forces. As Commander-in-Chief, the President will keep fighting for the economic, social, and emotional needs of our military and veteran families, caregivers, and survivors. 

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White House Hosts Event and Issues Call to Action to Government Leaders, Employers, and Others to Build on These Efforts

During Care Workers Recognition Month and the Month of Action on Care, the Biden-Harris Administration will mark progress toward expanding access to care and other supportive services workers need to train for and stay in good-paying jobs. Today, Senior Biden-Harris Administration officials—including White House Domestic Policy Advisor Neera Tanden, Director of the Gender Policy Council Jennifer Klein, Secretary of Commerce Gina Raimondo, and Administrator of the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) Shailen Bhatt—will be joined by Governor Tina Kotek of Oregon, Governor Kathy Hochul of New York, and Governor Maura Healey of Massachusetts along with tradeswomen, care advocates, and business community representatives for a Making Care Work event. Participants will announce new actions that advance President Biden’s call to strengthen the nation’s Care Economy and discuss the importance of supportive services, including child care and long-term care, for building a skilled, diverse workforce.

Workers cannot train for or stay in good jobs if they cannot meet basic needs, such as access to child care and transportation. That is why supportive services are critical to building the workforce necessary to carry out President Biden’s Investing in America (IIA) agenda. Building on the Department of Commerce’s historic requirement that companies receiving major CHIPS and Science Act grants provide child care for their workers, the President’s Executive Order on Increasing Access to High-Quality Care and Supporting Caregivers (Care EO) directed every cabinet-level agency to determine how they can require, preference, or encourage their own federal funding applicants to provide supportive services, including care, for workers.
 
Today’s event will highlight how agencies are implementing the President’s Care EO, including by making funds available for supportive services in their grants and loans where allowable, strengthening language in their funding opportunities, producing key resources for applicants, and more. The event will also showcase examples of how grantees—from states to employers, unions, community colleges, and more—are leading the way on care and other supports for workers. Administration officials will announce the first National Child Care Innovation Summit, and issue calls to action to employers, governors, and others to further expand care and other supports for workers.
 
Today, the Biden-Harris Administration will make new announcements, including:

• Secretary Raimondo will announce that the Department of Commerce (DOC) will cohost, in collaboration with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation, the first National Child Care Innovation Summit this summer. The Summit will bring together key public- and private-sector stakeholders to discuss the vital role of child care as economic infrastructure and will encourage action by the private sector as an ally and force multiplier to the public sector.
  
• The Department of Transportation (DOT) will release a new $4.2 million funding opportunity authorized under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, providing grants for educational institutions and State Departments of Transportation to develop or scale workforce development programs for highway construction. Projects will be evaluated on how closely they align to the Biden-Harris Administration’s goal to include supportive services as part of high-quality workforce development programs to train, place, and retain people in good-paying jobs and Registered Apprenticeships. State DOTs that are applying are encouraged to show how they will also use FHWA formula funds and other sustainable funding sources for workforce development projects.
  
• The Department of Treasury will publish a fact sheet highlighting that employer-provided “work-life referral services”—such as services that help an employee identify a child care provider or other services aimed at assisting an employee or negotiating on an employee’s behalf—are generally considered a de minimis fringe benefit and therefore excluded from an employee’s taxable income. 
• The Biden-Harris Administration will release new resources:

• The White House Council of Economic Advisers will publish Seven Facts About the Economics of Child Care, laying out the research-based imperative for investing in child care—including how access to affordable, high-quality care can encourage U.S. labor force participation, particularly among women.
  
• The White House will release a new guide, Advancing Care as a Supportive Service, to help care and workforce development stakeholders leverage federal funds to support care and other supportive services for workers, including on federally funded and federally supported projects.
  
• The Department of Labor (DOL) will release new guidance to help agencies, federal funding recipients, employers, and care community stakeholders make thoughtful investments in child care and long-term care to support workers. The guidance provides best practices as well as example strategies for designing care solutions for workers.

States will expand commitments to care and other supportive services for workers, including:

• Oregon is announcing it will expand its investments to support construction workers across the state—building on its successful Highway Construction Partnership program. For over a decade, the program has leveraged FHWA formula funds to support construction apprentices with supportive services, including covering child care costs of up to 7 percent of household income (or up to $2,500 per child each month).
  • The state will invest $7.5 million in the new Oregon CHIPS Childcare Infrastructure Fund, expanding the Highway Construction Partnership model to fund supportive services and child care for workers in the semiconductor supply chain.
  • Oregon Department of Transportation will double its workforce investments from FHWA formula funds using new flexibilities from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, creating a new $1 million program to enable women returning from incarceration to directly transition into highway apprenticeships upon release.
    
• New York’s state Department of Transportation and Department of Labor are collaborating closely to ensure that workforce development and supportive services are available for transportation projects in Syracuse and Buffalo. The state is leveraging a $5 million Quality Jobs, Equity, Strategy and Training (QUEST) grant from the U.S. Department of Labor to expand child care access, legal services for drivers’ licenses, and other necessary supportive services for workers looking to join the I-81 project workforce. The project includes a first-in-the-nation local hire initiative of 15 percent, which aims to give opportunity to Syracuse’s most disadvantaged neighborhoods, including the same communities that have been divided by this highway for decades.
  
• Massachusetts will seek to invest $20 million in a Workforce Training System (WTS) that will help align child care, education, job training, and employment opportunities in Western Massachusetts’ Springfield and Holyoke—two communities with predominately residents of color—through the U.S. Economic Development Administration’s Recompete Pilot Program, authorized by the CHIPS and Science Act.
  
• Maryland’s state Department of Transportation, in support of the Baltimore Workforce Hub and the state’s workforce development efforts, is allocating an unprecedented $24 million of federal funds over six years to support transportation infrastructure workforce in the state. This initiative, developed in partnership with Maryland Department of Labor, will help Marylanders enter good jobs in the transportation sector through increasing access to resources, occupational training, and critical wraparound services including quality affordable child care. This will complement and leverage the state’s historic investment of over $300 million in fiscal year 2025 for child care scholarships to make high-quality child care more affordable.
  
• Washington tripled investment in its Pre-Apprenticeship and Supportive Services (PASS) grant program, providing $6 million in the 2021-2023 period to colleges, labor unions, and workforce organizations that are helping individuals get into Registered Apprenticeship programs, including by providing care and other supportive services to participants. Since 2015, the program has served nearly 2,800 participants, of whom 20 percent are women, 13 percent are Black, 32 percent are Hispanic, and 9 percent are Native American. The state is now expanding this successful model to maritime workforce training.

Today’s announcements build on the robust action that agencies have already taken to implement the President’s Care EO. Recent actions include:

• The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has made supportive services, including care, an allowable use of funds in the major Investing in America (IIA) investments it will soon be awarding, including its Solar for All (Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund) program, Climate Pollution Reduction Grants, and Environmental and Climate Justice Community Change Grant program.
  • Selected applicant spotlight: Nonprofit coalition Power Forward Communities will use its $2 billion award through EPA’s National Clean Investment Fund to decarbonize and transform American housing—saving families money, reinvesting in communities, and tackling the climate crisis. The coalition will invest in new and existing pre-apprenticeship and apprenticeship programs, including, when possible, investments in supportive services to increase participation from individuals in low-income and disadvantaged communities.
    
• The Department of Labor (DOL)announced on April 10 it will award a total of $65 million in Strengthening Community Colleges grants to 16 community colleges and their partners nationwide, helping expand access to high-quality, equitable training for in-demand industries.
  • Grantee spotlight: Columbus State Community College (CSCC) will partner with International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 1105 and two other community colleges to expand engineering training—particularly among women—to help fill good semiconductor manufacturing jobs spurred by the President’s CHIPS Act. CSCC has budgeted project funds for supportive services, emphasizing provision of accessible child care for students who are parents.
    
• The Department of Energy (DOE) has made supportive services, including caregiving assistance that enables students to participate in DOE-supported training and technical assistance, an allowable use of funds in its open $24 million funding opportunity to establish new centers as part of the Industrial Assessment Centers (IAC) network. The IAC program supports inclusive access to high-quality training programs in clean energy, energy efficiency, and advanced manufacturing, and helps small and midsized manufacturers save money, reduce energy waste, and improve productivity.  Additionally, DOE requires applicants for nearly all of its competitive BIL and Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) programs to develop a Community Benefits Plan (CBP) detailing how the project will invest in good-quality jobs and support inclusive access to those jobs, among other objectives geared towards increasing the success of the project. To help applicants develop strong CBPs, DOE released a comprehensive FAQ that provides effective strategies for applicants to consider, including related to supporting workers’ access to high-quality, affordable child care and other forms of caregiving assistance.
  • Grantee spotlight: Ascend Elements, which will receive a total of $480 million in BIL Battery Manufacturing grants to build its new Apex facilities—the first commercial-scale, integrated metal extraction, pCAM (precursor Cathode Active Material), and CAM (Cathode Active Material) facilities in the United States—plans to offer community benefits such as affordable child care, workforce training and education, and affordable transportation initiatives in Hopkinsville, a disadvantaged community in southwestern Kentucky.
  • Grantee spotlight: The Midwest Hydrogen Hub will enable decarbonization through strategic hydrogen uses, including steel and glass production, power generation, refining, and heavy-duty transportation. The Midwest Hub will work with local businesses and community-based organizations to support transportation and child care, as well as provide services such as low-cost internet and workforce training programs, to make job opportunities more equitable.
    
• Yesterday, the U.S. National Science Foundation (NSF) announced a new funding opportunity for the NSF Regional Innovation Engines (NSF Engines) program, with a key focus on technology development and creating pathways to good-paying jobs, including by enabling wraparound supports for learners and students. The inaugural 10 NSF Engines, announced in January, are receiving more than $530 million in federal and matched investments over the next two years to catalyze place-based innovation and boost economic growth. In addition, NSF’s Experiential Learning for Emerging and Novel Technologies (ExLENT) program—which invested $18.8 million in September to provide for experiential learning opportunities in advanced manufacturing, artificial intelligence, biotechnology and other technologies. ExLENT allows for some funding to support child care, transportation, and stipend costs to enable learners to participate in these opportunities.
  • Grantee spotlight: The Central Florida Innovation Engine, which will build a next-generation semiconductor technology innovation ecosystem, has budgeted $600,000 to support students and trainees. This will include child care, to be provided in partnership with CareerSource and the Osceola County Early Learning Coalition for Childcare, as well as other wraparound services like transportation and utility and rental assistance.
    
• DOTpublished guidance clarifying that Federal-aid highway program funds may be used for supportive services—with no cap—in connection with workforce development, education, and training activities. Subsequently, in February, DOT released its Investing in America best practices report with recommendations to state and local transportation agencies to enhance construction workforce diversity. Providing child care, including at nonstandard hours, is a key recommendation to increase the number of women in the construction workforce.
  • Grantee spotlight: The City of Philadelphia will use its $25 million award from DOT’s Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity (RAISE) Grant to implement vital transportation safety improvements along seven neighborhood streets in historically disadvantaged communities—including investing $500,000 to deliver equitable workforce development. Workers participating in Registered Apprenticeship and pre-apprenticeship programs will receive supportive services such as child care, transportation assistance, and training stipends.
    
• DOC signed non-binding preliminary memoranda of terms (PMTs) with multiple applicants for its CHIPS Incentives Program, several of which include workforce development commitments to provide affordable, accessible, high-quality child care for workers across proposed facilities. DOC has also published resources to help applicants for its CHIPS and Broadband Equity Access and Deployment (BEAD) programs implement high-quality, affordable, child care.
  

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Following Iran’s unprecedented air attack against Israel, President Biden is coordinating with allies and partners, including the G7, and with bipartisan leaders in Congress, on a comprehensive response. In the coming days, the United States will impose new sanctions targeting Iran, including its missile and drone program as well as new sanctions against entities supporting the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and Iran’s Defense Ministry. We anticipate that our allies and partners will soon be following with their own sanctions. In addition, we continue to work through the Department of Defense and U.S. Central Command to further strengthen and expand the successful integration of air and missile defense and early warning systems across the Middle East to further erode the effectiveness of Iran’s missile and UAV capabilities. 

These new sanctions and other measures will continue a steady drumbeat of pressure to contain and degrade Iran’s military capacity and effectiveness and confront the full range of its problematic behaviors. Over the last three years, in addition to missile and drone-related sanctions, the United States has sanctioned over 600 individuals and entities connected to terrorism, terrorist financing and other forms of illicit trade, horrific human rights abuses, and support for proxy terrorist groups, including Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis, and Kataib Hezbollah. The pressure will continue. We will not hesitate to continue to take action, in coordination with allies and partners around the world, and with Congress, to hold the Iranian government accountable for its malicious and destabilizing actions.

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Via Teleconference

5:06 P.M. EDT

MR. KIKUKAWA:  Good afternoon, everyone.  And thank you for joining our call previewing President Biden’s remarks tomorrow at the United Steelworkers headquarters in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. 

This ca- — call will feature on-the-record remarks from National Economic Advisor Lael Brainard and background questions and answers with senior administration officials. 

For your awareness and not for reporting, those administration officials are [senior administration official], [senior administration official], and [senior administration official].

The content of this call and accompanying materials are embargoed until tomorrow at 5:00 a.m. Eastern time.  If you did not receive the materials, please email me.

With that, I’ll turn it over to Lael to kick us off.

MS. BRAINARD:  Well, thank you, and thanks to everyone for joining us this afternoon. 

As you know, President Biden grew up in Scranton, Pennsylvania.  President Biden understands that American steel built our nation and steel mills helped to build the American middle class with good-paying union jobs in communities in states like Pennsylvania and Ohio.

The President is committed to ensuring that American infrastructure and industies — industries of the future, like clean energy and electric vehicles, will be made here in America using American steel made by American workers.  The President understands we must invest in American manufacturing, but we also have to protect those investments and those workers from unfair exports associated with China’s industrial overcapacity.

Our Investing in America Agenda is working.  Spending on manufacturing facility construction has more than doubled since President Biden took office.  Manufacturing employment is up almost 800,000 on his watch, higher than at any point under the previous administration. 

While the previous administration failed to secure an infrastructure law, President Biden delivered more than 50,000 infrastructure projects so far: roads, bridges, rail, and ports.  And he committed that those projects would be made with American steel by — made by American steelworkers.

However, China’s policy-driven overcapacity poses a serious risk to the future of the American steel and aluminum industry.  China cannot export its way to recovery.  China is simply too big to play by its own rules.

In manufacturing sectors like steel, China is already producing more than China or the world can easily absorb.  China’s subsidies and other forms of support lead to exports flooding global markets at artificially low prices, undercutting American steel that is cleaner.

Tomorrow, the President will travel to Pittsburgh, to the United Steelworkers headquarters, to talk about actions that he will take to help protect American steel and American steelworkers. 

The President’s approach is strategic, balanced, and targeted, and it has been developed in close partnership with industry stakeholders and unions who have directly lived through the impacts of China’s unfair trade practices for years.

It is also an approach where we are working with our partners and allies who also are feeling the effects of China’s overcapacity and artificially low-priced exports.

President Biden has made it clear that his vision for the future is one that doesn’t leave American workers and communities behind.  And today he continues to deliver on that promise. 

And with that, I’m going to turn it over to my colleagues to talk in greater detail about the actions he will discuss.

MR. KIKUKAWA:  Thanks so much, Lael.  We’ll now take some questions.  If you have a question, please raise your hand using the “raise hand” function, and we will call on you.

The first hand I see is from Trevor Hunnicutt.  You are now able to unmute.

Q    Thanks so much for taking the question.  Could you talk a little bit about why these tariffs are necessary given the Section 232 tariffs that already exist and — and triple-digit tariffs on, you know, product-specific categories? 

And then also curious if you could give an update on — on what’s happening with the U.S. Steel deal and whether the President is going to use his authorities under CFIUS or DOJ to — to block that deal now that he’s come out in opposition to it.  Thank you.

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL:  Great.  Thanks for that question.  I think I can take the first part. 

I think you rightly note that we’ve had 232 tariffs already in place, but I think as Director Brainard noted, President Biden has passed landmark legislations that together are driving greater investments in the manufacturing industry, and we are seeing tremendous job growth as well as investments across the board.

So, you know, we also know, at the same time as our economy is experiencing this relative strength, China’s economy is increasingly dependent upon export-led growth to essentially support their growth.  So, there is growing concern against, you know, a new export surge that may be impacting global markets.   Secretary Yellen has also spoken about this.  So, it’s critical that we get ahead of this surge to protect our workers.

I think you already know that China alone accounts for almost 50 percent of global steel production.  China is producing more steel than it can utilize domestically.  And as they think about expanding their export-led growth, of course, steel is an important channel through which it is likely to take place.  And if you look at prices, China’s export steel prices are 40 percent lower than U.S. steel prices.  And, therefore, it’s important that, you know, these new tariffs, if acted, provide a more level playing field against China’s unfair trade practices in steel and aluminum.

And I think as to your second question, which was about U.S. Steel, I think nothing new to add.  I think the President has already spoken and said that, you know, it’s important that U.S. Steel remains a domestically owned and operated company.  And, you know, I think the President will make that clear again. He has told the steelworkers he will have his [their] backs, and he means it.

MR. KIKUKAWA:  Great.  We’ll now turn it over to Josh Wingrove.

Q    Hi there.  Thank you.  Can you talk a little bit about the Mexico provisions here?  Did you consider actual tariffs on Mexico or on Chinese steel from Mexico?  Is this more of a warning?  Just wo- — wondering if you can walk us through that decision process.  Thank you.

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL:  I can take that question.  Look, we’ve got a senior team in Mexico today, and I want to emphasize our desire to cooperate and partner with Mexico on addressing imports coming into the North American market as a way of circumventing tariffs. 

So, I’m not going to get ahead of the diplomatic conversations that have happened today and that will be happening in the days and weeks to come.  But I think we’re hoping to come to a mutually acceptable solution with Mexico because this is a problem that affects both of our economies.

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL:  But I just want to just also jump in here and just say that the — the President’s calling on USTR to consider tripling the 301 tariffs specifically for Chinese imports on steel and aluminum.

MR. KIKUKAWA:  Great.  We’ll now turn it over to Doug Palmer.

Q    Hi.  Thanks for taking my question.  So, just on the recommendation that USTR consider urging — consider tripling the tariffs, I mean, how does that — how does that work?  Is that a foregone conclusion that the 301 tariffs would go to 25 percent? 

And in terms of the shipbuilding probe, one of the things that the steelworkers have asked for is a port fee.  They talked about, like, a hypothetical million-dollar port fee on a 20,000 TEU ship that visits the United States.  Would you expect the 301 investigation to — to lead to a finding like that?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL:  Hi.  This is [senior administration official].  Happy to jump in on these questions.  And, colleagues, please feel free to supplement. 

With respect to the first part of your question, so the President is calling on the Trade Representative to consider raising and up to tripling the steel and aluminum tariffs under the four-year review. 

The first step would be conclusion of the four-year review.  And, as you know, that statutory review is ongoing.  We hope to see results on that review soon.

And based on the findings of that review, then further responsive action and enhancing the effectiveness of the tariffs could be taken into account, consistent with the President’s call.

With respect to your question on the ships investigation, so the Trade Representative will be initiating the investigation on ships tomorrow.  That will launch an investigation into China’s acts, policies, or practices and their burden of restriction on U.S. commerce. 

So, it’s a little premature to talk about potential responsive actions now.  It’s only if there are affirmative findings, affirmative determinations that the acts, policies, or practices exist and burden or restrict U.S. commerce that the Trade Representative would then turn to consider responsive action.  Thanks.

MR. KIKUKAWA:  Thanks, Doug.  We’ll now turn it over to Andy Duehren.

Q    Hi.  Thanks for taking my question.  I just wanted to ask on these concerns about Chinese overcapacity and production — if that is limited to steel?  I mean, obviously, you’re seeing that in a few different sectors in China or people are seeing that in a few different sectors in China, but obviously you’re only singling out steel.  And so, I’m curious if the administration’s concerns are limited to that sector or if they go beyond that.  Thanks.

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL:  Thanks for that question.  I think, as you know, Secretary Yellen, returning from her trip from China, has also outlined serious overcapacity concerns in, for example, solar.  This is not a one-sector export surge or policy-driven industrial overcapacity issue; it’s a multisectoral challenge, of course.  But today’s actions that the President is proposing are focused on steel and aluminum.

MR. KIKUKAWA:  Great.  Now we’ll turn it over to Demetri.

Q    Thank you.  I’ve got two questions.  The first is on the tariffs.  How much leeway does USTR have to not accept the recommendation from the President? 

And then on shipbuilding.  Given that the U.S. is really, frankly, just to — kind of a bit player globally now — when you look at all the ships being built in China, South Korea, and Japan — is this investigation intended to try and bring shipbuilding back to the U.S. or just come to an outcome where, as someone said earlier, you impose port fees to try and get some money out of the Chinese for what they’re doing?  Thank you.

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL:  Hi.  This is [senior administration official] again.

Well, with respect to the first question, the tariffs, I can just say: So, the President is calling on the Trade Representative to consider tripling tariffs consistent with the findings and the outcome of the statutory review, which is akin to an investigation.  And so, the Trade Representative would consider that as part of the — the next step after making findings, which is, you know, review of the effectiveness and looking to enhance the effectiveness of the tariffs that are in place under the — the Section 301 — existing Section 301 action.

With respect to the new Section 301 investigation, we think that the labor unions — five national labor unions — have raised very serious concerns with respect to China’s pursuit of dominance in the maritime logistics and shipbuilding sector.  So, the petition is extensive.  It raises a number of very significant concerns and presents a lot of evidence in relation to China’s nonmarket policies and practices through which it pursues its dominance with significant impacts on U.S. workers and on the U.S. industry.

So, we take those allegations very seriously and intend to conduct a thorough investigation into them.  Thanks.

Q    Can I just quickly follow up and ask: If — if nothing is going to be decided until after the 301 review, why is the President coming out now with a recommendation?

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL:  I think it’s appropriate as part of the President’s consideration with respect to actions on steel and aluminum to consider, you know, the application of Section 301 tariffs to this sector.  This is a sector that was targeted by China with respect to some of its force technology transfer policies and practices. 

And as part of re- — our review, we consider the tariffs’ impact on the U.S. economy and how they can be made more effective in seeking to address China’s policies and practices.  And so, that’s why there is a focus on the use of Section 301 tariffs for this sector at this time. 

Q    Thank you.

MR. KIKUKAWA:  Thank you.  We will now turn it over to Gabe Gutierrez. 

Q    Hi.  Thanks so much for doing this.  I guess, what would you say to critics who say these tariffs will raise consumer prices, heat up inflation, or those, you know, who say it’s only — it’s only happening in an election year?  And that’s one question. 

Then, secondly, is this a continuation of the trade war started by the prior administration?  How would you respond to that?  Thank you.

SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL:  Well, thank you for that — thank you for that question.  If taken, these actions will not increase inflation, but they will protect American jobs and steel industry. 

Let me just lay out why we see no impact on inflation at all.  First is inflation has come down more than 60 percent.  Right now, residual inflation is not coming from goods.  These actions will not change that.

Second, as you know, the President’s approach has been to invest in key sectors and expand the supply side of our economy, which has contributed to lowering inflation.  And as we are seeing manufacturing rebound, it’s important to protect those gains.

Third, our trade actions are actually strategic and balanced.  President Biden will not impose ineffective, across-the-board tariffs that would increase costs and harm hundreds of thousands of jobs.  In fact, the imports of steel from China account for about 0.6 percent of total U.S. steel demand.  So, it’s quite small, and we see no inflationary passthrough. 

But it is important for us to get ahead of China’s new export surge and their continued pressure on prices that I made — that makes it hard for American steel companies to compete.  Because, if left unaddressed, it can be quite costly to workers, as we have learned from previous cycles of overcapacity and surges. 

And that’s why we’re proposing these actions.  It has nothing to do with elections.  I think it has to do with the fact that we’re actually acting from a place of self-confidence and strength because our economy is growing and manufacturing is rebounding thanks to all the investments the President has made.  And it’s important to safeguard and shield those investments from unfair competition from abroad.

Q    Thank you.

MR. KIKUKAWA:  All right.  With that, we, I think, have run out of time.  If you have any other questions, please feel free to email them to me.

Again, this call is embargoed until 5:00 a.m. tomorrow.  The remarks from NEC Director Lael Brainard were on the record, and the Q&A was on background as “senior administration officials.”

Thank you.

  5:24 P.M. EDT

# # #

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    On April 21, 2022, by Proclamation 10371, I declared a national emergency by reason of a disturbance or threatened disturbance of international relations of the United States and authorized the Secretary of Homeland Security to regulate the anchorage and movement of Russian-affiliated vessels, pursuant to the National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1601 et seq.) and section 1 of title II of Public Law 65-24, ch. 30, June 15, 1917, as amended (Magnuson Act) (46 U.S.C. 70051).

     The policies and actions of the Government of the Russian Federation to continue the premeditated, unjustified, unprovoked, and brutal war against Ukraine continue to constitute a national emergency by reason of a disturbance or threatened disturbance of international relations of the United States.  Therefore, in accordance with section 202(d) of the National Emergencies Act (50 U.S.C. 1622(d)), I am continuing for 1 year the national emergency with respect to the Russian Federation and the emergency authority relating to the regulation of the anchorage and movement of Russian‑affiliated vessels to United States ports set out in Proclamation 10371.

     This notice shall be published in the Federal Register and transmitted to the Congress.

                             JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR.

THE WHITE HOUSE,

    April 16, 2024.

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