Speeches and Remarks

The Eisenhower Executive Office Building

As a writing teacher, one of my favorite places in any building is the library. So, it’s an honor to be able to welcome Mrs. Kishida – Yuko – and all of you to this beautiful space of learning and discovery.

Because the ties that bind our nations are not just forged by heads of state. They’re created people to people, heart to heart, as we share ideas and pieces of our culture that make our souls sing.

Last year, in Japan, Yuko and I met with incredible young people who were doing just that – looking toward the future – toward ways of doing good, not just for their communities, but for the world.

So, today, I’ve invited some amazing high school students here who are bringing our countries closer – studying Japanese, hosting Japanese students, and even traveling to Japan through cultural exchange programs. 

And we’re joined by Japanese American poet, Professor Kimiko Hahn, who, earlier this morning, led a poetry workshop at the White House with these students, focused on an ancient form of Japanese poetry. I’m excited to hear what you’ve created together. 

Art shows the contours of our sorrows and joys, so that we know we aren’t alone. It brings us back to the beauty and humanity in every moment.

That’s the power of what you’ve done today.

With every line of poetry, you enter into a conversation with the world – helping us reach toward each other, so we can understand one another and imagine our bright tomorrows together.

You – like the young people we met in Japan – are the leaders of today and tomorrow. The keepers of our partnership. The dreamers of a better world.

And I can’t wait to see what you do next.

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The Cross Hall

Good evening. Welcome to our State Dinner preview.

Tomorrow, we find the common threads of humanity that connect us, that transcend distance or difference, built on shared values as we celebrate the flourishing friendship between the United States and Japan – and those threads that bind us, people to people, heart to heart.

As technology dissolves the distances between us, and we face challenges that cross borders and oceans, our nations are partners in building a world where we choose creation over destruction, peace over bloodshed, and democracy over autocracy.

President Biden and I are honored to welcome Prime Minister and Mrs. Kishida to the United States for an Official Visit with a State Dinner tomorrow night. We look forward to returning the hospitality and friendship we have experienced in our travels to Japan.

For dinner, the State Floor will transform into a vibrant spring garden – a place of joy and renewal, of hope and growth.

As guests sit among a field of flowers, glass and silk butterflies from both our countries will dance over their tables.

Their graceful flight a reminder that as our nations navigate the winds of change, we do so together – as partners in peace and prosperity.

As dinner comes to an end, guests will enter a Cross Hall overflowing with the purples and pinks and blues of hydrangeas – native to both our nations – some as high as six feet tall.

Beneath their feet, a stunning floor covering transforms the hall into a river of spring blossoms. Swimming through the water are koi – symbols of friendship, peace, luck, and perseverance.

Every detail of tomorrow’s State Dinner has been thoughtfully planned by an incredible team of people from across our government – Joe and I are so fortunate to have you.

Thank you to all those who make this house a home and have come together to make tomorrow night incredibly meaningful and memorable. And, I am once again grateful for Bryan Rafanelli’s brilliance and partnership.

Before you leave today, we will share a little taste of the meal our incredible chefs are preparing for the guests.

Now, please welcome, our Social Secretary, Carlos Elizondo.

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Union Station
Washington, D.C.

1:01 P.M. EDT

THE PRESIDENT:  Hello, hello, hello.  (Applause.)  As my mother would say, “God love you all.” 

Crystal, thank you for sharing your story.  It’s a — and a simple truth.

Folks, you know, there’s no better place for me to — last year at this day, I declared Caregiver and Caretaker — Caregivers Month.  And — and it’s — and I couldn’t think of no better place to celebrate it today than here at this station.  (Applause.) 

No, no, I’ll tell you why.  For 36 years, I commuted from the state of Delaware to here every single day the Senate was in session.  And over a millio- — a lo- — a lot of times.  The reason I did is — I think I understand a little bit what many of you have gone through and what you’re trying to help with.

You know, when I got elected, I was 26 — 29 years old.  I wasn’t old enough to be sworn in.  While I was down here hiring staff, before I was sworn in, I got a call saying my wife and daughter were dead and my two boys were badly injured.  And so, you know, I — I wasn’t going to come down, but I had a — thank God, I had a family and a lot of friends and older men- — members like me, 45, 50 — (laughter) — who helped me out.

But all — but all kidding aside, I didn’t have them — I was just — I just had started a law practice.  I didn’t have any money.  I mean, I made a living, but I didn’t have any money.  And what I tried to do is figure out how I was going to raise my boys.

AUDIENCE MEMBERS:  Wooo!

THE PRESIDENT:  No, I’m serious.

And I tell you what, I really wondered: Why did I commute every single day?  Over a million miles roundtrip over the time I was in the United States Senate.

And the reason I did: I couldn’t afford a house down here without selling my house at home, and I couldn’t afford caregiving.  It was the God’s truth.  No possibility.  None whatsoever.

But I — lucky I had a family.  My mother, my father, my sister, my brother all moved in, helped me take care of my kids.  But then we ended up with Mom getting sick and Dad getting sick, and they — we took care of them — the so-called sandwich generation.

Look, you care workers represent the best of who we are as Americans.  (Applause.)  No, you really do.  We look out for one another in America.  We leave nobody behind — nobody behind.

And you said — all the heroes in the lives you was — talk about.  Well, you’re our hero.  You’re the heroes to so many individuals.  You really are.  And you represent so many people who do it — and do it out of love and concern, not because of the pay, because they’re not getting the pay they need.  It matters.  (Laughter.)

As your President, I’m here with a simple message.  I give you my word: I have your back.  I have your back.  (Applause.)

I also to thank the family of Ady Barkan, whose widow Rachael and her son here — Carl — are here, just backstage.  I just met with them.  Their family embodies why care matters.  It’s critical to the dignity of care, the dignity of all — all caregivers and workers.

My dad used to say, “A job — Joey” — I give you my word as a (inaudible).  “A job is about a lot more than a paycheck.  It’s about your dignity.  It’s about respect.”  (Applause.)  No, it really is.  “It’s about being able to look your kid in the eye and say, ‘Honey, it’s going to be okay.’”

Care workers and caregivers are critical to our families and to the entire economy.  That’s why as a candidate, as president I was determined to turn things around.  We’ve made progress, but there’s so more that we have to do — so much more.

If we want the best economy in the world, we have to have the best caregiving economy in the world.  (Applause.)  We really do.  They are not inconsistent.  They are consistent.

But the cost of care is too high and pay for care workers is much too low.  (Applause.)

Take childcare.  A typical family spends $11,000 a year on childcare per child — per child.  If you live in a big city, that can be $17,000 for each child — more than their college tuition if, God willing, you’re able to get there.  And a lot of parents do the math and realize they can’t afford to go to work, because childcare can sometimes literally cost more than they earn — more than they earn.

You know, take homecare.  The cost of long-term care for aging loved ones and people with disabilities rose 40 percent in the last decade.

Medicaid offers help, but it can’t meet the demand.  You know, there are 700,000 seniors waiting in line — 700,000 waiting in line, and people with disabilities are stuck on Medicaid homecare waiting lists for as long as 10 years if they survive to be qualifi- — it’s amazing.  Think about it.

Family members like ours and yours often spend their own retirement savings to pay for the care of the loved ones.  Others leave their jobs to care for them.  And millions are part of the so-called sandwich generation, taking care of both your kids and your aging parents at the same time — at least that’s been the experience of the Biden family.  It’s overwhelming.

Take paid leave.  We’re the only ad- — (applause) — we’re — we’re the — we’re the only advanced economy in the world not to guarantee paid leave.  We’re going to change that.  (Applause.)  That means to help a loved one, many folks have to leave work to [or] find out later that they’ve been fired.

In the United States of America, no one — no one should choose between caring for a parent who’s raised them, a child who depends on them, or a paycheck that they need.  (Applause.)  That’s not why it should be — the way it should be. 

No, I’m serious.  You wonder whether I feel strongly about this, I do.

Look, more often than not, from childcare to eldercare to the lack of paid leave, it’s women who bear the brunt — (applause) — women who bear the brunt.

We saw that during the pandemic when 2 million women left their jobs to help take care of their families.  It hurts our whole economy to lose so much talent in the workplace.  And it keeps women from earning the equal pay they deserve because they say, “Well, you haven’t been here.”

Look, a fact: Care workers are predominately women as well — women of color and immigrants who are overworked, overlooked, and underpaid.  (Applause.)  It’s not enough just to praise them for all they’re doing; we have to pay them.  (Applause.)

To invest in our care economy, as soon as I came into office, I signed the American Rescue Plan.  Not a single Republican voted for it, I might add — not one. 

It made our nation’s biggest investment in childcare ever.  (Applause.)  For example, it kept 225,000 childcare workers — cen- — well, childcare working centers open, giving parents an opportunity —

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  (Inaudible.)

THE PRESIDENT:  — to get back to work. 

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  (Inaudible.)

THE PRESIDENT:  Well, I tell you what — you want to come make a speech or shush up?  Okay?  (Laughter.)  I’m not messing around with him.  He — he lo- — he looks like he could take me. 

AFSCME!  (Applause.)

Look, it expanded the Childcare Tax Credit, cutting child poverty in America in half.  That’s what it did.  We cut it in half.  (Applause.)

Overall, my administration increased funding for nearly 50 percent for — of — by 50 percent for childcare.  And in the coming weeks, we plan to release new rules to strengthen staffing standards in nursing homes, to get homecare workers a bigger share of Medicaid payments.  (Applause.)

But I want to — but that’s not going to be enough.  I want to do more, and we can do more.

My budget for next year makes key commitments to children, seniors, and people with disabilities, and to caregivers who look after their loved ones.  (Applause.)  

First, for working families with small children, we’re going to guarantee affordable, quality childcare.  (Applause.)  Most families — under our plan, most families will pay less than $10 a day per child, saving millions of folks as much as $7,000 a year.  That’s a lot of breathing room for a — young families who need it badly.  (Applause.)   

We’ll also restore the expanded Childcare Tax Credit — (applause) — lifting millions of children out of poverty.  And, by the way, this helps the economy.  It doesn’t hurt the — it helps the economy.  (Applause.)

You know, our Republican friends let that expire.  Well, we got to expire a couple of them, politically — (laughter and applause) — in order to get this passed.

Together, we’re going to bring it back.  (Applause.)

Second, seniors and people with disabilities, we’re going to expand Medicaid homecare services and reduce that 700,000-person backlog.  (Applause.)  That’ll mean more folks can live and work in their own communities with dignity and independence.  More homecare workers will start getting a better pay and benefits and dignity they deserve.  (Applause.)

By the way, if anybody is listening besides all of us, we agree on this: This is really — I’m — we’re deadly earnest.  This is not — it’s not a joke.  This matters.  (Applause.)

Third, for everyone caring for a loved one, my budget would finally, finally create a national paid family and medical leave program — finally — (applause) — up to 12 weeks to care for a newborn, a sick on- — a sick loved one, or yourself without losing your income.  (Applause.)

Look, it’s past time America caught up with the rest of the world on paid leave.  (Applause.) 

And, folks, all this helps families, and it grows the economy.  It grows the economy.  And we can afford to do it.  To put another way, we can’t afford not to do it. 

Look, I’m a capitalist.  But I want to make sure that — you know, if you make a million bucks, great.  Just start paying your fair share in taxes.  (Applause.) 

But let me ask you: Does anyone here think the tax code is fair?  Raise your hand.

AUDIENCE:  No!

THE PRESIDENT:  I don’t either.  (Laughter.)

The last administration enacted a $2 trillion tax cut —

AUDIENCE:  Booo —

THE PRESIDENT:  — overwhelmingly benefiting the very wealthy and the biggest corporations and exploded the federal deficit more than any other president has.  We’ve cut the deficit, by the way.  (Applause.)

It added more to the national debt than any presidential term in history.  And it’s due to expire next year.  And guess what?  I hope to be president because it expires, it’s going to stay expired — (applause) — stay expired. 

Our administration — our administration has already cut the deficit by $1 trillion.  And I’m going to cut it even more this decade by making big corporations and the very wealthy begin to pay their fair share.  (Applause.)

Under my plan, nobody earning less than $400,000 a year will pay an extra penny in taxes.  I don’t — I hope that (inaudible).  (Applause.)

As I’ve made it clear: We’re not trying to beat people — there a- — but there are a thousand billionaires in America — from 750 to 1,000 since the pandemic.  You know what the average tax rate those billionaires pay?  8.2 percent. 

AUDIENCE:  Booo —

THE PRESIDENT:  No, I’m serious.  Anybody want to trade that tax rate? 

AUDIENCE:  Yes!

THE PRESIDENT:  Well, look, that’s far less than the vast majority of Americans pay.  No billionaire should pay a lower tax rate than a teacher, a firefighter, or a care worker.  (Applause.)

And that’s why I proposed a minimum tax for billionaires of 25 percent.  It’s not even the highest rate — just 25 percent.  And guess what?  It’s more fair.  But it also — guess what it would do over 10 years?  It would raise $500 billion — (applause) — $500 billion.  And it wouldn’t hurt anybody.

I’m a capitalist.  If you make a billion bucks, wonderful.  Pay your fair share.  (Applause.)

Imagine what we can do — imagine what we can do for America.  Look, folks, imagine a future with affordable childcare, homecare, eldercare, paid leave.  

But, folks, our Republican friends have a different vision.  Republicans in the House of Representatives — and, by the way, Rosa DeLauro — she was here, I was told — she’s a hell of a champion for all this.  (Applause.) 

They just released their budget — the Republicans — that cuts caregiving programs by a third — the ones that exist, cuts them by a third.  For example, it would mean 260,000 fewer kids in childcare.  

My predecessor and his MAGA friends want to — I love the phrase — the — the language they use — they want to “terminate” the Affordable Care Act.

AUDIENCE:  Booo —

THE PRESIDENT:  “Terminate.”  Well, guess what?  Killing millions of Americans — taking them off of healthcare insurance and stripping others of services like homecare.

Folks — and, by the way, you know how many times they’ve tried to take out Obamacare and the Affordable Healthcare Act?  Forty-nine times they’ve tried.  They can keep trying, but they’re not going to get it done.  (Applause.)

And, look, when it comes to Social Security and Medicare, my predecessor recently said, quote, “There’s a lot you can do in terms of cutting.”  God love him. 

Right on cue, House Republicans released their budget that would raise the retirement age in Social Security — the budget they submitted for next year — and slash Medicare, while they cut taxes for the very wealthy again.

I got a better idea.  I’ll protect Social Security and Medicare and make the very wealthy pay their fair share to make it work.  (Applause.) 

Look, let me conclude where I started, by thanking all of you.  As Crystal said, you’re all — and I mean this sincerely — you’re all somebody’s hero. 

That’s what I see in our nation’s caregivers: heroes.  We need you.  Not a joke.  We need you.  (Applause.) 

And together, I know we can do this.  I’ve never been more optimistic about our future.  We just have to remember who we are.  We’re the United States of America.  There’s nothing beyond our capacity — nothing — (applause) — if we do it together.

So, let’s stay work- — get to work, keep working.  And God bless you all.  And may God bless our troops. 

Thank you.  (Applause.) 

1:16 P.M. EDT

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Private Residence
Chicago, Illinois

5:27 P.M. CDT

THE PRESIDENT:  I think I should leave now.  (Laughter.)

Thank you, Michael and Cari, and — for the introduction, but even more than that, for your friendship.  You know, this is an unusual business.  Some of the people you meet, that you work with, both help you in your — in your campaigns and also work with you become your closest friends, like Billy Daley.  He doesn’t want to — he wants to deny it, but he can’t.  (Laughter.)

Folks, look, you know, you hosted me back in 2019, the first con- — the first event we did for the 2020 campaign.  And this is the first event in Chicago we’ve done for this campaign.  So, thank you again.

And I know your husband is not here.  He’s doing the solar eclipse, but no one has helped me more than your husband and you.  Thank you.  Thank you.

And, look, the governor is — has a hell of a job to do.  But — but I know that — that one thing about us we have in common: We both married way above our station.  (Laughter.) 

And, as I said, I want to thank my friend Billy for being my friend for such a long time.  Bill, you’re a hell of a guy, and there’s no way to get rid of me — (laughter) — none, none, none. 

Look, it’s awful- — always special to be back in Chicago.  Election night 2008 was a — was a special moment.  We were excited to bring the convention here.  And 2024, here again in August. 

Trust me when I say you governor and the entire Illinois delegation, including my buddy Dick Durbin, were determined to make it happen.  I’m not exaggerating.  (Laughter.)  Not even a little, tiny bit.

And I want to thank Michael for your serving as president of the host committee and for all you do to support us.

Look, I’m looking forward to the con- — this convention, for real.  You know, as some of you in here know me very well, I — you know, you always want to win when you run.  That’s always just the competitive nature of it.  But this is an election that I feel more obliged to win than even want to win, because the alternative is not very good.  The alternative for the country is, I think, really somewhat worrisome.

You know, we head into spring.  We’re genuinely excited about the momentum building in our campaign.  So far, 1.5 million contributors have contributed to the campaign — 1.5 million.  Five hundred fifty thousand new contributors since the last election.  97 percent of those contributors contributed under $200.

And we’re ramping up the campaign headquarters, field offices, hiring staff all across the country.  Before Trump and the Republicans have opened one single office, we’ve opened hundreds.

And while the press doesn’t write much about it, we have 18 national polls in the recent past, just since — I guess it was about four weeks — three, four weeks now — where those 19 polls, we’re ahead of Trump.  They never write that, but we’re ahead of Trump since my State of the Union Address, including the battleground states, like Michigan and Pennsylvania.

In Pennsylvania, one of the most reputable polls has us winning by 10 points.  I don’t take any of this for granted because I don’t think the polls are able to accurately predict like they used to because of the nature of how hard it is to get in contact with people.

But, look, I know not everyone is feeling the enthusiasm.  And so, just the other day, I — a defeated-looking man came up to me and said, “Mr. President, I’m being crushed by debt.  I’m completely wiped out.”  And I said to say, “Sorry, Donald, I can’t help.”  (Laughter.)  “I can’t — I can’t do much about it.”

Look, Trump is in trouble, and he knows it.  Just today, he released a video where he’s scrambling on the abortion issue — scrambling on the issue.  He’s worried voters are going to hold him accountable for the — overturning Roe v. Wade and for the cruelty and chaos that it’s created.

Well, the bad news is, for him, he bragged about overrowing [overturning] Roe v. Wade.  The vo- — voters are going to hold him accountable. 

Voters will hold him accountable in the — for the 14 states where abortion is now illegal in all cases, even rape or incest, because of — Roe v. Wade is no longer the law of the land. 

Voters are going to hold him accountable for the extreme six-week bans that exist, the women who have been turned away in emergency rooms, the women who have mo- — lost — nearly lost their lives or had their — had to flee their states to get care they needed.

For 50 years, women in America did not have to worry about a fundamental right.  It didn’t matter where they lived.  It didn’t matter whether — wh- — where they were.  It didn’t matter.  It was a fundamental right, and Trump took it away.  Now women in America today have fewer rights than their mothers and grandmothers had.

And this is outrageous, in my view.  Mark my words, it’s going to be — move millions of voters — women and men — to the polls this year.  And I’ve said many times: Trump and the MAGA crowd don’t have a clue about the power of women in America.  But they’re not ab- — they’re about to find out.  They’re about to find out.

Look, no one — I’ll just be very blunt about it; the press is here — no one trusts Donald Trump.He’s made a political deal to get rid of Roe v. Wade.  Now he hasn’t — he’s already realized that political deal with his MAGA friends may be imposing a national ban, and if they put one on his desk, he said he’d sign it. 

That’s never going to happen, if I’m elected.  But as long as I’m president, I’m going to veto any national ban on choice.  Kamala and I are determined to make Roe v. Wade the law of the land.  If you give us a Democratic Congress next time around, we’re going to do just that.

And, folks, look, chaos is nothing new to Trump.  His presidency was chaos.  Trump is trying to make the country forget how dark and unsettling things were when he was president. 

But we’ll never forget.  We’ll never forget lying about COVID, telling Americans to drink bleach.  (Laughter.)  No, it’s not a — if you did- — if it didn’t happen, it’d sound bizarre.  But it was bizarre.

We’ll never forget his love letters to North Korea’s Kim Jong Un and his admiration for Putin, which he still exhibits.  We’re never going to forget waiting for the tear-gassed innocent protestors outside the White House, just so he could hold a Bible upside down and — at a nearby church.

And, by the way, now he compares himself to — to Jesus Christ.  I find it fascinating.  I find it fascinating.  He also talks about how he’s like Nelson Mandela — persecuted like Nelson Man- — I mean, saying these things.  (Laughter.)

If you didn’t — if you haven’t heard them come out of his mouth, you’d think I’m making it up. 

Well, we’re never going to forget the insurrection on January the 6th, one of the darkest days in history.  And he did not a single thing to stop it — not a single thing — one of the worst derelictions of duty of any President of the United States in the history of the United States. 

And, look, anybody want to go back to that?  I don’t think so.  Look — look how far we’ve come: 13 million new jobs; over 300 jobs — three hundred thou- — 300,000 jobs just this last month; 26 months of — two years of unemployment under 4 percent; more people have health insurance today than ever before in the history of the country. 

And we looked at Big Pharma.  We looked at them for a long time.  We’ve tried like hell to get them under control.  But finally — finally, we won.  Medicare can now negotiate what price they’ll pay with Big Pharma, bringing down the cost of insulin from $400 a month to $35 a month.  And so much more to come.

We’ve made historic investments in rebuilding the country, in computer chips, combating climate change, gun violence.  But the first — I put the first Black woman on the Supreme Court, as I promised I’d do.  And I could go on.

But the — but all — but this is all at stake.  Trump wants to get rid of all of it.  He’s made no bo- — all of it — all of it. 

Trump wants to terminate — I love his phrase, “terminate” — the Affordable Care Act.  Why?  Because Obamacare — and when Bill was helping the President — is — is what the Affordable Care — Healthcare Act is.  It’s Obamacare on steroids.  But he can’t — because it was Barack Obama, he wants to get rid of it. 

From the very beginning, he’s determined to get rid of cheaper prescription drugs.  Why?  Because the drug companies hate them. 

They’re determined to get rid of the climate — he’s coming after the climate bill.  Why?  Because the companies hate it.

And he’s determined to get rid of so- — to reduce Social Security, rai- — raise the age to get rid of Medicare. 

Look, the fact of the matter is the biggest threat to — Trump poses to our demo- — is to our democracy.  And, you know, all — all that is at risk in 2024: the freedoms, our democracy.

Trump only embraces the violence of — not only embraces — embraces the violence of January 6th, he’s running on it.  Do you ever see his ads?  He’s running on it.  He calls the insurrectionists who are in prison now — he calls them “patriots.”  And he says, if reelected, he wants to pardon them.

Now Trump says if he loses again, there will be another “bloodbath” — his phrase, not mine.  It’ll be a “bloodbath” if he loses again.

Well, folks, we must say with one voice as Americans — as Democrats, independents, Republicans — there’s no place for political violence in America — none, zero, never.  Period.

Let me close with this.  This election is about competing visions for America.  Trump’s vision is one that is really full of anger and hate and revenge and retribution.  He looks at America and sees a failing nation — his phrase, not mine — his phrase: “a failing nation.”  He’s dead wrong.

I have a very different view of America — and I mean this from the bottom of my heart — one of hope and optimism.  I see an America where we defend democracy, we don’t diminish it.  I see an America where we protect the freedoms — the freedom to vote, the freedom to choose — not take them away.

I see an America where the economy grows from the middle out and the bottom up, not just the top down, and where working — and where working people finally have a shot — finally have a shot, where healthcare is a right not a privilege. 

I see a future where we save the planet from a climate crisis and our country from gun violence and still grow significantly. 

And this — look, folks, this election is about democracy, freedom in America.  I wish the stakes weren’t this high, but they are.  That’s why I need you.  I know we can do this together.

I’ve never been more optimistic about our future.  And I [we] have to remember who we are.  We’re the United States of America. 

I told a couple of you in the past that, before Dr. Kissinger died, 10 days before, I got a phone call: Would I talk to him?  So, I called him, and he said something fascinating to me.  And I knew him because I was a young senator when — during the Vietnam War, when he was Secretary of State and we used to argue like hell. 

And he said, you know — he said, “Not since Napoleon — not since Napoleon has Europe not looked over their shoulder at Russia with dread and fear and concern, until you guys came along.”  And he said, “What you’re done, you’ve strengthened NATO, you’ve expanded NATO, you’ve set into motion where the next six decades can be de- — decades of peace in Europe, not insecurity, because of what you’ve done.”

Well, what’s he doing now?  He refuses to — we had the ability to get a deal where we finally continued to support Ukraine.  He got on the phone and called the Republican senators and said, “Don’t vote for it.  Don’t be for it.”  Why?  Because he doesn’t want to offend Putin.  He has a secret plan.  I bet I know what the secret is.  That what you’re going to do is — he’s going to work out something, if he’s president, where he gets Ukraine to give up a big chunk of its land that has been invaded in order to get peace. 

Look, folks, I’ve been doing this job in politics for a fair amount of time.  I know that sounds strange for a 40-year-old guy to say that.  (Laughter.)  But all kidding aside, we are, as Madeleine Albright said, the essential nation.  The rest of the world looks to us.

Who fills the vacuum if we’re not there?  I mean it sincerely.  And we’re not — we’re not sending American troops.  Who fills the vacuum, though, if we’re not there?  What happens if we’re not there?

Every international meeting I attend — and I knew — I think Bill would agree that the reason Barack asked me to be vice president was because of my background in foreign policy.  I’ve known most of these heads of state for a long time.  I know all of them now as well. 

Every international meeting I attend — and Madeleine Albright was right about us being essential nation — not because of me, because I’m the President of the United States of America, every one — one of them, they’ll get to me in the corner before the meeting is adjourned and grab my arm and say, “You can’t let him win.  My democracy is at stake.”  And not about me.  They really, genuinely worry about their democracies.

What happens?  What happens in Europe?  What happens if we don’t do what we’ve been doing able to keep China where it was?  What happens if we don’t continue to maintain these allegiances?

Folks, look, there’s a great deal at stake, but I’m confident — I’m absolutely confident the American people are ready to face the challenge.  And we — because if we don’t, we’re going to have a real problem.  And I think they know it.

So, what you’ve done is you put me in a position to be able to fund a campaign.  As I said, we have significant contributions from significant group of people all across the country.  And they’re Democrat, Republicans, and independents.

And so — and, by the way, I promise you, we’re putting it to good use.  We’re opening hundreds of headquarters and so on and so forth all across the country.  And we’re just getting this rooted in everyday campaign techniques that are going out, particularly in the states that are the toss-up states.

So, I think we’re going to be in good shape, but only because of you, if it occurs.  We have to win.  We have to win.  Democracy, I think, depends on it, for real.

So, thank you very much for your confidence.  And I promise you, I’ll do everything in my power not to let you down.  (Applause.)

5:41 P.M. CDT

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Madison Area Technical College
Madison, Wisconsin

1:26 P.M. CDT

THE PRESIDENT:  Hello, Wisconsin.  (Applause.)  Hello, hello, hello.  Please, have a seat if there is — you have one.  (Laughter.)

Gov, thank you.  Thank you for that nice introduction. 

And thank you, Ashley, for tha- — introducing me and sharing your story.  I, like an awful lot of people in this audience had — was the first in my family to go to college and watched my dad struggle to help me get there and get all the kids there.  And it wasn’t easy.

But, you know, I ask the rhetorical question: How can we be the leading country in the world without the best education system in the world and access to it?

You and Sam are from rural Wisconsin, first in your families to go to college — life partners, business partners, hardworking, paying off your loans — only to see your dreams being crushed by student debt. 

But now, thanks to what we’re doing, that student debt is no longer holding you back.  (Applause.) 

With this new freedom, you started your own business that helps women and minority-owned businesses right here in Wisconsin.  (Applause.) 

That’s what this is all about.  I think we all, in this room, share one goal: Give everybody a fair shot — just a shot — freedom to chase their dreams. 

You know, you’ve got some of the great leaders of Wisconsin here as well.  And I mean that sincerely.  I think Tony knows this: Your governor — I think he’s one of the best governors in the United States.  (Applause.)  And not just — you really are, Tony.  And what progress we’ve made, and we’ve made a lot, is in no small part because of Tony.  (Applause.)

And the bad news for Tony is, we’ve become friends.  (Laughs.)  (Applause.)

And, Mark, thank you, Representative.  Thanks for the passport to get into the district.  I appreciate it.  You’re doing a hell of a job. 

And Madison Mayor, thank you — where is she?  There you are.  Stand up.  (Applause.)  I get instructions from my wife, who’s a schoolteacher.  She said, “Make sure you say hello to the mayor.  I really like being with her.”  Thank you, Mayor, for taking care of her.  (Applause.)

And the state and local [and] Tribal leaders here today, thanks for making it available.  (Applause.)  Where are you?  There you — stand up, Chief.  Thank you.  (Applause.)

And, by the way, it’s Indian Nations.

And while she couldn’t be here, I’m always grateful for one of the best senators in the United States Senate, Tammy Baldwin.  (Applause.)  She really is.  She’s a great partner on education, infrastructure, buy American, and so much more.  She’s done so much.

And when Kamala and I ran this led in — in this lead county, we made a commitment to fix our broken student loan system.  Because while a college degree still is a ticket to the middle class, that ticket is becoming much too expensive — much too expensive. 

In fact, things are a lot different from when college tuition was more affordable and borrowing for college was — repaying those loans was re- — more reasonable. 

Today, too many Americans, especially young people, are saddled with unsustainable debts in exchange for a college degree.  The ability for working- and middle-class folks to repay their student loans has become so burdensome that a lot can’t repay it for even decades after being in school.  And I mean that sincerely.  Many of you know that, sitting in front of me.  Even when they have worked hard and pay their student loans, their debt increases, not diminishes. 

Too many people feel the strain and stress, wondering if they’re going to — can get married, have their first child, start a family, because, even if they get by, they still have this crushing, crushing debt. 

That’s not — you know, it’s not just a drag on them, it’s a drag on our local economies.  It’s a rag on — no, it really is.  It’s a drag on the economies when you can’t afford to buy a home, start that small business, chase that career that you’ve been dreaming about for a long time.

That’s why, early in my term, I announced a major plan to provide more than 40 million working- and middle-class Americans student debt relief.  Tens of millions — (applause) — tens of millions of people’s debt was literally about to get canceled, but then some of my Republican friends and elected officials and special interests sued us, and the Supreme Court blocked us. 

But that didn’t —

AUDIENCE:  Booo —

THE PRESIDENT:  Well, that didn’t stop us.  No, I mean it sincerely.  We continue to find alternative paths to reduce student debt payments — (applause) — that are not challengeable.

And altogether, my administration has taken the most significant action to provide student debt relief ever in the history of this country.  (Applause.)  We started by fixing two existing programs to get more people the student debt relief than their — that they were entitled to. 

First, we fixed what was called the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program, which was designed — (applause) — to make sure those in public service — schoolteachers, police officers, firefighters, social workers, faith leaders, public servants — you get the student loan forgiven in 10 years if they’ve made their payments for those first 10 years.  And after 10 years, in the student — in public service, they would have their loan forgiven. 

When I took office, 7,000 public service [servants] had their debt — 7,000 had their debts forgiven.  But the program wasn’t wor- — working very well, so I called in the Department of Education and other departments and said, “We got to fix this and fix it now.”  Thanks to our reforms, nearly 900,000 have had their debts forgiven — (applause) — including 16,400 right here in Wisconsin — right here in Wisconsin.  (Applause.)

Second, we turned what’s called an income-driven repayment program, which I’ve renamed the SAVE program — the most affordable repayment plan ever.

Before I took office, student borrowers had to pay 10 percent of their discretionary income on a monthly basis from what they borrowed — 10 percent discretionary income.  That’s the income after you pay necessities like housing and food.  A lot of people didn’t have the means to pay 10 percent, so I was able to (inaudible) my authority to have the department cut that to 5 percent for undergraduate loans.  (Applause.)

Now, that means no one with undergraduate loans, whether a community college or a four-year college, would have to pay more than 5 percent of their discretionary income to repay those loans starting in July — starting in July of this year. 

And for millions of borrowers who make less than $32,000 a year now after they’re out, their monthly student payments will be dropped to zero as long as they’re that — (applause) — really.

And already, close to 8 million Americans have enr- — had enrolled in the SAVE Plan, including 135,000 here in Wisconsin.  (Applause.) 

Because of our reforms, 25,000 people a month nationwide have been receiving letters from me about their debt they had for four years — for all those years is finally going to be forgiven.  But I’m not stopping here. 

Today, I’m proud to announce five major actions to continue to relieve student debt for more than 30 million Americans since this — I started my administration. 

First, my administration will propose a new rule to cancel up to $20,000 in runaway interest for any borrower that owes more now — (applause) — owes more now than when they started paying the loan.  (Applause.)  That make — it’s a big difference. 

And for low- and middle-class families enrolled in my SAVE program, we’ll cancel all of your interest — all of your interest.  (Applause.)   

And second, we plan to cancel student debt for borrowers who still owe student loans even though they started repaying them more than two decades ago.  

Folks, third, we plan to cancel debt for about 2 million borrowers who would be eligible for debt forgiveness through the SAVE program, Public Service Loan Forgiveness, or other debt-canceling programs but are not enrolled in these programs.  Some of you are only finding out after the fact, you’re — as you’re a teacher, a firefighter, a cop, that you qualify, but you just didn’t know about it before.  And now people are — but you’re eligible no matter how long it’s been — you’ve been out of the program.

Fourth, we plan to cancel debt for borrowers who the Department of Education determines were cheated by universities that left students with unaffordable loans and delivered little in benefits to students.  (Applause.)

And you know — you know one of those — you know one of those colleges was closed.  I won’t mention it.  (Laughter.)

And, finally, the Department of Education will propose a new rule to cancel student debt for Americans facing financial hardships, from childcare to healthcare, to [that] prevent them from paying back their loans.  

And over the coming months, the Department of Education will propose and then implement these plans. 

And starting this fall, we plan to deliver up to $20,000 in interest relief to over 20 million borrowers and full forgiveness for millions more.  (Applause.)

I can tell by the looks on some of your faces this relief — it’s not news to you all.  Because this relief can be life-changing — life-changing, just as you heard from Ashley.

Folks, I will never stop [fighting] to deliver student debt relief on [to] hardworking Americans.  And it’s only in the interest of America that we do it.  And, again, it’s for the good of our economy, that’s growing stronger and stronger — and it is. 

By freeing millions of Americans from this crushing debt of student debt, it means they can finally get on with their lives instead of being put — their lives being put on hold. 

That’s why every American making student loan payments should go to StudentAid.Gov — StudentAid.Gov to learn more about these plans and see if you’re — if — if any of them fit for you. 

Look, that’s not all.  People say to me, “It’s great you’re helping people [get] into college.  How about all those hardworking people who grew up and had no opportunity to go to college?” 

I get it.  That’s the neighborhood I come from. 

That’s why a big part of my economic agenda is investing in all Americans, whether you attend college or not. 

We’re expanding career and technical education at high schools — we — and think how many of these shop programs have been dropped, people not knowing whether they want to work with their hands, th- — not about being able to get started — to provide pathways to good middle-class jobs without college. 

My Labor Department is investing $200 million in grants for registered apprenticeship programs around the country — (applause) — so for- — folks can learn a skilled trade. 

And, by the way, parenthetically, you know all the money in the CHIPS program I put together?  Well, guess what?  It’s going to invest over $50 billion in new programs — new ability to make these chips here in America.  And in those “fabs” they call them, guess what?  You know what the average salary is?  A hundred and ten thousand dollars a year, and you don’t need a college degree — (applause) — but you need a skill.

Programs like the one that — taught right here at Madison Technical College that lead to good-paying jobs in high-growth fields — in clean energy, healthcare, and technology. 

These apprenticeship programs are four and five years before you qualify to have a license.  I love people saying, “Well, why are you — why are you so pro-union, pro-labor?” 

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  Wooo!

THE PRESIDENT:  The — well — (applause) — no — a lot of people think you can walk up and say, “I want to be an electrician,” and you’re an electrician.  Five years of apprenticeship.  It’s like going to college.  Five years.

I also want to make — and I’ve been pushing this, and if I’m reelected, I’m going to push it hard; we’re going to get it done next time — is I want to make community college tuition free — (applause) — so you won’t need loans at all.  It’ll cut in half the cost of going to college.

If we do this, the economic gains will far outweigh the cost.  And that’s not hyperbole; that’s the truth. 

This is in addition to the historic investments we’re making to moderfiz- — modernize our infrastructure: roads, bridges, high-speed Internet, clean — clean water for every American.  We need more qualified people doing this work to bring back manufacturing — back to America, to build new factories in your communities. 

And I’m investing in the American agenda.  We expect to create millions of jobs over the next decade.  We’ve already created over 15 million new jobs — 15 million new jobs.  (Applause.)  And a significant number of these do not require a college degree, including across Wisconsin. 

Let me close with this.  My dad used to say — and I’m — it’s not hyperbole.  My dad was a hardworking guy.  He re- — well-read man, got into college.  He’s from Bal- — they say — everybody thinks it’s “Baltimore.”  It’s Baltimore.  (Pronounced in an accent.)  (Laughter.)

He was from Baltimore.  He — and he — he got into college to go to Johns Hopkins.  I didn’t know that until after he had passed away.  But it was during the war — just prior to the war.  He was working in the shipyard.  And he couldn’t go.

But he used to always — he had this phrase.  He’d say, “Joey, a job is about a lot more than a paycheck.  It’s about your dignity.  It’s about respect.  It’s about having a place in the community where you, in fact, are — feel like you belong.  It’s about being able to look your kid in the eye and say, ‘Honey, it’s going to be okay.’” 

That’s what we’re doing.  We’re giving people a chance to make it — not a guarantee, just a chance to make it.  And that’s why I’ve never been more optimistic about our future. 

We just have to remember who we are.  We are the United States of America.  And there’s nothing beyond our capacity if we do it together — nothing, nothing, nothing.  (Applause.)

May God bless you all.  And may God protect our troops.

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

1:40 P.M. CDT

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Maryland Transportation Authority
Baltimore, Maryland

3:21 P.M. EDT

THE PRESIDENT: Thank you, thank you, thank you. (Applause.) Please, please. Thank you.

By the way, folks, I say to my dad: Dad, they’re mispronouncing Baltimore. (Pronounced in an accent.) (Laughter.) My dad and the Biden — please, sit down — the Biden family goes all the way back to being watermen in this bay for a long, long time back in the la- — mid-1800s. And my father was born and raised here in Baltimore. And there’s a strong, strong connection. Still have family in the region as well.

Governor Moore, Senator Cardin, Senator Van Hollen, Congress[man] Mfume, Mayor Scott, County Executive Johnny O. — (laughter) — I like that — Johnny “O-ho-ho” — (laughter) — to all the military members and first responders and, most importantly, to the people of Maryland, I’m here to say: Your nation has your back, and I mean it. Your nation has your back. (Applause.)

And you’ve got, without exaggeration, one of the finest delegations in the Congress of any state in the Union. And they know how to get things done, and we’re going to get this paid for. Aren’t we?

PARTICIPANTS: Yes.

THE PRESIDENT: All right. I was just briefed by the United — Uni- — Unified Command about the ongoing impact of this tragic collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge last Tuesday.

The damage is devastating, and our hearts are still breaking. Eight — eight construction workers went into the water when the bridge fell. Six lost their lives. Most were immigrants, but all were Marylanders — hard-working, strong, and selfless.

After pulling a night shift fixing potholes, they were on a break when the ship struck.

Just seconds before, one of the men named Carlos, who was only 24, left a message for his girlfriend. Here’s what it said: “We just poured cement, and we’re waiting for it to dry,” he said.

Well, to all the families and loved ones who are grieving: I’ve come here to grieve with you. We all are.

It’s not the same, but I know a little bit about what it’s like to lose a piece of your soul — to get that phone call in the middle of the night to say family members are gone. I’ve been there. It’s feeling like having a black hole in your chest, like you’re being sucked in, unable to breath. The anger, the pain, the depth of the loss is so profound.

And we know it’s hard to believe, and you’re probably not going to believe me, but I can tell you now from personal experience: The day is going to come when the memory of your loved one, as you walk by that park or the church or something that you shared together, it’s going to bring a smile to your lips before it brings a tear to your eye.

It’s going to happen. It’s going to take a while, but I promise you, it will happen. And that’s when you know you’re going to be able to make it. I promise you it will come. And our prayers for you is that time comes sooner rather than later — but it will come.

We’ll also never forget the contributions these men made to this city. We’re going to keep working hard to recover each of them.

And, you know, my vow is that we will not rest, as Carlos said, until the cement has dried on the entirety of a new bridge — a new bridge. (Applause.)

Earlier this afternoon, we took an aerial tour to survey the wreckage. You know, from the air, I saw the bridge that’s been ripped apart. But here on the ground, I see a community that’s been pulled together.

I want to thank you all — the first responders, the port workers, state and local officials — who sprang into action before dawn, who’ve been here ever since.

And we did talk at, I think it was, 2:00 or 3:00 in the morning. You were out here. You were here.

Within minutes of the collapse, the U.S. Coast Guard arrived on the scene. Within hours, I ordered personnel from the Army Corps of Engineers, the Navy, the Department of Transportation to assist in every way possible.

Within a day, we stood up a Unified Command.

In the weeks to come, I want you to know: We’re going to continue to have your backs every step of the way. I guarantee you. I guarantee you.

First — our first is our priority to reopen the port. This is one of the nation’s largest shipping hubs. And it’s the top port in America both in importing and exporting of cars and light trucks — the number one.

Simply put: The impact here has a significant impact everywhere — up and down the coast and around the country.

Thousands of tons of mangled steel remain lodged in the water, blocking ships from moving in and out of the harbor.

I’ve dec- — I’ve directed the Coast Guard, the Navy, and the Army Corps of Engineers — who are, by the way, the finest engineers in the world — and the state officials to work together to help remove this steel as quickly as possible and as safely as possible.

So far, our team has been able to clear two small channels for essential ships helping clear the wreckage.

And, yesterday, the Army Corps announced that by the end of April they will be able to open the third channel for some commercial traffic, including car carriers. And by the end of May, we’ll open the full channel — the full channel. (Applause.)

My task force on Supply Chain Disruption has been able to — been engaging with union, rail, trucking, shipping, state and local leaders to minimize the impact on our supply chains.

And I’m proud to announce that the federal government will provide over $8 million in grant funds to make the infrastructure improvements at Sparrows Point, as the only [part of the] port unaffected by this collapse, which will allow Sparrows Point to take on more ships. And that’s happening now — will happen shortly.

Second, we’re focusing on protecting the workers and businesses. Folks, 20,000 jobs depend on this port. Twenty thousand families depend on this port to buy groceries, to make rent, to pay their bills.

Today, my administration is announcing the first tranche of Dislocated Worker Grants — fancy phrase to — which is dimed — all of it is there to make sure it — it helps create jobs for workers involved in the cleanup of this incident — additional jobs.

My Small Business Administration has also issued a disaster declaration, which will allow the SBA to offer low-interest loans for small businesses impacted by the collapse in order to keep things moving.

The state, the city, the county are also stepping up in impressive ways to help workers and businesses who have been affected by this disaster.

But, folks, we all need to step up. Amazon, Home Depot, Domino Sugar, and many other companies all rely on this port. And they have committed to keep workers and payrolls on their — and their businesses in Baltimore and [as we] move as quickly and clearly as possible to clear the channel. (Applause.)

I’m calling on every company at and around the port to do the same thing — the same exact thing: commit to stay.

And to the customers who use this port, we’re coming back, and we’re coming back soon.

Folks, finally, we’re going to move heaven and earth to rebuild this bridge as rapidly as humanly possible. And we’re going to do so with union labor and American steel. (Applause.) For a simple reason: They’re the best workers in the world, and that’s not hyperbole.

Every day, over 30,000 vehicles traveled across this bridge, and I was one of those people. I commuted every day from Delaware for 36 years year to Washington, D.C., back and forth, and about one fourth of that time by automobile. I’ve been to every part of this port.

Folks, we now face a question no American should ever have to ask: How will I get to work? How will I go to school? How will I get to a hospital?

A response — in response, everyone, including Congress, should be asking only one question, and they’re going to be asked the question by your delegation: How can we help? How can we solve that problem?

My administration is committed — absolutely committed to ensuring that the parties responsible for this tragedy pay to repair the damage and be held accountable to the fullest extent the law will allow.

But I also want to be clear: We will support Maryland and Baltimore every step of the way to help you rebuild and maintain all the business and commerce that’s here now. (Applause.)

As the governor — as the governor can tell you, within hours of the American req- — the Maryland request, we approved $60 million in emergency federal funding. I fully intend — I fully intend, as the governor knows, to have the federal government cover the cost of rebuilding this entire bridge — all of it — all of it — (applause) — as we’ve done in other parts of the country in similar circumstances.

And I stand here, I call on Congress to authorize this effort as soon as possible.

Let me close with this. This port is over 300 years old. As a matter of fact, as I said, my great-great-grandfather worked here as a waterman in this bay. This port is older than our Republic. And it’s been through tough, tough times before.

During the war of 1812, a young Marylander named Francis Scott Key, to whom the bridge is named after, sat in a boat in this very harbor, and he watched — he watched the British troops launch an attack after attack on American forces.

But as the dawn broke, we saw the American flag still flying, Baltimore was still standing, and our nation, as he wrote in the “Star-Spangled Banner,” had made it through a perilous fight.

Folks, this is going to take time, but Governor Moore, Senator Cardin, Senator Van Hollen, Congressman Mfume, Mayor Scott, County Executive Johnny O., and others are going to rebuild this bridge as rapidly as possible. And, folks, we’re determined to come back even stronger.

We’re the only nation that has gone through every crisis that we’ve had — we come out stronger than we went in. And we’re going to do it here as well. And once more to make this perilous challenge — this perilous challenge.

You know, because we’re the United States of America, there’s nothing — nothing, nothing beyond our capacity when we do it together. Think about that. Remember who we are. We’re the United States of America. Nothing is beyond our capacity.

May God bless you all. And may God protect our troops, our first responders, and all those who gave their soul.

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

3:33 P.M. EDT

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South Lawn

12:52 P.M. EDT

Q    Your reaction to the earthquake, sir — the New York City earthquake?  Can you talk about it briefly?  Your reaction, sir, to the New York —

THE PRESIDENT: With regard — with re- —

Q    Did you threaten to stop military —

THE PRESIDENT:  With regard —

Q    — aid to Israel?

THE PRESIDENT:  With regard to the earthquake, I spoke to the governor.  He thinks everything is under control.  He’s not too concerned about it — the governor of New Jersey — so things are all right. 

Thank you.

(Cross-talk.)

Q    Did you threaten to stop military aid to Israel, Mr. President?

THE PRESIDENT:  Pardon me?

Q    Did you threaten to stop military aid to Israel?

THE PRESIDENT:  I asked them to do what they’re doing. 

(Cross-talk.)

Q    Are you abandoning Israel?

THE PRESIDENT:  Where you from, man?

Q    Are you abandoning Israel?

THE PRESIDENT:  Is that a serious question? 

12:53 P.M. EDT

 

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Naomi Drenan Recreation Center
Charlotte, North Carolina

(April 4, 2024)

2:28 P.M. EDT

THE VICE PRESIDENT:  Good afternoon, everyone.   Good afternoon.  Please have a seat.  Please have a seat. 

Donnetta, thank you for that introduction and all the work you’ve been doing at Self-Help.  I’m going to talk about that work in a minute. 

But I really — I really appreciate the fact that the spirit behind the announcements we’re making today really are about our community leaders and the love, the passion, the commitment, the drive, the ambition that our community leaders have, knowing that when we see and understand who the community is, everyone will benefit.  Everyone will benefit.  So, thank you for that. 

Mayor Lyles — Mayor Lyles, thank you for once again welcoming me to your beautiful city and for all the leadership that you have provided and the partnership you have provided to the President and me.  I want to thank you for that. 

And, of course, it is so good to be back in this beautiful state with so many incredible leaders. 

The Administrator, Michael Regan, who has been so bold and innovative as a leader for the EPA. 

And then I just — you know I’m going to talk about you — my Congresswoman.  I mean, I know I don’t live in your district, but — (laughter) — the great Alma Adams, a long-standing champion of North Carolina’s families and a dear, dear friend to me for the years that I have been in Washington, D.C., before as a senator and now as vice president. 

And many of you may know of her extraordinary work, including being the co-founder of the Black Maternal Health Caucus and all your work there.  (Applause.)  Thank you.  Thank you.

And so, thank you to everyone here for all your work. 

So, we are here today to address two issues that are critical to the strength of our economy and the future of our nation: access to capital and building a clean energy economy.  (Applause.)  Yes.

So, as you have now heard, since taking office, the President and I have made an incredible investment, the largest investment ever, to take on the climate crisis: roughly a trillion dollars — with a T — (laughter) — I had to — (laughter and applause) — over the next 10 years.  And that investment to create millions of jobs; to provide billions of dollars of clean energy money and investment to small businesses and entrepreneurs; to lower monthly energy bills for families across our nation; and to expand access to capital.

In every community in our nation, there are, of course, extraordinary people with talent, ingenuity, and the ability to help us take on the climate crisis: entrepreneurs, who I’ve met, who founded an innovative solar and wind power start-up that can help reduce our greenhouse gas emissions; in communities where there are small-business owners who help produce the batteries that power our nation’s fleet of electric vehicles; and, of course, community organizers that help millions of families make their homes more energy efficient to lower their energy bills. 

But while every community has the capacity to join the clean energy economy, not every community has had the opportunity to do that. 

As vice president, I have met with climate leaders from communities across our nation — from rural Arizona, to downtown Detroit; from Dalton, Georgia, to Denver, Colorado, to Durham.  And I can tell you that I have seen firsthand that in too many places, too many people with all of that talent there have still had limited opportunity to access to capital to do the work that they want to do to start and grow a clean energy business, to make their homes more energy efficient, or to install solar panels or EV chargers in their community. 

So, I have fought for years with so many of you — we have fought together shoulder to shoulder — to expand access to capital for every community.  And as you heard, as a United States senator, I was proud to — to gain more than $12 billion, which we secured for our nation’s community banks.  And those are, of course, financial institutions which are run by folks who live, work, and invest in the communities they serve. 

And then, as vice president, in 2022, I launched the Economic Opportunity Coalition, which is a coalition of banks, technology companies, and nonprofits, to invest billions of dollars in community banks from the private sector so they can make more loans under what we know to be circumstances where we’re looking at communities that have been underserved, including our rural communities. 

And so far, the Economic Opportunity Coalition has invested over a billion dollars across our country. 

And then, last year, we announced the largest investment in our nation’s history, $20 billion, to create a national network of nonprofits to expand access to capital for community-based climate projects — projects run by leaders from the community.  (Applause.)  Yes.  And the majority of this $20 billion will go to communities that have historically been left out and left behind. 

And here is what is special about this announcement: For the first time in history, we are providing tens of billions of dollars directly to community lenders to finance local climate projects. 

This is a novel approach.  It is actually the first time we have taken this approach, because we know that we have the capacity with this approach to empower communities to decide which projects they want, that will have the greatest impact from their perspective in the place they call home.  And then we can invest in those projects in a way that will actually have value for the people who live there, instead of us from Washington, D.C., telling you what you need.  (Applause.)  And that is critically important. 

And so, today, our announcement is that we have chosen eight nonprofits to lead this work, from a community of — of banks that are a network that serve Native communities, to a rural economic development collective that works in Appalachia, to a group of lenders that focus on economic and climate justice.  Yes. 

And this $20 billion investment will allow these eight nonprofits to fund tens of thousands of community-based climate projects. 

So, I’d like you to imagine what this means. 

Imagine, for example, the young entrepreneur who wants to launch a startup to repair electric vehicle chargers, and that this person can now get a small-business loan to hire her first employees. 

Imagine a small-business owner who can now take out a line of credit to buy a fleet of electric delivery vehicles so he can stop paying for gas and reduce pollution at the same time. 

Imagine a house of worship that can now get a zero-interest loan so they can install solar panels to generate clean energy through electricity for the entire neighborhood. 

Our investment will also help lower energy bills for homeowners and renters.  When President Biden and I first ran for office, folks told us we — we have to take on the climate crisis and we have to also lower monthly energy bills.  Well, the investment we’re talking about today will do both. 

For example, today, I visited Grier Heights — (applause) — and as many of you know, it is an his- — an historically Black neighborhood here in Charlotte.  And over the past two decades, the community bank Self-Help worked with residents and community organizations to install good insulation, high-quality windows, and new electric appliances in 49 homes in this part of Charlotte to make them more energy efficient. 

So, earlier today, before I arrived here, I visited with one of those homes and met Levon, who is here with his two beautiful sons — (applause) — the baby, who is napping after our visit — (laughter) — and the older young leader’s son who was talking with me about how he was watching the Shirley Chisholm documentary.  And I told him I’m counting on his leadership. 

And — and they were so kind to — to welcome us to — to visit with them.  Levon is a small-business owner and a former middle school teacher.  And — and he shared with me that last — in his last home, every month, he paid $300 for his gas bill and $300 for his electricity bill. 

After moving into one of Self-Help’s energy-efficient homes, Levon’s total energy bill — total — dropped to around $100 a month.  (Applause.)

And he offered to me what that meant for him as a young father of young children.  He said, well, that savings now allows him to have more money to pay for childcare.  He’s a small-business owner; he needs childcare for his children.  He said that he and his spouse now are putting aside at least $50 a month for each of their sons for their savings account for college or whatever they choose to do. 

So, let’s think about what this means.  Yes, we talk about cutting energy costs.  But when we’re talking about real people with their dreams and aspirations and responsibilities and obligations, this is a big deal. 

So, today’s investment will allow Self-Help and other nonprofits to help 30,000 more families across our nation upgrade their homes.  And that is just the beginning. 

But think about it: Soon, 30,000 more families will have the funds they need to replace drafty windows and install better insulation to keep their homes warm in the winter and cool in the summer and, here in North Carolina, to help you lower that monthly Duke Energy bill.  (Applause.)  You’re welcome.  (Laughs.)  Right?

And just like Levon, 30,000 more families will now have the opportunity to save potentially hundreds of dollars every month and with more money in their pocket, then, for groceries and school supplies and childcare. 

Our $20 billion public investment will also serve as an investment for the private sector.  And I met with the leaders of the eight non- — nonprofits before I came out to thank them.  Because over the next seven years, this $20 billion public investment will incentivize more than $100 billion in private-sector investing. 

And I know, and I think everyone here knows, that there is great power in public-private partnerships, which demonstrate how much we can accomplish when we combine the experience and expertise of the private sector with the scale and capacity of government. 

So, all of that being said, we also know that this investment is going to create jobs — good-paying union jobs; jobs for the workers of IBEW, who are going to install the energy-efficient lighting; jobs for sheet metal workers who can replace the dirty furnaces and — and replace them with clean electric heat pumps; and jobs for the laborers who will build affordable, energy-efficient housing. 

So, I’ll conclude with this.  This investment demonstrates an important point: When we invest in climate, we create jobs, we lower costs, and we invest in families. 

When we expand access to capital and give every person in our nation, no matter who they are or where they live, the opportunity to pursue their dreams, we build a cleaner, healthier, and more equitable and more prosperous future for everyone. 

Thank you all.  (Applause.)

May God bless you.  And God bless America. 

Thank you.  Thank you.

END                2:44 P.M. EDT

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East Room

5:29 P.M. EDT

THE PRESIDENT: Well, Your Eminence, thank you very much.

I should start by saying the only reason I’m able to stand here is because of the Greek community. That’s not hyperbole.

I won my election as a 29-year-old senator — I know I’m only about 40 now, but — (laughter) — a 29-year-old senator by 3,100 votes — as my sister, Valerie, who’s here, will tell you — managed my campaign.

And as we were — you always look, in Delaware, from — you work politically from south to north. And I was coming up from Delmar, Delaware, checking all the polling stations on Election Day in — that November in ‘72. And I got across what they call the Canal — the Delaware and Chesapeake Canal. We — it’s the C&D Canal, the Chesapeake and Dela- — we call it the other way around.

And I was losing. And I got into Wilmington, and one of the — please move all that back, by the way.

One of the things that I — I learned early on was that I had a very close relationship with the Greek American community — for real — in the heart and — I mean, real — and the church there as well.

And I think, if there were — I forget the exact number of votes, but I think every Greek American in Delaware voted for me because they — (laughter) — no, no, no, no, no — (applause).

By the way, as some of the Delawareans would tell you, that’s where I acquired a nickname I’m very proud of: I am Joe “Biden-opoulos.” (Laughter and applause.) That’s the nickname I got.

So, Your Eminence, thank you for that — that introduction and for reminding us of the core values that unite Greece and America and so many other people around the world.

Welcome to the White House, everybody. This is your house, and you’re one of the reasons why, as I said, I’m here and why this house is here.

Today, we celebrate 203 years of Greek independence — 203 years. And we celebrate the ties of friendship and family between Greece and the United States that stretch back even longer than that.

Archbishop, the folks in this room embody those ties. We have proud Greek Americans here in the worlds of science, journalism, academia, finance, as well as small-business owners, religious leaders, public servants from all across America.

And together — together, you truly embody the breadth of the contributions that the Greek American community delivers every day for their country in communities all across the country and all across the nation.

I want to make — I want to welcome Eleni, who is here. She is the Lieutenant Governor of California. (Applause.) But before that, she was an ambassador in the Biden-Obama — the O-Biden — (laughter) — the — the Obama-Biden administration. (Laughter.) And she to- — anybody who could take care of Hungary in those days can handle anything. (Laughter.) But you’ve been a great friend for many years, and I thank you.

And welcome to the ambassadors from Greece and Cyprus, who are here. Raise your hands, guys. I don’t know where you are out there.

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

As well as the United States’ Ambassador to Greece, an old friend of mine — I asked him to be the ambassador, and I hope he forgives me, but he’s doing a great job — George Tsunis.

George Tsunis, where are you? (Applause.) There you are, George.

And if you’ll allow me to name a few additional friends here today. Now, look, I went to University of Dela- — everybody tells me the great schools they went to. All my kids went to Penn and Georgetown and all these other — they — they didn’t go to the really great school. I went to the University of Delaware. (Laughter.) And the president of the University of Delaware happens to be a Greek American standing right in front of me here. (Applause.)

The president of the University of Delaware, Dennis Assanis, and Eleni, who is really the president, I think, his wife. (Laughs.) Mr. President, you’re making me very proud and the university very proud.

And, look, I see some old friends out there: Andy and Mike Manatos. Guys, you — you go back a long way with me. You’re one of the reasons why I’m here, for real.

This is not hyperbole. I’m not exaggerating any of this. It’s the reason why I got here.

And, by the way, it’s though he’s not here to- — although he’s not here today, I just got off the phone with an old friend of mine, celebrating his birthday everywh- — elsewhere with his grandchildren, my friend, Father Alex. He sends all his love. (Applause.) And he is my friend — from the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America.

And, by the way, I have a — and he and I have traveled the country and the world together, including in Greece. And on more than one occasion, I visited His All Holiness Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew, who was a great, great friend and a great, great man.

Remember he was having a little trouble being held in another country? We made it clear that if he wasn’t taken care of quickly, we may have a problem w- — the United States.

And two years ago, I was very proud to give Father Alex, by the way, the Medal — the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

You know — (applause) — my friends, to be very blunt about it, my sister and I, all year, look forward to this reception. And some of you know, the fact is that we’re in a situation where I have found lifelong friends in this audience, mentors in this country [community]. I’ve found inspiration in the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, which has been a clarion voice for social justice for decades.

You know, I’m an Irish American. I know that shocks you all. (Laughter.) But we have — I’ve felt a deep kinship with the Greek American community. So many grandparents, so many great-grandparents started out in America just — with just the clothes on their back, like my ancestors did, and went on to build good lives for themselves and, even more importantly, good futures for their families.

And so many of the values I grew up with, the values my Greek American friends grew up with as well, like treating everyone with dignity. My dad used to say, “You know, Joey, a job is about a lot more than a paycheck. It’s about your dignity. It’s about respect. It’s about being able to look your kid in the eye and say, ‘Honey, it’s going to be okay.’”

Like treating everyone with dignity, no matter who they are; working hard, dreaming big, never forgetting where you come from, and always holding on to the pride — pride in your family, in your community, your heritage, and, above all, pride in the great country we share together.

That pride is felt by so many immigrant communities all across America. And we celebrate that today.

Today is about friendship. Aristotle said, “A friend is a single soul dwelling in two bodies.” “A friend is a single soul dwelling in two bodies.” And that’s what we are: We’re friends.

To me, that captures the relationship between Greece and the United States. I believe the soul is the breath, the life, the essence of who we are. The soul is what makes us “us,” in my view.

America is the only country on Earth built on an idea. Every other country is based on ethnicity, geography, religion, and other attributes. But America is based on a simple idea, for real.

We’re not based on geog- — we’re based on an idea: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men and women are created equal, endowed by their Creator with certain in- — inalienable rights,” et cetera — you know, that we’re all entitled to be treated with decency and dignity, respect throughout our lives. And democracy must always be defended because it’s the vehicle that allows it all to happen — makes all this possible.

And you all know where that idea came from — democracy, where it was born: in Greece, a millennia ago, where some of the greatest thinkers in the world’s history conceived the notion of “We the People.” That’s where it came from. “We the People” — “demos” in democracy — can and should control our own destiny.

In my view, it’s the precious gift the Greeks — Greece has given the world. And that gift can give rise to our nation — it gave rise to it.

America’s Founding Fathers studied ancient Greek thinkers and leaders. Our revolution in 1776 was inspired — literally, not figuratively — inspired by their ideas. I know we always say this, but I wonder whether we really fully, totally appreciate what it was.

Forty-five years after that, Greek patriots fought for their own independence, galvanized by America’s quest for liberty. And that’s why the anniversary of Greece’s in- — Greek’s independence is a special day in America as well.

Our nations are connected. We have shared values, shared aspirations, and shared belief in all that is possible.

I was once asked by Xi Jinping in — I traveled 17,000 miles with him in Tibet- — I was on the Tibetan Plateau. And he looked at me, and he said to me, “Can you define America?” And I could say the same thing if he asked me to define Greece. I said, “Yes, one word,” — and I mean this sincerely; it’s reg- — it’s recorded. I said, “One word: possibilities.” “Possibilities.”

We believe anything is possible. When “We the People” come together for the common good, the bonds between us are rooted in our history. But they’re very much alive today. In this very room, together, we’re keeping those bonds alive.

The people of Greece, the people of the United States did not just inherit democracy. We have to be its defenders. It has to be, every generation, championed. We must be its champion. And that’s as important today as it’s ever been, and that’s not hyperbole.

So, I want to thank you all for being here to celebrate liberty. And I want to thank you for your commitment, making it real, in our time, the ideals that sparked our two nations’ struggle for independence more than 200 years ago.

And may both Greece and the United States continue to lift high the lamp of democracy so we can always serve as the beacon of hope to the world.

So, folks, happy Greek Independence Day. And welcome to your house.

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

5:40 P.M. EDT

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Indian Treaty Room

12:00 P.M. EDT

THE PRESIDENT:  Kris, thank you, thank you, thank you.  First of all, thank you for the courage you’ve shown over the years dealing with your health issues but also for standing up here before the whole nation and explaining to us what you’ve gone through.  It’s not easy to do.

You know, trying to afford your expensive medications, from blood disorders to asthma — millions of Americans — millions — have similar stories: lying in bed at night literally staring at the ceiling wondering what in God’s name will happen if their spouse gets cancer of if their child gets sick or something happens to them.  Are they going to have enough insurance?  Can they afford the medical bills they’re going to have?  Will they have to sell the house to keep things moving?

You know, and you find out a big reason why we’re lying awake at night with these questions is because the drug companies are charging exorbitant — exorbitant prescription drug prices — higher prices than anywhere in the world. 

When Bernie said it — I was listening in the back, Bernie.  You and I have been fighting this for 25 years.  Finally — finally we beat Big Pharma.  Finally.  (Applause.)  I’m serious.

I’m proud — (laughs) — I’m proud that my administration is taking on Big Pharma in the most significant ways ever.

And I wouldn’t have done it without Bernie.  And Bernie got a — you know, look, Bernie was the one who was leading the way for decades in which we’re — why we’re here today.

You know, Bernie mentioned that Americans pay more for prescription drugs than other advanced nation in the world.

If you want to — if you walk into a local drugstore here in America, the prices are at least two to three times more for the exact same prescription made by the exact same pharmaceutical company in Canada, France, Italy, and even in Eastern Europe — all around the world.  But not anymore.

For years, people have talked about how Medicare has the power to negotiate for lower drug price — prescription drug prices the government pays for, just like the VA does when they’re able to negotiate medicines and — and needs for the veterans.

But we’ve tried and tried and tried.  And finally, with Bernie’s help, I finally got my Inflation Reduction Act, which passed — and Bernie helped get it passed.  Not one Republican in the entire Congress — this — this did surprise me; I have to admit to you — not one single Republican voted for it — not one single one — to give us authority to take on and beat Big Pharma.

Take insulin for people with diabetes — it costs 10 bucks to make.  If you add everything in terms of packaging and all the rest, you can argue maybe $12 total.  And they’re charging as much as $400 a month.  Not anymore.  Not anymore.  Seniors with diabetes will only have to pay $35 a month from this point on.  (Applause.) 

And, by the way, when I first got the law passed, guess what?  It applied to every American — every American.  But the Republicans were able to cut back on the fact that only — they only were not able — the only thing they couldn’t defeat was seniors.

But I want to — I want those savings to be for every — every single person in America, no matter what their age.  No one should pay more than 35 bucks a month for insulin, period.

And, by the way, drug companies still make a significant pro- — product — I’m — excuse me, significant profit because I said: Ten bucks to make.  By the way, the guy who invented the drug didn’t want to patent it because he wanted it available to everybody.  Well, it’s available all right.

Look, folks, there’s a whole lot of prescription drugs that are ongoing — undergoing the process of lower pricing.

Medicare is now able to negotiate lower drices — lower prices for some of the costliest drugs that treat everything from heart disease to arthritis.

This year alone, the law that’s already passed — it’s in the law now that we signed — Medicare is negotiating

10 of the most costly drugs next year, and they’ll do that every year beyond for the — it goes well beyond 50 drugs. 

Next year, it’ll be 15.  It isn’t just saving seniors money.  Along with other reforms, it’s taxpayer money and we’re cutting the federal deficit.  And people say, “Well, it’s costing money.”  Guess what?  It’s costing the drug companies money. 

It cuts the deficit by $160 billion — $160 billion.  (Applause.)  No, I’m serious.  Think about it.  Over the next 10 years — because Medicare will no longer have to be — pay those exorbitant prices.  Instead of paying 400 bucks, they’re paying 35 bucks.

But I think we should be more aggressive.  It’s time to negotiate lower prices for at least 50 drugs a year.  We only have it — the law only requires 10 now, and then 15, and it moves up.

Along with other actions, we’re not only saving lives, but if we move that number up, we’ll save taxpayers another $200 billion on top of the $160 billion, because Medicare will not be paying these exorbitant costs.

It is a gigantic — and, by the way, the other guy talks about cutting the deficit.  He increased the deficit more than any president has in history.  And we’ve cut it.

Look, in addition to the law we passed that will cap prescription drug costs for seniors on Medicare starting in 2025 — it’s already the law — doesn’t require anything else — because when I say these things, they say, “You think you can get it done?”  It’s already the law. 

Every- — your drugs will not cost you — if you’re a senior on Medicare — will not have to pay more than $2,000 a year, no matter what the drugs costs.  And as you know — many of you unfortunately know or your parents — some of the cancer drugs cost $10-, $12-, $15,000 a year.  Combined — combined, they will not have to pay a penny beyond $2,000 a year.  (Applause.)  And the drug companies will still make a lot of money.

Folks, Bernie and I want to cap prescription drug costs at $2,000 a year for every American, not just seniors.  (Applause.)

We’re here today to talk about how we’re lowering prices and cracking down on un- — unfair competition in prescription drugs.

I’m a capitalist.  Capitalism, though, without competition isn’t capitalism;  it’s exploitation.  That’s what’s going on: exploitation.

When Big Pharma doesn’t play by the rules, competitors can’t offer lower prices for generic drugs and devices that carry that medication, so prices are raised artificially.  I thank Bernie for leading the charge to do something about this.

For example, asthma is one of the most common respiratory illnesses in America.  Twenty-seven million Americans have asthma, including four million children.  Asthma causes about one thou- — one million visits to a hospital emergency rooms every year.

Nationwide, the cost of treating asthma is estimated to be $50 billion a year — the treating the asthma — not the drug, treating the asthma.

If you have asthma, you will likely need an inhaler to breathe.  Now this spring is here, the season and allergies are on — upon us.  We’re on the rise even more.  More people with asthma need inhalers to breathe.

You know, many asthma medications — many have — be on the market for more than 25 years.  They cost less than $5 to make.  They cost less than $5 to make, but the medication — the medication hasn’t changed at all.

Theoretically, if the drug company came with a new medicine that would — they invested in a lot of money to find a better way, they di- — they wouldn’t have to — they could argue that — another price.  But drug companies have increased prices for asthma drugs up to eight times more than the original cost.  And the mechanism is- — and the m- — the mechanisms attached to the inhaler, the thing that makes it, you know, go into your — into your nose or mouth, that is a device that Med- — Medicare hasn’t changed much either.

Look, these big companies try to keep generic companies away from getting patents on devices that deliver the medication through the inhalers.

So, there’s two pieces.  It’s not just the — what’s in the inhaler.  It’s the mechanism that allows it to go into your body.

For example, they slightly changed the cap of an inhaler and they use the new patent on that cap to block generic drug companies from being able to enter the market.  It’s a big deal.  Playing these games with patients and pricing, Big Pharma is able to charge Americans significantly higher prices and pad their profits.

Senator Sanders has pointed out one company sells an inhaler for 49 bucks in the United Kingdom.  You know how much they charge in the United States for that one inhaler?  Six hundred and forty-five dollars.  So, I take — $645.

If you need that inhaler and you get on Air Force One with me, the next time we go to London, you can get off and you can get it for — (laughter) — no, I’m serious.  Think about that, though.  Just think about that.  For the same exact medicine and the same exact device.  It’s outrageous.

Another company sells an inhaler for $9 in Germany — $9 in Germany — and we pay $286 here in the United States.  Nine bucks in Germany — same outfit, same company, same device — and it’s 30 times more.  Thirty times more.  I repeat: It’s outrageous.  And we’re doing something about it, finally.

Why in God’s name should an American pay $645 for the same inhaler sold in the United Kingdom for $49 by the same outfit — the same outfit?

Bernie called out the drug companies during the congressional hearings.  And you just heard from Lina Khan, the Federal — the Chair of the Federal Trade Commission, who is working with the Food and Drug Administration to crack down on these drug companies, and it’s a big deal. 

As a result of all this action, some drug companies have withdrawn their abusive patent listings for inhalers and other common products like EpiPens.

You know, the last few weeks, some of the big drug companies have gotten the message to reduce the prices for some asthma drugs.  Bernie is a big reason why that’s happened.  In fact, three of the four largest companies are capping the cost of inhalers for many patients — that can be up to $600 out of pocket — at $35.  There’s some progress going on beyond what we’ve done — the law.  But it’s about time. 

And — and going forward with more competition and more generic drugs in the market, the price could be even less than it is now and coming down. 

But that’s not all.  Because of all of you, my Inflation Reduction Act — drug companies that raise prices more than inflation are going to pay back Medicare the difference between what they charged and the inflation rate.  This is based on the price of their drugs in 2021. 

That means consumers will pay less for prescription drugs, and they’ll save taxpayers money and discourage companies from hiking prices faster than inflation in the first place.  But we want to do more.

It’s time the drug companies pay rebates when they increase prices faster than inflation — not just for seniors but for every single American — every single American.  (Applause.)

And today’s announcement follows actions we’ve already taken to significantly reduce the healthcare costs for average Americans.  We took action to reduce the cost of hearing aids for millions of Americans by as much as $3,000 for a pair of hearing aids. 

In addition, my administration is banning junk fees on health insurance plans.  These are the plans that stick consumers with big unexpected charges instead of covering the care they need.

Look, they ended up with fair surpri- — I ended up- — surprise medical bills so hospitals that are in-network can’t send you a bill for an out-of-network doctor that you didn’t choose or you would — haven’t even been consulted.  I was in the hospital for a while years ago and that happened.  

Kamala and I are protecting and expanding the Affordable Healthcare Act, known as Obamacare, which, I might add, is still a big deal.   (Applause.)

Today — thank God my mother wasn’t here — (laughter) — today, 21 million Americans are covered through the Affordable Care Act, 9 million more than when I took office.

I exact tax credits — we enacted tax credits to save an average of $800 per person per year, reducing healthcare premiums for millions of working families whose coverage — who have coverage under the Affordable Care Act.

Those tax credits, though, expire.  You can only get it for — through this year.  And I’m calling on Congress to make tax credits permanent — permanent for this process.  (Applause.)

And, folks, all of our progress is in stark contrast to my predecessor and MAGA Republicans in — in the Congress.  They want to, quote — I love their word they love — they want to “terminate” the Affordable Care Act — I love it, “terminate” –my — as my predecessor says, kicking millions of Americans off their health insurance.

And, by the way, the vast majority of these people would not be able to get insurance because they have a preexisting condition. 

They also want to eliminate the Inflation Reduction Act, eliminate the savings to lower prescription drug prices, and so much more.

During the last administration, my president ex- — my predecessor exploded the national debt more than any previous president in the history in a four-year term — more than any prev- — he talks about the debt.  He exploded it more than any other president in a four-year term with his $2 trillion tax cut that overwhelmingly — overwhelmingly benefitted the very wealthy and the biggest corporations in America. 

Now he and his Republicans in Congress want to cut Social Security — raise the age — and cut Medicare while they cut taxes for the very wealthy again.

You know, I got a better idea.  I’m going to protect Social Security and Medicare, along with Bernie and other members of Congress, to make sure the wealthy begin to pay their fair share to keep these programs solvent.  (Applause.)  It’s not hard. 

And let me repeat what I said that even some people, like Bernie, didn’t like at the beginning — and I don’t blame them — but I said on day one, to make a point: No one in America will pay a single penny more in federal taxes if they make under — less than — if they make less than $400,000 a year. 

I wish I was able to do that.  I was listed — and Bernie will — used to kid me about it — I was listed as the poorest man in Congress for 36 years.  I didn’t think I was poor.  I got a good salary.  But I was the poorest man in Congress.

Trump brags about he is the reason Roe v. Wade was overturned.  And here’s his quote: “I did something no one thought possible.  I got rid of Roe v. Wade.”  End of quote.

And now he and his MAGA officials are calling on a nat- — for a national ban on the right to choose in every state.

I promise you: With a Democratic Congress, Kamala and I will make Roe v. Wade the law of the land again.  I promise you.  (Applause.)

I’m talking too long here.  Let me close with this.  (Laughter.)  I’m excited about this.  I’m really proud of what we’ve been able to do.  I really am.

Bernie and I have been doing this work for a long time.  I know we don’t look it, but we’ve been doing it a long time.  (Laughter.)  Bernie and I have something else in common: We both married way above our stations.

But any rate, but we know we’ve made historic progress in the last three years: 35 bucks for insulin for seniors, $35 for inhalers for asthma, $2,000 a year total cap on costs for seniors.

We’re lowering the cost of some of the most expensive prescription drugs for seniors.

And what I want to do next — what we want to do next is these caps on costs for everyone — everyone, not just seniors.

With Bernie’s help, we’re showing how healthcare ought to be a right and not a privilege in America.  And that’s why I’ve never been more optimistic about — I really mean it.  You’ve heard me say in this very room how optimistic I am.  I am optimistic because the laws we got passed are now coming into effect, whether it’s the infrastructure or whether it’s this.  I mean, there’s so much more.

I just have — we have to — and I said this many times and I’ll get out of your hair.  You know, we have to remember who we are.  We’re the United States of America.

I mean — I mean these things from the bottom of my heart.  We’re the United — there is nothing beyond our capacity when we do it together.  We’re the only nation — as a student of history — that I can find that’s come out of every crisis we’ve entered stronger than we went in.  Every single time.  So, let’s remember who the hell — we’re the United States of America. 

God bless you all.  And may God protect our troops.  (Applause.)

12:17 P.M. EDT

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11:16 A.M. EDT

THE FIRST LADY:  Welcome to the White House Easter Egg Roll.  Happy Easter, everybody.  (Applause.)

I’m a teacher, so I love any time when we can turn the White House into a classroom.  And that’s what we’re doing today.

The South Lawn is transforming into our learning playground and school community.  And there’s so much to discover. Listen to a story in the reading nook, explore space, make circuit breakers, write notes to our troops, take a field trip to a farm, hunt for dinosaur fossils, and so much more.

Education expands our horizons and transports us to new worlds.  Just like these balloons, it allows all students to soar and reach unimaginable heights.

I hope that you all learn something new today.  But most importantly, I hope you all have fun.

And now it is my honor to please welcome my husband, the President of the United States, Joe Biden.  (Applause.)

THE PRESIDENT:  Happy Easter!

Well, we did everything, but we couldn’t control the weather.  Although, Al Roker told me this morning it was going to get sunny.

Folks, welcome to what’s expected to be the biggest White House Easter Egg Roll ever.  (Applause.)

I want to thank the National Park Service, the White House Historical Association, the American — especially the American Egg Board, and our nation’s egg farmers.  For the egg board — they’ve done a great job.  (Applause.)  And thank you for making this special tradition possible.

You know, it began in 1878 because they wanted to have an Easter egg roll on the park grounds, but they weren’t allowed to do it.  So, the President then said, “Let’s have it on the White House lawn.”  They couldn’t stop that.  It’s been going on since then.

Easter reminds us of the power of hope and renewal, sacrifice and resurrection, but mainly love and grace toward one another.

It’s a time to pray for one another, to cherish the blessings and the possibilities that we have as Americans.

That’s what I see in our country.  We are a great nation because we’re a good people.  Our values are solid.  And the rest of the world looks to us, and we’re determined to keep up that banner.

And because of you, the American people — and I mean this sincerely — I’ve never been more optimistic about America than I am today.  We have enormous opportunities — enormous opportunities.

We just have to remember who we are.  We’re the United States of America, and there’s nothing — (applause) — nothing beyond our capacity.

May God bless you all.  Enjoy the day.  And I’m coming down to do that Easter egg roll in just a minute.

Thank you all so very, very much.  (Applause.)  Thanks, everybody. 

And, by the way, say hello to our Easter bunnies.  Come on up, bunnies.  Get up here so they can see you.  Come on, get in there.  Pretty big bunny, huh?

All right.  Thank you all so very, very much.  It’s all yours: the President’s home.

 11:20 A.M. EDT

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11:20 A.M. EDT
 
THE PRESIDENT: Thank you, thank you, thank you.  (Applause.)  You’re incredible. You’re — really, you’re incredible. (Applause.)
 
Folks, please — please have a seat. Sit down.
 
I’m not going to take much of your time. I came to say thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you. 
 
You know, one of — a couple of us have been doing this more than a year or two. (Laughter.) I don’t ever remember an event like last night. I’m not joking. Any — I don’t mean for us. I mean for anybody. 
 
The enthusiasm, what you put together is just incredible — incredible. And, Julie, you deserve a lot of the credit. (Applause.) 
 
Look, you know, it was good being with Barack and Bill. We’ve — I’ve worked with them a long, long time. 
 
I was deeply involved in the Clinton administration all those years from the Senate. 
 
And Barack — we — we sat together every morning at nine o’clock for eight years.  And, look, I — I couldn’t — I thought the way they — I thought — I was — I was impressed. (Laughter and applause.) I — I was.
 
I’m supposed to be — I’m supposed to be the guy out there — I’m the — I’m the president. I’m looking, “Holy God, they really mean it.” (Laughter.) 
 
All kidding aside, let me — let me be clear. We’re here today because of Chris. It’s Chris’s birthday today. Where are you, Chris? (Applause.) Now, folks, Jill would — look at his glasses.  (Laughter.) That’s my birthday gift to him. 
 
Let’s sing “Happy Birthday” to the man. (The President leads the audience in singing “Happy Birthday” to Chris Korge.) (Applause.)
 
Chris, it’s hell turning 40, but you’ll get over it. (Laughter.) 
 
Look, from the bottom of my heart: Thank you, thank you, thank you.  Thank you for your support.  And, you know, it’s because of you I can say that we’ve raised more money than any previous Democratic campaign in history at this point. (Applause.)
 
And last night showed our skeptics, as well as our supporters — it showed the press; it showed everyone — that we are united. We’re a united party. 
 
Your incredible enthusiasm — I’ve been seeing it all over the country. On a much smaller scale — as I’ve been going to all the — I’ve been to, I think, seven, eight, nine states in the last couple of weeks. And that’s the enthusiasm on the ground. That’s how people have been. 
 
And it’s hard to come home and say that, because people look — well, you know, they read the polls, and they’re tight or they’re — we’re behind. 
 
And, by the way, we’re ahead. (Applause.)
 
But we traveled to Pennsylvania, Michigan, Georgia, Wisconsin, New Hampshire, Nevada, Arizona, North Carolina.  Jill, Kamala and Doug, and I traveling as well. Look, it’s a — it’s just a lot of campaigning.
 
And our grassroots organization is really kick- — kicking up. Support keeps getting stronger. 
 
Here’s the number that blows my mind: 1.5 million contributors so far — 1.5 million. (Applause.) Five hundred and fifty thousand of them brand-new contributors in the last couple of weeks — 550,000. (Applause.)
 
And guess what? 97 percent of all that is under 200 bucks.  (Applause.) I mean, if that ain’t grassroots, I don’t know what is.  And you’re all thinking, “Why didn’t we just contribute 200 bucks?” (Laughter.) I know you contributed a few bucks more than 200 bucks. (Laughter.) 
 
But all kidding aside, what you’ve done is incredible. 
 
We’re ramping up campaign headquarters and field offices, hiring staff all across the country before Trump and his MAGA Republicans have even opened one single office. 
 
And, you know, while the press doesn’t write about it, we’ve been several — we have several national polls — and we’re leading — since the State of the Union Address. And I think you’re going to see a lot more coming. We’ve got to just keep this going. 
 
But I know not everyone’s feeling the enthusiasm. Just the other day, a defeated-looking guy came up to me and said,
“Mr. President, I’m being crushed by debt. I’m completely wiped out.  I need some help.” And I had to look at him and say, “Sorry, Donald, I can’t help you.” (Laughter and applause.) It bro- — it broke my heart. For Catholics, this is Holy Week. I should have had something nicer to say. (Laughter.) 
 
He really ask- — he recently asked the — the infamous question: Are you better off today than you were four years ago? Well, Donald, I’m glad you asked the question.  (Laughter.) 
 
I hope everyone in this country takes a moment to think back to where you were in March of 2020.  And, you know, COVID led — came to America. Trump was president. He — he tried to downplay the whole virus. He tried to — he told us that it will go away. “Just stay calm. It will be gone by Easter.”
 
And, of course, we know from Bob Woodward’s book that Trump knew all along how dangerous it was. He just kept getting — and it kept getting worse. 
 
He told Americans to inj- — remember he told them to inj- — just inject bleach. Inject —
 
AUDIENCE MEMBER: (Inaudible.)
 
THE PRESIDENT: I tell you what, man, I — and, you know, he told us just get a hit of body — hit — just hit your body with UV light. 
 
Look, by the summer, Americans peacefully protested for justice in front of the White House. He wanted to tear-gas them. 
 
And the guy who I can say, having worked with him a long time, is a first-rate guy — he threatened a commander in the United States military that he was — that he should be put in jail. And — no, I think — did he use word “shot” somewhere along the line? 
 
Look, then after losing the 2020 election, he finished the presidency by sending a mob to attack Capitol Hill. I don’t want to repeat it all. You all know it as well as I do. 
 
Four years later, look at how far we’ve come. 
 
Donald Trump — Donald Trump is president in his mind.  (Laughter.) But the fact of the matter is I’m president; Kamala is a historic vice president — (applause) — because of you — because of you.
 
And COVID no longer controls our lives. Our economy is strong and getting stronger. 
 
Good news today. Did you hear the — the GDP, inflation?  We’re on track, man. It has continuing to move. 
 
We’ve reestablished American leadership in the world after he decided to walk away — I mean, literally, walk away from our responsibilities around the world with his new best friends.  He talks about he has love letters with Kim Jong Un, and talking about how Putin has — he’s a strong man, talking about how Hitler did some good things. I mean — I won’t even say it.
 
Of course, we have a lot more to do. 
 
You know, but, folks, the problem isn’t just looking back where Trump had the country. The problem is: Look ahead where MAGA extremists would take the country if they win again.
 
Trump and MAGA extremists want to, quote, “terminate” — I love the phraseology he uses — “terminate” the ACA.  Hundreds of thousands of people would lose their insurance — millions, actually. He wants to get rid of savings that I just got put into law for prescription drug prices. He wants to change that whole piece. 
 
We cannot — not allow Medicare to negotiate with the pharma for the drug — the price they’ll pay for the drugs. Prices like $35 insulin instead of $400 a month.
 
Look, and the last time he explored — when he was president, he talked about the national debt. He exploded the national debt at a greater degree than any president in American history. 
 
And guess what? We’ve actually not done that. We’ve — have savings on that since we’ve been president. 
 
Today, Trump recently said — he’s talked about cutting Social Security and Medicare. 
 
You know, he brags about how he’s the reason why Roe v.  Wade was (inaudible) and — and eliminated. And, you know, he’s right. He is the reason, pushing as hard as he did to put — to change the Supreme Court. 
 
And remember, at the time, we said, “What’s next: contraception, IVF?” We talked about what was going to come.  
 
Well, it’s coming. It’s coming like a rainstorm.  And now he’s calling for a national ban in every single state — in every state.  
 
Well, I tell you what, you guys elect me again and give me a little bit — a little more help in the Senate, we’re going to restore Roe v. Wade for the whole country. (Applause.)
 
You know, and he wants to undo everything we’ve done on climate. This guy doesn’t think climate change is real. We ought to put him right on the edge of the water so he can stay there while the climate change — changes. 
 
Look, the greatest threat he poses is to our — is to our democracy. I don’t want to go on too long here. And it’s not hyperbole to use the word twice today. It’s not hyperbole to suggest that — that he is — he’s the most antidemocratic — with a small D — president in American history, at least since Lincoln’s era when they — the Civil War. 
 
He embraces the violence of — of January the 6th. You know, and I — I had to go back and look at it because Mike Donilon pulled it out for me — the speech I made. 
 
I was so upset he was remaining silent on January the 6th.  And I was president-elect, not president. But we had no president. He wasn’t acting. 
 
And I went out and made a speech about — I was supposed to make a speech on the economy.  I made a speech on — on what was happening and what — what had to be done.  He did nothing. He sat in that little dining room off the Oval Office where I eat my lunch, and he watched it all. Didn’t do a damn thing. And now he’s running on it. 
 
You know, if you look — turn on — on one of those channels that has — covers one of his — his rallies, he has the folks who are in jail singing — singing and doing the National Anthem, and he’s doing — I don’t know what the hell he’s doing. But he’s talking about how these guys in prison — he calls them “patriots.” And he says, if he’s reelected, he’s going to pardon them. He’s going to pardon them. 
 
And, look, you know, I — I think I told you before, one of the most bracing moments I had as President of the United States so far was after I was sworn in. Right after I was sworn in, a week after, there was the G7. The leaders of the European — heads of European states met in London — outside of London, in England. And I sat down, and I said, “America is back.” 
 
And — and the French President looked at me, and he said, “For how long?  For how long?” And the German Chancellor said, “Mr. President” — he said, “What would you say if tomorrow morning you woke up and you saw, in the London Times, headlines saying, ‘Thousands stormed the British Parliament, break down the doors of the House of — the House, in order to be able to stop the outcome of an election’?”
 
What would you think? What would we all think? It put in perspective for me how the rest of the world looks at what happened here. 
 
We are — like it or not, we are the country the rest of the world looks to for stability. And that’s not hyperbole. That’s a fact.  That’s an actual fact. 
 
And Trump says if he loses again — again in November, there will be a “bloodbath.” What the hell is with this guy? No, I’m — I’m not — no, I’m really serious. It concerns me the most. 
 
I told you I have — one of the reasons, as Barack said the other night, that he asked me to be vice president was because I had a lot of experience in foreign policy as chairman of the Foreign Relations Committee and I knew most of the heads of state. 
 
And — but whether it’s the G20 meeting in — in India or whatever the meeting where there are other heads of state, I am not exaggerating when I say — and I say it in front of the press without giving the names — almost every one of the world leaders finds an excuse to get me alone for a moment, put their hand on my arm, and say, “You can’t let him win.”  “My” — meaning his country or her country — “my democracy is at stake. My democracy is at stake.” 
 
And, again, it’s not an exaggeration. Think about it. This is a guy who walked away from NATO. Th- — told Putin he could do whatever he wants if they’re not paying their dues. As I said, he’s working — talks about — anyway —
 
Just — just look at what he’s done. The rest of the world is wondering what in the hell is happening to us. And they’re relieved, not because I’m so special but that I’m not Trump.  I’m serious. I wish it was because they thought Biden was such a wonderful guy. (Laughter.)
 
I think they respect me. I think they listen to me. But the point is, it’s because they’re scared to death for their countries if he were to win again. 
 
This “America First” stuff has really worked well, hasn’t it?  
 
Look, we have to say with one voice, as Americans — Democrats, independents, Republicans — there is no place ever for political violence, for physical violence in our political system. None. Never. 
 
And you can’t only — (applause) — and, folks, you can’t only be for your country when you win. You know, we’ve lost, we’ve won, we’ve lost. That’s the democratic process. 
 
Let me close with this. There’s a lot of focus these days on how old Trump and I are. Well — (laughs) — I shouldn’t say — I won’t say it. (Laughter.)
 
But the real question is — is —
 
AUDIENCE MEMBER: Say it. Say it.
 
THE PRESIDENT: (Laughs.) Anyway, I — (laughter). Were it not for the fact it’s Good Friday, I might say it. (Laughter.)
 
Anyway, look, you know, the question is: How old are our ideas? How old are our ideas? Donald Trump’s vision for America is based on a cont- — a completely different value set than ours. His — he — his focus is on anger and hate, revenge and retribution — some of the oldest ideas of humankind. 
 
And, by the way, if I said that to you — if I said that a year ago, I’d have been — even wonder whether that was an exaggeration.  But think of all the Republicans you know that are decent members of the Senate and the House who are caving.  Why? It doesn’t show any courage, but they know there’s retribution. He’s convinced them all that if he somehow wins, they’re going to be an object of his attention. 
 
I have a different vision for America, like all of you do, one that focuses on the future and answers some really important questions. Will we be better off four years from now? That’s our goal: Make it better. We ma- — I think we made it a hell of a lot better than it was four years ago, but we got to make it a hell of a lot better still. (Applause.)
 
Here’s the kind of future I see — summarize it real quickly. I see a future where we defend democracy; we don’t dismiss it or diminish it. 
 
I see a future where the right to choose — where we protect our freedoms, not take them away — is paramount to everything we’re about. 
 
I see a future where the middle class finally has a fair shot and we restore the Child Tax Credit and we provide health- — home healthcare. Because guess what? That grows the economy.  That doesn’t diminish the econ- — it grows the economy. 
 
You know, I know I got criticized because I’m so pro labor. I’m pro labor because they’re the best workers in the world. (Applause.) No — 
 
And I asked the Treasury Department to do an analysis for me: what the effect of more labor in the marketplace had on the economy. And they said everyone, across the board — labor and non-labor — benefits. 
 
I met — I think — I know we talked a while ago, when we were talking, you and I. We talked about how I met with the Business Roundtable, and they asked me, you know, why — why was I pro labor. Why have I talked about it so much? And I pointed out to them — I said, because, you know, I met with — when I — the former Secretary of Commerce and I, when — in the — in the Obama administration, we met and — with you guys, and we went through the first 357 — well, not first — but 357 of the Fortune 500.
 
And we asked, “What’s the thing you most need?” You know what they said? They said they need a better — a better-trained workforce. 
 
And I pointed out — and, you know, (inaudible) I want you to go back to think about this. 
 
They — what we talked about was: If, in fact, you had — you know, everybody thinks, you know — you say, “I want to be an electrician.”  “Okay, you’re an electrician.” Five years — five years of apprenticeship — five — F-I-V-E. 
 
Any of these trades, they’re the best in the world. They’re the best in the world. That’s how I was able to track back over $55 billion in — in investment in infrastruct- — in the Intel stuff. 
 
You know, those little computer chips are the — about the size of the end of my little finger. We invented them. We made them. And we lost — we lost the whole market. 
 
Well, guess what?  They’re coming home. They’re coming home not just because of us — (applause). 
 
And, by the way, I made a commitment early on — and some thought it was too much — but I would make a point and a — and we don’t need to do anything beyond this. I made a commitment, as long as I’m President, no one making under $400,000 would pay an extra penny in taxes. And they haven’t. (Applause.) We’ve actually — actually cut the taxes.
 
And, folks, I see a future where there’s — you know, where we save the planet from a climate crisis and from gun violence.  We have the capacity to do both those things. 
 
And above all, I see a future for all Americans — a future that can — that we can build together. 
 
Look, we badly need to win this. 
 
I’m going on too long. I’m sorry. You have a long day and evening, but, you know — (applause) — I think it’s time for us to redouble our efforts. And I know we can. 
 
I’ve never been more — and I mean this sincerely. Some of you know me really well. And the bad news is no one now doubts what I — mean what I say. The problem is I sometimes say all that I mean. (Laughter.) More than once. (Laughter.)
 
But I — I give you my word as a Biden, I’ve never been more optimistic about our future. We have a chance. We have a chance to change the next six decades. 
 
And we’re in one of those inflection points in human history. They occur about every six or seven generations. 
 
We just went through the post-war period. It worked pretty damn well until things began to change. 
 
When I met with Putin after I was elected, in Geneva, I looked at him, and he talked about — he wanted to do something. I said, “What are you going to do about methane?” I said, “You — you have — you’re in eight time zones around the Arctic Circle, and methane is” — he had no idea. He didn’t have the slightest notion what he could do, and he knows there’s a problem. 
 
Well, we know the problems are out there, but we know how to solve them if we work together. Not just —
 
But everything is changing. I’ve never seen a time in my career — which is short, I know, but — (laughter) — I’ve never seen a time where there’s as much movement in the world. 
 
Think of all the nations that are reestablishing and reassessing where they are, what they think, how they’re going to react, what they’re going to do. 
 
And so, folks, we have to remember — we have to remember who we are. I say this all the time, and I think — people think it’s hyperbole, but it’s not. We’re the United States of America. We’re the only nation in the world that I can — as a student of history — can find that’s come out of every crisis we’ve met head on stronger than we went in– every single time. 
 
There’s nothing beyond our capacity. I really mean it. There’s nothing beyond our capacity when we do it together. 
 
So, folks, you know, when I ran the first time, I — you were all gracious. You’re the — by the way, you — this room is the reason I’m standing here. Not — that’s not hyperbole, either.  This room is the reason I’m standing here.  Almost every one of you were with me from the very beginning. 
 
And I said — when I said why I was running — they asked me why I was running. I said, “For three reasons. One, to restore the soul of America.” And I meant it. We can’t be a nation espousing a value set that’s contrary to everything we believe.  Just decency. 
 
Did you ever think you’d ride down a street or in a rural area and see a — a Trump flag with the middle of it saying, “F Biden,” and a little kids standing there, giving you the middle finger, standing with their parents? What are we — I don’t mi- — I believe — I don’t blame them for being mad at me. That’s fine. They can — they can want to defeat me. 
 
But think how we’ve diminished the dialogue. What are we doing? What the hell are we doing to our children?
 
You know, the pandemic has extracted a big price from us, from this society. One million people dead. Didn’t have to be that high. Didn’t have to be that. 
 
We came in, we got to work, and finished it. 
 
But here’s the deal. I was speaking with Vivek Murthy, our Surgeon General that I appointed. He talks about the mental health problems that exist in the country as a consequence of this. For every single person who passed away, the estimates are there’s 8 to 10 people who are profoundly affected — mother, father, son, daughter, husband, wife. And it’s had a profound effect.
 
Well, folks, we can overcome all of this. We really can. And I think it just — and the world is looking for us to lead. 
 
I don’t want to — you know, everybody says, “Well, why are you putting the burden on us?” Because it’s who we are. 
 
We’re the most unique country in the world. Last comment, I promise. The most unique country in the world. Every other country is organized based upon ethnicity, geography, religion.  It’s a — but we’re the only country based on an idea. It’s not — it’s not a joke. An idea. 
 
We’ve never fully lived up to it, but we’ve never walked away.  The idea is we hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men and women are created equal, endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights. Like — we’ve never lived up to it, but we’ve never walked away from it. We’ve never walked away from it. 
 
That’s why the rest of the world looks at us the way they do. That’s why we have so much influence. 
 
And as long as I’m your president, we’re not going to give up that influence. 
 
God bless you all. 
 
Thanks for everything.  (Applause.)

11:44 A.M. EDT

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Joint Base Andrews
Prince George’s County, Maryland

1:58 P.M. EDT

Q    Mr. President, when will you visit Baltimore?

THE PRESIDENT:  Beg your pardon?

Q    When will you visit Baltimore?

THE PRESIDENT:  I’m going to Baltimore next week with the governor. 

Q    Do you have a message for Evan Gershkovich and his family today, sir?

THE PRESIDENT:  Yes, we admire the hell out of him.  We’ve tried everything we can so far to put him on a plane.  And we’re not going to give up. 

 1:58 P.M. EDT

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8:57 P.M. EDT

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  Hey!  (Applause.)

PRESIDENT BIDEN:  I think I should go home. 

AUDIENCE:  Four more years!  Four more years!  Four more years!

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  Four more years!  Four more years!  Four more years!  

PRESIDENT BIDEN:  Thank you, thank you, thank you.  (Applause.)

MR. COLBERT:  Thank you.  Good evening, everybody.  I’m your moderator, Stephen Colbert, for what I’ll hope — (applause) — will be a lively conversation this evening between these three gentlemen. 

Mr. Presidents, thank you so much for joining me this evening.  (Applause.)

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  Good to see you. 

MR. COLBERT:  This is an — such an exciting and rare occasion: Three presidents have all come to New York and not one of them is here to appear in court.  (Laughter and applause.) 

Now, before we begin, just a few ground rules, gentlemen.  You are all very intelligent men who have at one time or another been the most powerful person in the world.  And on top of that, you are all, shall we say, champion talkers.  (Laughter.)  We have limited time together here, so I’m going to hold you two gentleman — President Obama, President Clinton — I’m going to hold you to five-minute answers.  (Laughter.)  There will be an audio cue to let you know when to stop talking.  It’ll sound like this: Please stop talking.  (Laughter.) 

President Biden, because you are the sitting president and — (applause) — you get seven minutes, because as the sitting president, you can order SEAL Team Six to take me out — (laughter) — which, according to Donald Trump’s lawyers, is perfectly okay to do.  (Laughter.) 

Every election cycle, we’re told that this election is the most important election in our lives.  And here we are in 2024, and this election really feels like the most important election of our lives when it comes to rights and freedoms and the heart and the soul and the future of our country.  (Applause.)  

First question for you, President Biden.  How would you describe what’s at stake in this election?

PRESIDENT BIDEN:  I think our democracy is at stake.  Not a joke.  I think democracy is literally at stake.  (Applause.)

Look, I wasn’t going to run in 2020, because I just lost my son Beau a little earlier and — until I watched what happened down in — in Virginia when those folks came out of the fields carrying torches and — and Nazi flags and accompanied by white supremacists.  And a young woman was killed — a bystander. 

And when the President was a- — former President was asked what he thought of that, he said, “There are very fine people on both sides.” 

Think of the things he said.  Think of the things he’s done; the things he says he wants to do — he’s indicated that he really wants to have the first day of his new term — quote, unquote — will be one where he engages in absolute autonomy that he can do whatever he wants to do; the way he talks about people; the way he characterizes people. 

I think — I think a lots at stake, but I’m really hopeful.  Because I think we get by this election — not because of me, but we get by this election — we’re in a position where we can set the course for the next four or five, six decades in a way that can make us much, much better.  (Applause.)  I really mean it.  And, again, not because of me.  We’re at a real inflection point in history, because things are changing.

This guy denies there’s global warming.  This guy wants to get rid of not only Roe v. Wade, but he — which he brags about having done, he wants to get rid of the ability of anyone anywhere in America to ever choose. 

I mean, all the things he’s doing are so old — speaking of old.  (Laughter and applause.)  And, you know, he — a little old and out of shape.  But anyway.  (Laughter.)

MR. COLBERT:  President Obama and President Clinton, is there anything you — you’d like to add to that sense of urgency?

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  Well, I — I think it’s worth adding that — (applause) — it — it’s not just the negative case against the presumptive nominee on the other side; it’s the positive case for somebody who’s done an outstanding job in the presidency.  (Applause.)  

Well, it — it’s — sometimes we — we forget where we started and where we are now.  You’ve got record-breaking job growth.  You’ve got an unemployment rate — (applause) — that is as low as it has been — for African Americans, by the way, the lowest on record ever.  (Applause.)  You’ve got extraordinary progress building off the work we did — first, Bill Clinton passing the Children’s Health Insurance Act, we passed the Affordable Care Act.  (Applause.) 

Joe Biden takes the baton.  He’s now expanded coverage; made sure that seniors are seeing big discounts in their prescription drugs, capping — (applause) — insulin drug prices — capping the price of insulin at 35 bucks, where it used to cost them up to $400 — (applause); you know, helping young people go to college — (applause); the record-setting investment in clean energy that’s going to transition us to the kind of future that our children and grandchildren deserve.  (Applause.)

So — and we could obviously go on.  The point is — am I at five minutes yet?  (Laughter.) 

MR. COLBERT:  You have thirty seconds.

PRESIDENT BIDEN:  Keep going.  You’re sounding good.  (Laughter.) 

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  The President of the United States says I can go longer.  (Laughter.)  But the point I’m —

MR. COLBERT:  You cede some of your time to this gentleman?  (Laughter.)

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  The — the point is, you know, that — look, passions get stirred by what we’re against.  And Joe is absolutely right that we’ve got not just a nominee but, frankly, a party and an entire infrastructure that increasingly seems unconcerned with the essence of America — right? — the idea of self-governance — (applause) — and the possibilities of us all cooperating and bridging our differences and moving forward.

But we also have a positive story to tell about the future.  And that is something that Joe Biden has worked on diligently each and every day on behalf of working Americans, and I expect him to continue to do that for the next four years and eight months.  (Applause.)

PRESIDENT CLINTON:  He’s really done a good job.  (Laughter and applause.)  And I think the way you opened this — we talked about the defense to democracy — begs not only support for President Biden but also begs the question of why are we even arguing about some of this stuff? 

I’ll tell you what’s old.  What’s old is the United States of America.  We are the longest-lasting, free democracy in the history of the world.  (Applause.)  And one of our — one of our Republican predecessors, Dwight Eisenhower, said he worried whether when times got tough and arguments got hot, Americans would be strong enough to preserve their democracy.  (Applause.) 

And we have to realize that in order to do that, no one is going to be right all the time.  A broken clock is right twice a day.  (Laughter.)  And the rest of us are compelled to spend our freeing lives going back and forth between trying to be right all the time and at least trying to be — do better than being right twice a day. 

Into that mess that President Biden inherited was a very vibrant, diverse society and economy.  And, you know, President Trump — let’s be honest — had pretty good couple of years because he stole them from Barack Obama.  (Laughter.)  I mean — I mean — (applause) —

PRESIDENT BIDEN:  That’s true.

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  Thank you.  Thank you.

PRESIDENT CLINTON:  But look —

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  The Obama-Biden economy for those first two years.  But, please, continue.

PRESIDENT CLINTON:  But look —

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  I’m going to give him an extra minute.  (Laughter.)

PRESIDENT CLINTON:  No, it’s true.  I listened — I listened to him tell us how terrible the American economy was all during 2016.  And then, by January of 2017, after the inauguration, it had become wonderful — (laughter) — miraculously, overnight.  (Laughter.)

Well, what happened was, actually, job growth under President Trump was slower than it was under President Obama in his last term.  (Applause.)  But people didn’t feel it.  It takes a while to feel it. 

So, then he claimed credit for everything.  Then, all of a sudden, Joe Biden comes along and creates roughly twice as many jobs in three years as he did.  (Applause.) 

And so, I believe in keeping score.  (Laughter.)  And not in a vindictive way but in a positive way. 

He’s been good for America, and he deserves another term.  And democracy around the world needs him.  (Applause.)

PRESIDENT BIDEN:  Thank you.

MR. COLBERT:  Mr. President, I want to point out that we are 10 minutes in and I have asked one question.  (Laughter.) 

So, I’m going to do a quick lightning round here.  We’re going to get back to some policy, some ideas here.  But a quick lightning round here. 

Do any of you have plans to sell golden sneakers or $60 Bibles?  (Laughter.)  Show of hands.  Show of hands.  We’ll do this debate. 

No?  Okay, no.  All right. 

PRESIDENT BIDEN:  No golden sneakers.

MR. COLBERT:  Yes.  (Laughter.) 

President Obama and President Clinton, what do you miss about being president?  Is it nice to live in the White House, or do you always feel like you’re in a museum?  For you also, President Biden, is it a nice place to live?  I know it’s pretty, but do you always feel like you’re, you know, walking around the corner —

PRESIDENT CLINTON:  N- —

MR. COLBERT:  — and there will be a gift shop?  (Laughter.)

PRESIDENT CLINTON:  I loved — I loved living there.  I mean — and the last time I walked in, the day before I left, I landed on Air F- — the Marine One helicopter and I walked in, I was just as idealistic and hopeful about America as the day I showed up. 

But I support the two-term limit.  I believe that no one should serve forever in a democracy.  And — but I do miss, on occasion, especially when I think President Biden’s getting the raw deal — I think, “Boy, I wish I were there to push back.”  Because I think — (applause) — because I think he’s done a good job and because I think democracy is on the line all around the world. 

It’s — it’s not surprising that freedom and democracy are being questioned.  There are no such things as permanent victories in politics.  But I do believe —

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  (Inaudible.)

PRESIDENT CLINTON:  — that’s good.

MR. COLBERT:  For people watching at home —

PRESIDENT CLINTON:  You want to say anything?

MR. COLBERT:  Excuse me.  Excuse me, Mr. Presidents. 

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  (Inaudible.)

MR. COLBERT:  For people who are watching — who are watching at home on the feed, you may not be able to hear that there’s some protesters here who —

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  (Inaudible.)

MR. COLBERT:  Hold on a second here. 

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  (Inaudible.)

MR. COLBERT:  There’s some protesters here who are no doubt related to the protests we saw across the street.  Everyone in here saw the protests across the street before we came in. 

And this is a subject I was going to get to later, but as long as this — it’s been brought up here, Mr. — Mr. Biden, I wanted to ask you this question. 

As the leader of the United States and as a leader of the alliance of democratic nations, and also aware of the moral leadership that the United States provides to the entire world, there are people outside and people in this room, I’m sure, who have passionate divisions about what they think the best course of action is for the crisis in Israel and Gaza right now. 

What do you believe the United States’ role should be going forward to ensure the most peaceful and prosperous future for the people of Israel and for Gaza — these two people, who the world sees and for whom the world’s heart breaks?

PRESIDENT BIDEN:  Well, both these gen- —

AUDIENCE MEMBERS:  (Inaudible.)

PRESIDENT BIDEN:  That’s all right.  Let them go.  Let them go. 

Look, there’s a lot of people who are very, very con- — there are too many innocent victims, Israeli and Palestinians.  We’ve got to get more food and medicine and supplies in to the Palestinians.  We’re working like hell to do that.  (Applause.)  We’ve got to open more opportunities. 

But you can’t forget that Israel is in a position where its very existence is at stake.  You have — you have all those people — (applause) — 1,200 people.  Now, they weren’t — they weren’t killed; they were massacred.  They were massacred. 

And imagine if that had happened in the United States.  And the — tying a mom and her daughter together, pouring kerosene on them, burning her to death.  There’s — it’s understandable Israel has such a profound anger.  And Hamas is still there. 

But we must, in fact, stop the effort to — that is resulting in significant deaths of innocent civilians and, particularly, children.  And — (applause) — and we can.

And I won’t — I won’t go into detail now.  But look, I’ve been working with the Saudis and with all the other Arab countries, including Egypt and Jordan and Qatar.  They are prepared to fully recognize Israel — fully recognize Israel, first time.  (Applause.) 

But we have to — there has to be a post — a post-Gaza plan here, and there has to be a train to a two-state solution.  Doesn’t have to occur today, but it has to be a — a progression.  (Applause.)  And I think we can do that.  I think we can do that. 

And that’s why we’re seeing more avenues open into Israel — excuse me, into Gaza to bring food and medicine.  And there’s much more we can do.  But I’m confident it can be done and Israel’s in- — integrity, Israel security, Israel’s — Israel nationally can be preserved.  (Applause.)

We can do this.  (Applause.) 

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  You sa- — you asked earlier about being in the White House.  (Laughter.)  No, no, no.  You know, you’ll — you’ll see there’s some relevance here.  (Laughter.) 

It is a lonely seat.  I mean, one of the things I miss is the incredible team that you have around you.  You have some of the smartest, most dedicated, selfless people who are every day sacrificing — (applause) — you know, their families are sacrificing.  They are putting heroic, Herculean efforts into just trying to make the world a little better —

PRESIDENT BIDEN:  And every time you show up at the White House, they all come and thank you. 

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  Well, they —

PRESIDENT BIDEN:  No, no, no, no, no.  I’m not joking.  The — the affection for you is overwhelming. 

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  Well, I appreciate that.  But — (applause) — but here’s the thing.  So — so, you have this incredible, you know, team.  And — and I think Bill and I — we’ve talked about it — that’s one of the things you miss most.  But although it’s a team, you’re still ultimately the person who has to make the calls. 

And one of the realities of the presidency is that the world has a lot of joy and beauty, but it also has a lot of tragedy and cruelty.  And — and there’s history there.  And you — you don’t start from scratch.  And you don’t have neat, easy answers to really hard problems. 

And I think people, understandably, oftentimes want to — to feel a certain, you know, purity in terms of how those decisions are made.  But a president doesn’t have that luxury. 

And so, when you look at a situation like we’re seeing in — in Gaza and in Israel, and your heart breaks initially for a massacre of unbelievable cruelty, it is also possible for us to say we unequivocally support the people of Israel and their ability to live and raise families and so forth, which is what Joe’s position has been and my position was and Bill Clinton’s position was — (applause) — and every American president, and it is also possible for us to have our hearts broken watching innocent people being killed —

PRESIDENT BIDEN:  That’s right.

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  — and trying to manage through that in a way that ultimately leads to both people being able to live in peace, side by side.  (Applause.)  But — but that is not an easy task. 

And so, the — the reason I think I — I — the reason —

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  (Inaudible.)

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  A- — no, listen — and it’s imp- — but here’s the thing: You can’t just talk and not listen — (applause) — because that’s part of democracy.  Part of democracy is not just talking; it’s listening.  (Applause.)  That’s what the other side does.  (Applause.)

And — and it is important for us to understand that it is possible to have moral clarity and — and have deeply held beliefs but still recognize that the world is complicated and it is hard to solve these problems.  (Applause.)

And the thing — the thing that — the reason why I originally selected Joe Biden to be my vice president, the reason that I think he was one of the best vice presidents we’ve ever had, and the reason why I think he has been an outstanding president is because he has moral conviction and clarity, but he also is willing to acknowledge that the world is complicated and that he’s willing to listen to all sides in this debate and every other debate and try to see if we can find common ground.  That’s the kind of president I want.  (Applause.)

I don’t want a president who thinks he’s got the right answer every single time and is not — not only not willing to listen the other side but demonizing the other side.  And we should value that decency in Joe Biden.  That’s one of the reasons I’m going to be working hard for him.  (Applause.)

PRESIDENT CLINTON:  I know there are many other things we need to talk about tonight, but I believe that this is one of the most important reasons to reelect President Biden.  (Applause.)  And I’ll explain why. 

Because he genuinely cares about preserving the existence of Israel, which Hamas doesn’t.  (Applause.)  And he genuinely cares about giving the Palestinians a decent state, self-governance, and the support they need for self-determination.  (Applause.)  And you’ve got to do both. 

Look, this — the world we live in is hard, because you have to keep two apparently conflicting ideas in your head at the same time.  But don’t forget, those of you who — particularly if you’re younger and all you know is Israelis’ government is denying the rights of the Palestinians.  Perhaps my closest friend among other world leaders was Yitzhak Rabin — (applause) — who got himself killed standing for a Palestinian state.  (Applause.)

And so, when Joe Biden says he wants a two-state solution, we all lived through the same things.  He’s not making this up.  We lived this.  And you should trust him to work for it, to work to ease the suffering of the totally innocent Palestinian citizens and not to allow Israel’s security to be lost over a bitter difference between the legitimacy of the Palestinians to statehood, which we agree with — all three of us.  So –(applause).

MR. COLBERT:  President Biden, three weeks ago, you gave an energetic State of the Union Address.  (Applause.) 

Yes.

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  It was energetic. 

MR. COLBERT:  And for almost 8,000 words, you never said your predecessor’s name.  (Laughter and applause.)  And a lot of people out there complained that there’s “Trumpnesia,” people don’t remember what it was like when he was president.  And I — I remember what it was like.  I remember, particularly, how it came to its apotheosis on that terrible day on January 6th.  I remember my feelings that day.  But I have never heard you talk about what was going through your mind that day.  What were you thinking when you saw that unfold?

PRESIDENT BIDEN:  Look, we had no president on January the 6th.  (Laughter and applause.)  No, no, no.  No, I’m not being a wise guy.  There was an insurrection happening. 

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  Shame on you, Joe Biden!

PRESIDENT BIDEN:  And here’s what happened. 

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  Shame on you!

PRESIDENT BIDEN:  I was supposed to make a speech on the economy.

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  (Inaudible.)

PRESIDENT BIDEN:  And I decided I couldn’t remain silent.  So, what I did was I made a speech about January the 6th — what was happening.  And I said there was an insurrection underway and it must be dealt with.  And I pled with the President to stop and do his job, call these people off. 

He sat there in the dining room off the Oval Office for several hours and watched.  Didn’t do a damn thing. 

And that’s why I felt obliged — even though I wasn’t sworn in yet; I was president-elect — that I went out and said, “This is what we should be doing,” and laid it out.

And here’s what’s happened since then.  (Applause.)  What’s happened since then — it’s not only is — he said it wasn’t an insurrection.  He says that what was happening was totally legitimate, that these people were patriots.  He’s calling them “patriots.”  You notice he starts off all his rallies with them singing from prison and him interjecting with the sta- — with the — I think it’s the of Pledge of Allegiance or whatever.  I’m not sure exactly what he does with it. 

But the end result of it is that he says he wants to free — if he’s reelected, he’s going to pardon all of them — pardon them.  What — what is — and, look —

AUDIENCE:  Booo —

PRESIDENT BIDEN:  No, no — no — and, by the way, he means it.  He means it. 

And here’s what’s going to happen.  You know, whe- — we went up on Inauguration Day, and these guys were there — on Inauguration Day, you walk through the corridors — broken glass, smattered statues, the — the actual — the actual place we get sworn in was — was a mess because these guys had rampage- — ram- — rampaged through it. 

And — and, look, I’ll g- — one real quick story.  First time I went to the G7 meeting — that’s the meeting of the European heads of state and — as president and — end — end of January.  And I sat down and I said, “America is back.”  And the French leader looked at me, and he said, “For how long?”  (Laughter.)  It wasn’t humorous.  He said for — he was serious. “For how long?”

And then the German Chancellor looked at me.  He said, “What would you think, Mr. President, if, in fact, you picked up the paper tomorrow and found out here in Great Britain, on the London Times, the headline says, ‘Mob storms Parliament, breaks down the door of the House of Commons to protest the election and two bobbies were killed.’  What would you think back in America?” 

And think about that.  What would you think if another democracy — and not just a leading democracy in the world but another democracy — went through this thing?  What would happen if — what would you say?  And the rest of the world looks to us.

Look, we are the essential nation.  And that’s not pounding our chest.  Everybody in the world looks to us.  Imagine what would happen — Madeleine Albright, your Secretary of State, was right when she talked about “we are the essential nation.”  And we have to lead. 

And when we look like we’re countenancing this — this unruly — and, like, saying, “You know, I’m going to — I’m going to be a dictator on the first day.”  He’s not joking.  And he’s serious about it.  And it — and it really shakes the entire foundation of the world, in terms of what’s going on. 

So, that’s why we have to — and, lastly, when did you think you’d ever have a president of the United States whose people he talked about — he sends — talks about love letters with the North Korean dictator.  He talks about his closeness with Putin and what — and Kim Jong —

I mean, this is a guy who has a perverse view of the world in terms of — (applause) — no, I — I mean it.  Anyway —

MR. COLBERT:  Presidents Obama and Clinton, you know, you both know how this office works, obviously, and the extent of power and the — and the pitfalls of power.  When Donald Trump was president, what kept you up at night?  And before — and before you answer, while I’m flattered, you can’t both say my show.  (Laughter.)  I get it, and I’m flattered.  And thank you.  (Laughter.)

What kept you up at night about that presidency?

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  I want to emphasize the point Joe just made about how deeply that four-year stretch affected views of America around the world. 

America is imperfect.  We have not always abided by our founding documents.  We — a civil war and enormous struggles were fought to try to perfect our Union.  And we, in our actions overseas, sometimes did not live up to our ideals. 

But what has always made America exceptional is this radical idea that you can get people from every corner of the globe — don’t look alike, don’t have the same name, worship differently, speak different languages, have different cultural traditions — and somehow they’re going to come together under a set of rules and we’re all going to pledge th- — that’s our creed: that — (applause) — that we can live together, self-governing, have a representative government, peacefully transfer power.  And that ideal matters.  (Applause.)  It matters to our children and their grandchildren, but it also matters around the world. 

When we see a — a deemphasis, when — when America is not forthright in speaking on behalf of those ideals, you see backsliding around the world.  You see authoritarians emboldened around the world.  You see aggression around the world because there’s no check. 

And when we’re living up to those ideals, even in difficult times, things feel a little bit better, not just here but elsewhere — people are a little bit more hopeful. 

So, what would keep me u- — up during those four years was: How badly are those ideals tarnished?

The good news is — is that people still want to believe in those ideals.  They want to believe in human rights.  They want to believe in — (applause) — freedom of speech and religion.  And — and they want to believe in the idea that all people are equal. 

Women are equal and have — (applause) — the right to control their bodies and, you know, shouldn’t be subject to domestic violence.  (Applause.)  And girls should be able to go to school just like everybody else. 

And people of different sexual orientations should have the same rights and protections.  (Applause.)

And religious minorities and ethnic minorities and racial minorities all deserve the same respect and are afforded the same dignity as everybody else.  (Applause.)

Th- — those — those ideas, they can — they can ebb and flow depending on what happens in the White House.

And the good news is is that we had a period of time where those ideals were not just de-emphasized but were violated, and then we have somebody come back in who says, “No, no, that’s — we do believe in the — this is what America is about.”  (Applause.) 

And that’s the same test that we’re going to be undergoing over the next eight months: Do we, in fact, believe in those basic ideals?  And if we do, not only are we going to be okay, but the world is going to be okay.  (Applause.)

PRESIDENT BIDEN:  You know, one of the things Barack — think about this.  This is not hyperbole.  We are the most unique nation in the world in this sense.  Every other nation was founded based on geography, ethnicity, religion.  None of — that’s not us.  We’re j- — we came about as a consequence of an idea — an idea.  (Applause.)  No, I’m serious.  Think about it. 

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men and women are created equal, endowed by their Crea- — we — that’s what found — that’s wh- — the basis of our existence.  That’s what fou- — that’s why we’re found. 

We didn’t — we haven’t always lived up to it, but we’ve never fully walked away from it — until now, someone is contemplating walking away from it completely. 

Our diversity is our strength.  It’s the reason why the rest of the world looks to us.  (Applause.)

PRESIDENT CLINTON:  But — but this is the big reason you should win.  (Laughter.)  And that is that everything you said is true, but it only works if we all live under the same set of rules, we all have an equal set of chances to make it, and we treat each other with respect.  (Applause.)  We fight our differences.  We have our arguments. 

And I’ll never forget a prominent member of the other party on the right once looked at my chief of staff and said, “You and the President actually think we should all live under the same set of rules, don’t you?”  (Laughter.)  He said, “Yeah, that’s what we thought being an American was all about it.”  He said, “Well, we don’t believe that.  We think we should first do what’s best for our party, then argue about the rest.” 

That’s what’s at the heart of this.  Joe Biden has bent over backwards to reach out to members of the other party to negotiate in good faith to solve problems, including on the border.  (Applause.)  And —

PRESIDENT BIDEN:  And they did.

PRESIDENT CLINTON:  And in the case of the border, his apparent opponent basically said, “Hey,” to his own party, “you can’t do that.  Get off of that bill.  We need a problem, not a solution, at the border.”  (Applause.) 

Well —

PRESIDENT BIDEN:  That’s a fact.

PRESIDENT CLINTON:  — you know, I think life has plenty of problems.  (Laughter.)  You know, your kids can get sick —

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  You don’t have to manufacture them.

PRESIDENT CLINTON:  Yeah.  Yeah, you — we don’t have to make them up.  And — but the problem is, they’re good at branding and blaming and we don’t like their solution so much. 

He’s good at finding solutions people are actually glad they embraced.  And that’s why he should win.  (Applause.)

MR. COLBERT:  We are — we are running short on time.  And I know you’re all busy men.  You’ve got to go run the world.  (Laughter.) 

Here’s an important question.  All three of you have been on Air Force One.  You still have the keys, Mr. Biden.  That’s made by Boeing, right?  (Laughter.)  Do those doors stay on?  Before you get on, do you send on Pete Buttigieg with a socket wrench set to tighten them — tighten the bolts?  (Laughter.)

PRESIDENT BIDEN:  I don’t sit by the door.  (Laughter and applause.)

Obviously, I’m only kidding.  And I shouldn’t even joke about it.  I shouldn’t even joke.

MR. COLBERT:  A fine American company.

PRESIDENT BIDEN:  And, by the way, the one thing I can tell you about Air Force One: We’re not changing the color.  (Applause.) 

Oh, he tri- —

MR. COLBERT:  We have s- —

PRESIDENT BIDEN:  Trump wanted to change the color.

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  Yeah, we’re not doing that.  (Laughter.)

MR. COLBERT:  Since the State of the — sir, did you want to (inaudible) —

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  No, no, no.  I have nothing —

MR. COLBERT:  Since the State of the Union, President Biden, you’ve been busy.  You’ve been in Raleigh, Saginaw, Milwaukee, Phoenix, Vegas, Hotlanta, the Philly suburbs, Manchester, Dallas, and Houston.  (Applause.)  Donald Trump, as far as we can tell, has just been trying to win a third championship at his own golf course.  (Laughter.) 

My question to you, sir: Can voters trust a presidential candidate who has not won a single Trump International Golf Club trophy?  At long last, sir, have you no chip shot?  (Laughter.)

PRESIDENT BIDEN:  Well, look, I’d be happy to play.  I told him this before, when he came into the Oval when he was being — before he got sworn in.  I said, “I’ll give you three strokes if you carry your own bag.”  (Laughter and applause.)

And I’ve only played 21 holes since I’ve been President.  (Laughter and applause.)

MR. COLBERT:  President Obama, I’ve been lucky enough to spend some time with you and your wife.  She has repeatedly asked me to call her Michelle — (applause) — which I — I now do.  I say, “Hello, Michelle.” 

I continue to call you, “Mr. President” — (laughter) — because you have never invited me to call you anything else.  (Laughter.)  So, my question is, to Presidents Biden and Clinton, don’t you think, at this point, I should be able to call him “Barack?”  Because it’s weird.  I went to your house, and I said, “Hello, Michelle.  Hello, Mr. President.”  (Laughter.)  I’m not asking for “Barry.”  (Laughter.)  Come on. 

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  No.  (Laughter.)

MR. COLBERT:  Doesn’t that feel weird?  (Laughter.)

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  Nope.  (Laughter and applause.)  Your — your wife can.  I like her.  (Laughter and applause.)  She’s here tonight.  Lovely. 

MR. COLBERT:  She’s —

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  That’s the only reason you might get another invitation.  (Laughter and applause.)

PRESIDENT BIDEN:  By the way, every time —

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  Next — next question.  Move on.

PRESIDENT BIDEN:  I told these guys, for the first two years — for real — every time I’d be introduced, they play “Hail to the Chief,” I’d turn around — “Where the hell are they?”  (Laughter.)  “Where” —

MR. COLBERT:  You were this man’s vice president for eight very exciting years.  (Applause.)  What — on your first day in the Oval Office as the president, did you learn anything and immediately you went, “He could have told me about this”?  (Laughter.)

PRESIDENT BIDEN:  Well, I learned that what the president — I’d always kid the president.  I’d get to be the last person to speak with him, give him my advice.  And I’d — he’d thank me, and I’d walk out knowing he has to make the decision.  That’s — that’s the big difference. 

And as Harry Truman said, “You’re president.  If you want a friend in Washington, get a dog.”  (Laughter.)  I got one, and he bit a Secret Service agent, so I don’t know.  (Laughter and applause.)

MR. COLBERT:  Before we go, President Biden, there have been a lot of jokes about your age.  And I’ve done a lot of them.  And — (laughter) — and they’ve been very successful.  Thank you — (laughter) — for that. 

What would you like to say to the people who think that you’re too seasoned for the job?

PRESIDENT BIDEN:  Well, I don’t know about seasoned, but I hope they — they’re not too old — they’re old ideas.  You know, this last guy that I ran against and running again- — again this time is — his ideas are from the 18th, 19th century.  (Laughter and applause.) 

No, I mean — I’m serious.  He talk- — the way he talks about what he — the way he says he going to suspend the Constitution, all the things he says. 

But, look, I think that there is, if you pay attention — if you’ve been around a while, no matter what your background is — if you pay attention, you know, the one thing age does bring is a little bit of wisdom.  And — (applause) — and I ho- —

Now, I know I don’t look much over 40.  I know that.  (Laughter.)  But all kidding aside, I think that one of the advantages that I’ve had: I got to work for and with both of these men.  I got to serve in the Senate a long time, and I got to know the place. 

And I think at least — like, for example, when we got elected, everybody told me we couldn’t do any of the things we got done — literally anything.  We couldn’t get the — (applause) — we — we couldn’t get anything done.  We couldn’t get the CHIPS Act.  We couldn’t get the veterans b- — all these things we were told we couldn’t get done. 

But there are still enough people in the Republican Party — this is not your father’s Republican Party.  This is a different breed of cat.  This is the — the — about 30 to 40 percent are the MAGA Republicans.  And I don’t know what — the thing that disturbs me most is I don’t know what it is that a — that — that my predecessor has on these guys, why they — why they’re not stepping up more like Liz Cheney and others.  (Applause.)  Because I know — I know that they don’t like a lot of what’s going on. 

And, for example, these guys are not going to vote again- — they don’t want to vote against raising the age of Social Security.  They don’t want to cut Social Security benefits.  They don’t want to end the whole — they — they don’t like the idea what’s happened in Roe v. Wade.

By the way, you elect me, we’re going to restore Roe v. Wade.  (Applause.)  Anyway —

I see those three zeros on that clock.  So, I’m going to hush up —

MR. COLBERT:  Yes, we are ju- —

PRESIDENT BIDEN:  — as my mother would say.

MR. COLBERT:  — we are just out about time here. 

But before we go, I wanted to talk to you, President Clinton, for just a moment.  You oversaw a rapidly growing economy in the 1990s.  And you — (applause) — oversaw a huge increase in our economy. 

What do you think people need to know, who might be watching — the voters out there, who may not yet see or feel in their pocket the growth of the Biden economy?

PRESIDENT CLINTON:  Well, I think, first of all, there’s two things we’ve been through since I left the White House that changed the rules for everybody. 

One was the financial crash of 2008, which marred and limited what President Obama could accomplish early and required him to invest a lot of government money to try to jumpstart the economy in a program that he put President Biden, then vice president, in charge of running, and he did a heck of a good job.

Now — (applause) — and we had good recovery, but we were — they were criticized for the deficit spending.  But the truth is, when interest rates are zero or negative, you have to invest money, and only the government can do it.  And there was a $3 trillion hole in the economy that they spent $800 billion starting to fill.  It worked great. 

But by the end of President Obama’s eight years, we had a roaring economy, but people didn’t feel it yet.  It normally takes two or three years of real changes before people knew it. 

So, when Donald Trump got elected by telling everybody how terrible it was, all of a sudden, the day after he was elected, he said how great it was.  (Laughs.)  And it was, but it was pretty great the day before it too.  (Laughter.)

So, anyway, now, we had COVID.  It was devastating in human ways, in economic ways.  So, President Biden gets in, and he doesn’t want to under suit the way the Republicans required President Obama to do back when he was president.  So, he says, “Give me this big recovery program,” which is not everything he asked for, but it was big and robust.  And he starts to implement it.  And he gets criticized because not all the programs were solved the day after tomorrow. 

But you know the whole structure of the international economy, the supply chains, everything was thrown out of whack.  And Joe Biden and Vice President Harris and their whole team methadic- — methodically began trying to put the Humpty Dumpty back together again.  And we’re doing really well, I think.  (Applause.)

I mean, I think you — and because — yes, there was inflation, but there is nothing he could have done about that, unless it was to throw the country into depression. 

I mean, when — you start when everything stops.  So, you’ve got a shortage of everything and the supply chains are all messed up, there’s going to be inflation in the beginning.  But he’s building all these chip plants around America and doing all these other things.  (Applause.) 

I noticed we finally got a big electric charging station for — in Queens for all the yellow cabs in New York that are coming and stuff like that. 

This stuff is happening, and you’re going — 

PRESIDENT BIDEN:  And we cut the deficit.

PRESIDENT CLINTON:  — to feel it all.  It’s going to get better and better and better and better and better.  (Applause.) 

So, we should not make 2016’s mistake.  We should stay with what works and not let people who try to undo it take credit for what happened.  (Applause.)

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  And ju- — just — because I know we’re running out of time, Stephen, but — but I do want to make this point, be- — because Joe understands this deeply.  Bill understood it. 

There are structural problems in the economy that can frustrate people — you know, long-term trends in terms of growing inequality because of globalization and technology; you know, the suppression of unions, which Joe has specifically battled against — (applause) — making sure that working people have the right to collectively bargain. 

And so, you know, the frustrations that people feel in a lot of situations — if you’re working hard and your paycheck is — is getting stretched, you know, beyond the breaking point and you’re worrying about rent and you’re concerned about the price of gas, you know, it’s understandable.  And one of the things that all three of us accept when you have this extraordinary privilege of serving the American people is, if it’s happening on your watch, then even if you didn’t have anything to do with it and even if you’re making progress, there’s going to be frustrations and sometimes those will be directed towards your office.  That’s part of the deal. 

But the thing that not only Joe has to communicate, we who support Joe have to communicate, is, at the end of the day, who do you think is actually going to look out for you?  (Applause.)  Who do you think is going to fight on your behalf?  (Applause.)  Who’s gone through tough financial times?  Who has actually experienced the worry of a child getting sick and — and you trying to figure out, you know, how you’re going to pay for it? 

And Joe has gone through those struggles.  He’s got family members who have experienced that fear and pain and have gotten knocked down and had to get back up. 

And, at the end of the day, what you’re — what you want, not just out of your president, but out of your government, is people’s whose values are rooted in wanting to make sure everybody gets its shot —

PRESIDENT BIDEN:  Gets a fighting chance.  (Applause.)

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  — that — that is willing to fight on behalf of people who weren’t born into privilege.  And — and that’s who Joe Biden is. 

And so, you know, when we make an argument about the economy, it’s not because we don’t recognize that they’re real problems and that they’re commu- — entire communities that are still feeling like they’re being left behind.  And it’s legitimate for them to feel frustrated.  And they’re going to occasionally take it out on the president.  And that’s fair.  Because, you know, Joe volunteered for the job — (laughter) — as we all did. 

But, at the end of the day, you do have to make a choice.  And the question then becomes: Who is it that really sees you and cares about you?

I can — (laughs) — I’m pretty confident the other guy doesn’t.  This guy does.  (Applause.)

PRESIDENT BIDEN:  You know —

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  That’s why we’re going to have to fight so hard —

PRESIDENT BIDEN:  Thank you.  Let me say one thing —

PRESIDENT OBAMA:  — over the next eight months.

PRESIDENT CLINTON:  We do.

PRESIDENT BIDEN:  My — my dad, who was a very well-read guy.  He didn’t get to go to college.  He got into Johns Hopkins.  He was in Baltimore when the war began, and he never got to go. 

But my dad used to say, “Joey, a job is about a lot more than a paycheck.  It’s about your dignity.  It’s about your family.  It’s about having a little bit left over at the end of the month — just a little bit.  It’s about being able to look your kid in the eye and say, ‘Everything is going to be okay,’ and mean it.”

What I decided to do is to follow along with these guys have done.  I wanted to build a middle class — build the economy from the middle class out and the bottom up. 

When that happens, everybody does well.  The wealthy do very well.  (Applause.)  But guess what, guys?  Anybody think the tax system is fair?  It’s about time the weal- — the very super wealthy start paying their fair share.  (Applause.)

I’ll give you one example.  We have a thousand billionaires in America — a thousand billionaires in America.  If we, in fact, just raise their — you know what they pay in taxes?  8.3 percent of their income — federal taxes. 

AUDIENCE:  Booo —

PRESIDENT BIDEN:  If they just paid 25 percent, we’d raise $400 million — billion dollars over 10 years and be able to wipe out the debt.  We’d be able to do so much more.  Just paying your fair share.  (Applause.)

MR. COLBERT:  President Biden —

PRESIDENT BIDEN:  By the way, we cut the deficit — I know you got to wrap up.  Cut the — we cut the deficit by the Medicare things we changed.  That saved the taxpayer $170 billion a year — (applause) — $170 billion because they don’t have to pay the price (inaudible).  Anyway, I — I don’t want to get going.  (Laughter.) 

“Wrap up.”  I’m wrapping.  I’m hushing up.

MR. COLBERT:  We — we have come to the end of our evening.  I just want to ask you before we go, sir.  A lot of people do impressions of you.  Have you seen my impression of you?  (Laughter.)  I’m the first to admit it’s not very good.  (Laughter.)  This — the — I put on your glasses.  They do a lot of the work.  (Laughter.)

(Impersonating President Biden.)  Now, we go to do the — and then we got to talk quiet.  (Laughter.)

PRESIDENT BIDEN:  You know, you’re a pre- — a pretty dull president when you’re known for two things: Ray-Ban sunglasses and ice cream. 

(President Biden puts on sunglasses.)  (Laughter and applause.)

MR. COLBERT:  Gentlemen, would you care to join us in our — in the impression of President Biden?  (Laughter.)

(President Clinton and President Obama put on sunglasses.)  (Applause.)

Ladies and gentlemen, please join me in thanking President Clinton, President Obama, and President Joseph Biden —

PRESIDENT BIDEN:  By the way, Dark Brandon is real.  (Applause.)

MR. COLBERT:  Ladies and gentlemen, the presidents of the United States.  (Applause.)  Go vote!

9:52 P.M. EDT

The post Remarks by President Biden, President Obama, and President Clinton in a Moderated Conversation with Stephen Colbert at a Campaign Reception | New York, NY appeared first on The White House.

Via Teleconference

THE VICE PRESIDENT:  Thank you, Director Young.  And I — I want to thank you for your longstanding leadership to our country.  From your days on Capitol Hill to your leadership here at the White House, you have been responsible for ensuring that our nation puts resources into future-forward policy in so many ways.  So, thank you, Director Young, for your leadership. 

And greetings to everyone.  Thank you for joining us. 

So, I believe that all leaders from government, civil society, and the private sector have a moral, ethical, and societal duty to make sure that artificial intelligence is adopted and advanced in a way that protects the public from potential harm while ensuring everyone is able to enjoy its full benefit. 

As Director Young mentioned, last year at the AI Safety Summit in London, I laid out our nation’s vision for the future of AI — a vision for a future where AI is used to advance the public interest.  And I’m going to emphasize that: advance the public interest. 

As a follow up to that presentation, months ago now, I am proud to announce three new binding requirements to promote the safe, secure, and responsible use of AI by our federal government. 

First, we are announcing new standards to protect rights and safety.  When government agencies use AI tools, we will now require them to verify that those tools do not endanger the rights and safety of the American people. 

I’ll give you an example.  If the Veterans Administration wants to use AI in VA hospitals to help doctors diagnose patients, they would first have to demonstrate that AI does not produce racially biased diagnoses.  So, that I offer as an example.

The second requirement — binding requirement relates to transparency.  The American people have a right to know that when and how their government is using AI that it is being used in a responsible way.  And we want to do it in a way that holds leaders accountable for the responsible use of AI.  Transparency often, and we believe, should facilitate accountability. 

And so, today, President Biden and I are requiring that every year, U.S. government agencies publish online a list of their AI systems, an assessment of the risks those systems might pose, and how those risks are being managed. 

Third and finally, a requirement that relates to internal oversight.  We have directed all federal agencies to designate a chief AI officer with the experience, expertise, and authority to oversee all — I’m going to emphasize that — all AI technologies used by that agency.  And this is to make sure that AI is used responsibly, understanding that we must have senior leaders across our government who are specifically tasked with overseeing AI adoption and use. 

In conclusion, I’ll say that these three new requirements have been shaped in consultation with leaders from across the public and private sectors, from computer scientists to civil rights leaders to legal scholars and business leaders. 

President Biden and I intend that these domestic policies will serve as a model for global action.  Again, I will reference my presentation in the United Kingdom as an example of our intention to provide standards that adopt universal rules and norms for the responsible and safe use of AI. 

And to that end, we will continue to call on all nations to follow our lead and put the public interest first when it comes to government use of AI. 

I thank you all again.  And now I will turn it back over to our director of our Office of Management and Budget, Shalanda Young.  Thank you, Director Young. 

                            END 

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1:26 P.M. EDT

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: Good afternoon, everyone.

Q Good afternoon.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: Thank you for joining us. Thank you for joining us.

Okay. I have a couple things at the top. And as you can see, we have guests with us today.

Our hearts go out to the families of the six individuals still missing after yesterday’s bridge collapse in Maryland. As authorities on the ground have confirmed, operations have shifted from a search-and-rescue operation towards recovery efforts.

Secretary Buttigieg and Coast Guard Vice Admiral Peter Gu- — Gautier just came from the Oval Office, where they spoke with the President about the situation on the ground.

After he was briefed on the collapse, President Biden immediately instructed his team to move heaven and earth to aid in the emergency response and help build — rebuild the bridge as soon as human- — humanly possible.

Within hours of the bridge’s collapse, President Biden spoke to Governor Moore, Senator Cardin, Senator Van Hollen, Congressman Mfume, as well as Baltimore’s mayor and county executive. The President’s message to them was clear: We will be with the people of Baltimore every step of the way.

The President has remained in close contact with Secretary Buttigieg, who was in Baltimore yesterday to start the discussions about long-term rebuilding efforts and help the on-the-ground response.

The President has directed a whole-of-government response. The Coast Guard has set up a unified command, and the Department of Transportation, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, FBI, the National Transportation Safety Board, and Federal Highway Administration are all on the ground supporting state and local authorities in their recovery and rebuilding efforts.

Joining us today, as you all can see behind me, to provide additional details about this administration’s whole-of-government response are Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and Vice Admiral Gautier, Deputy Comman- — Commandant for Operations of — at the Coast Guard.

With that, I will turn it over to Secretary Buttigieg, followed by the Vice Admiral.

Secretary.

SECRETARY BUTTITGIEG: Thank you very much, Karine. I want to start by thanking the Vice Admiral and the whole Coast Guard for their extraordinary partnership and recognizing the leadership of President Biden, who from the very beginning has been acting to make sure that we have a whole-of-government response to support the people of Baltimore.

Yesterday, America awoke to shocking images of the Francis Scott Key Bridge collapsing after it was struck by a neopanamax container vessel. And by the time most Americans saw those images, first responders and rescuers had already been at work for hours to save lives. That quick work unquestionably made an enormous difference, and they have our gratitude.

In fact, if not for several factors, including those responders’ efforts, the mayday call, the maintenance closure that was already underway, and the time of day of this impact, the loss of life might have been in the dozens.

But tragically, six people did lose their lives and the seventh was badly injured. These were workers who went out to work on a night shift repairing the road surface while most of us slept.

Work is undergoing to recover their remains. And our thoughts and prayers are with their loved ones, whose lives are never going to be the same.

Even as those families come to terms with this grief and even as those recovery operations continue, work is underway to investigate what happened and to restore the key transportation resources that were impacted.

When it comes to the investigative work led by the NTSB and supported by the Coast Guard, I will respect their independence and not comment on that work. But I do appreciate being able to engage with NTSB, Coast Guard, and other personnel yesterday at the site.

I also spent time with Governor Moore, and I want to express my appreciation for his leadership. The governor has responded to this unthinkable event with focus and compassion. And we’re going to be working closely with him and with his state’s DOT to support Maryland in their work to rebuild the bridge and reopen the port.

I also want to thank Mayor Scott, County Executive Olszewski for their work and their team’s work ensuring all resources are brought to bear in that response.

While the investigation and the response continue, President Biden has made clear that this whole administration will be providing support in every respect for the recovery and the rebuilding process.

From a Department of Transportation perspective, that really comes down to four major focus areas: reopen the port, deal with the supply chain implications until the port does reopen, rebuild the bridge, and deal with the surface transportation implications until the bridge is rebuilt.

Each of those is a distinct line of effort, and we’re already taking steps toward each goal.

With regard to the port, again, the Coast Guard, in coordination with the Army Corps of Engineers, will lead on the channel cleanup and the reopening so that that port can get back to full operation.

We are concerned about the local economic impact, with some 8,000 jobs directly associated with port activities. And we’re concerned about implications that will ripple out beyond the immediate region because of the roles — excuse me — because of the port’s role in our supply chains.

This is an important port for both imports and exports, and it’s America’s largest vehicle-handling port, which is important not only for car imports and exports, but also for farm equipment.

No matter how quickly the channels can be reopened, we know that it can’t happen overnight. And so, we’re going to have to manage the impacts in the meantime. We’re working to mitigate some of those impacts, including using tools that didn’t exist just a few years ago.

Following the disruptions to supply chains from the COVID pandemic, President Biden’s infrastructure package included the establishment of a new freight office within our department to help coordinate goods movement in ways that were not possible before.

To be clear, ocean shipping is not centrally controlled the way you might expect with, for example, air traffic control. So, having these tools allows us to create coordination that just didn’t exist before.

It’s helped us to smooth out supply chains after COVID. It’s helped us to manage the Red Sea crisis. And we’re using it now to help the hundreds of different private supply chain actors get better coordinated to keep goods moving.

Tomorrow, I will be convening shippers and other supply chain partners to understand their needs and to promote a coordinated approach as they adapt to the temporary disruptions while we plan mitigations.

That said, the Port of Baltimore is an important port. So, for our supply chains and for all the workers who depend on it for their income, we’re going to help to get it open as soon as safely possible.

Now, for the bridge, we are going to be working with NTSB as they lead their independent investigation. It’s too early to speculate, of course, what NTSB will find, but if they discover or determine anything that should be considered in the regulation, inspection, design, or funding of bridges in the future, we will be ready to apply those findings.

What we do know is a bridge like this one completed in the 1970s was simply not made to withstand a direct impact on a critical support pier from a vessel that weighs about 200 million pounds, orders of magnitude bigger than cargo ships that were in service in that region at the time that the bridge was first built.

We also know that this is yet another demonstration of the importance of our roads and bridges, which is one of many reasons why the Biden-Harris administration worked so hard to get the infrastructure package passed and why roads and bridges are the single biggest category in that package.

We are committed to delivering every federal resource that’s needed — every federal resource needed to help Maryland get back to normal, and we’re going to work with them every step of the way to rebuild this bridge.

It is not going to be simple. When we helped Pennsylvania and California swiftly reopen I-95 and I-10, respectively, there was terrific done work there, but that was addressing comparatively short spans of bridges over land, relative to this span over water. And, of course, in the Baltimore case, we still don’t fully know the condition of the portions of the bridge that are still standing or of infrastructure that is below the surface of the water. So, rebuilding will not be quick or easy or cheap, but we will get it done.

As I mentioned, we’re all — we’re working with city, county, and state. And I also want to add that we’ve been closely engaged with the Maryland congressional delegation, many of whom were on hand yesterday and who are doing a tremendous job advocating for their state. They made it clear that they will work with us to push for any help that we need from Congress.

Bottom line, as President Biden has made clear, the federal government will provide all of the support that Maryland and Baltimore need for as long as it takes, and we will work with Congress to deliver on that.

I’ll end with this. For the families of those presumed lost, for the people of Baltimore who are going to be feeling this closure in day-to-day life, and for everyone affected by the port closure and its supply chain impacts: The President and the whole of government will be here with you until everything is rebuilt stronger than ever.

Our country put its arms around Florida when the Sunshine Skyway Bridge collapsed in 1980. America rallied around Minnesota after the bridge there collapsed in 2007. This will be a long and difficult path. But we will come together around Baltimore, and we will rebuild together.

Admiral.

VICE ADMIRAL GAUTIER: Thank you, Mr. Secretary and Karine. So, let me just add to what the Secretary has already briefed you on here.

So, yesterday evening, I think as you know, after an intense and thorough multi-agency search on the water and from the air, the Coast Guard Incident Commander, Rear Admiral Shannon Gilreath, suspended the search for the individuals missing from the bridge collapse. He did this after consulting Governor Moore and many of the other agencies that were involved.

The Coast Guard and the response community is deeply saddened that the — that the missing individuals have not survived. And the Coast Guard appreciates the state of Maryland’s leadership and humanity in supporting the family members of the missing.

I’d like to personally thank the state and local responders for their heroic search-and-rescue efforts. While we didn’t achieve the outcome that we had hoped for, it was a tremendous team effort in the treacherous operational conditions.

As this aspect of the response shifts to recovery operations and consistent with the President’s direction to get the port up and running as soon as possible, the Coast Guard highest priority now is restoring the waterway for shipping, stabilizing the motor vessel Dali and removing it from the site, and coordinating a maritime casualty investigation under the leadership of the National Transportation and Safety Board.

So, just a couple of words on each one of those. Some — in terms of assessing, restoring the waterway, the Coast Guard is very tightly connected to the Army Corps of Engineers as they lead in that role as the lead federal agency for that effort.

As we were in the Oval Office, the President called General Spellmon, the Chief of the Army Corps of Engineers, who’s on site. General Spellmon and I had a number of conversations yesterday in terms of the coordinated approach moving forward. And they are moving very aggressively in putting resources and mobilizing the necessary equipment, conducting the analysis and the underwater surveys to do that.

In terms of continuing to stabilize the vessel, mitigating any pollution threat, and removing the vessel from the area, the vessel is stable, but it still has over 1.5 million gallons of fuel oil and lube oil onboard. And it does have 4,700 cargo containers on board; 56 of those contain hazardous materials and 2 are missing overboard. The ones that are in the water do not contain hazardous — hazardous materials. And then, thir- — around 13 or so on the bow of the ship were damaged as the bridge collapsed and it impacted the front of that ship.

So, the Coast Guard has moved aggressively to board the vessel, and we have teams on board. The responsible party, the ship operator, has mobilized, activated their marine salvage plan, in addition to their marine pollution response plan — both things that are required by the United States Coast Guard. That salvor is Resolve Marine Incorporated, and they have begun mobilizing resources to take the next steps appropriate to refloat the vessel and remove it from that area.

The real critical thing here is that, as you know, a portion of the bridge remains on the bow of that ship, and we will be coordinating very closely with the Army Corps of Engineers and their contractors to first effect the removal of that debris before the vessel can then be removed. The vessel bow is sitting on the bottom because of the weight of the — of that bridge debris on there.

And there are underwater surveys that are happening by remotely operated vehicle; divers will be in the water today to complete that underwater survey. There is no indication that there’s any flooding or any damage underneath the waterline to that vessel. And that effort will continue. We’ll keep you informed of that.

And then, lastly, in terms of the — the casualty investigation, as the Secretary has said, this is led by the National Transportation Safety Board. I have had a couple of conversations with Chair Homendy on this account, and basically what we’ve done is we’ve activated a memorandum of understanding between the Coast Guard and NTSB.

And because the multimodal and complex nature of this investigation, we will be providing Coast Guard investigators for what we call a marine board of investigation, which is our highest level of investigation in the Coast Guard that will fold in and coordinate with the NTSB investigation as that moves forward.

I think the Secretary closed with some topline messages. And for us, I can tell you that our Unified Command — which is essentially a term that we use in the United States for how we mobilize against crises with all the appropriate federal, state, local agencies and other stakeholders — we have a tremendous amount of talent on there and a lot of resourcing. And given the magnitude and importance of this response, it’s going to be very, very aggressive moving forward, and we’ll keep you informed of that.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: Thank you so much, Admiral.

VICE ADMIRAL GAUTIER: Thank you.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: All right. A couple questions. Go ahead.

Q Thank you so much. Admiral, CNN has obtained a government memo that the Coast Guard is currently evaluating hazardous material that was contained in some of the containers on the ship. Can you update us on that investigation? And is there a threat to the public from any of the materials on board the ship?

VICE ADMIRAL GAUTIER: There — there is no threat to the public from the hazardous materials on board. So, we’ve obtained the vessel manifest that container ships carry and done the analysis of the types of hazmats that are on board.

We have a very specialized hazmat team on board called the Atlantic Strike Team. We have three of those around the country. And we have air monitoring them — there to detect if there are anything that are coming off of those containers.

The — the majority of those containers are closer to the pilothouse and are completely unaffected by the damage to the bow of the ship. And there — we have not determined that there is any kind of release at this time.

Q So, you — what do you assess as the risk that some of those materials could leak or spill into the surrounding area?

VICE ADMIRAL GAUTIER: So, most of these things are things like mineral oils, and even though they’re hazardous, we — we’ve determined that there really isn’t any kind of threat to the public.

Q And Secretary Buttigieg, for you: President Biden has said the federal government should front the full cost of reconstructing the bridge. What do the early estimates say that cost will be and how quickly can you get that money?

SECRETARY BUTTIGIEG: We don’t have dollar estimates yet. But we actually have provisions that allow us to begin releasing funding, even while that is being determined. My understanding is, as we speak this afternoon, a — an emergency relief funding request has come in from the Maryland State DOT. We will be processing that immediately to start getting them what they need.

Also, later today, there will be a design and procurement-oriented meeting that we’ll participate in — our Federal Highway Administration — along with MDOT.

Again, obviously, it’s early days. But now is the time to begin scoping that out so that they can get to work.

Q Thank you.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: Go ahead, Seung Min.

Q Related to that, Mr. Secretary, how much is — how much existing money is there now within DOT coffers to handle requests such as the one from MDOT? Is — do you have funding through the F- — the Federal Highway Administration, through the infrastructure law? Or — or when do you anticipate having to go to Congress for potentially a supplemental request on the bridge costs?

SECRETARY BUTTIGIEG: So, the infrastructure law did authorize funding into the emergency relief account, which is the mechanism that is most likely to come into play here. Last I checked, there was about $950 million available but also a long line of needs and projects behind that.

So, it is certainly possible — I would go so far as to say “likely” — that we may be turning to Congress in order to help top up those funds. But that shouldn’t be a barrier to the immediate next few days beginning to get the ball rolling.

Q What will be the timeframe in sending that sup request to Congress?

SECRETARY BUTTIGIEG: I think it’s too soon to — to know the mechanics of that.

Q And for the — I’m sorry — for the — for the Vice Admiral. Can you discuss broadly just the safety of maritime shipping in general and kind of the strength of the regulations that govern it? Particularly, the inherent international nature of the maritime business could potentially create issues, especially if you have ships based in different countries with potentially weaker regulations.

VICE ADMIRAL GAUTIER: Sure.

Q Can you speak to those broader issues?

VICE ADMIRAL GAUTIER: Yeah. Absolutely. So, despite what happened 36 hours ago in Baltimore, the maritime mode of transportation, merchant shipping, is an incredibly, incredibly safe mode of transportation not just here in the United States but worldwide.

While we do have a regime of regulations that are just comprehensive in terms of the vessel conditions, the cargo that they carry, and how they do that, the qualifications and certifications from the mariners who operate these ships, those are actually networked with a global set of regulations that we negotiate and uphold through the International Maritime Organization in London.

So, this ship was flagged by Singapore. That was the flag state admin- — administration. And I spoke with the administration in Singapore just a few hours ago. They’ll be participating in the investigation.

We do something called flag state examinations to ensure that — even though these are not U.S. flagged vessels coming in, we do an inspection to assure that they meet the high international and domestic standards that we demand.

Q Secretary Buttigieg, I know that you said the recov- — or the rebuilding efforts are just beginning. But when it comes to the actual port, can you give us a sense of what the timeline would be for reopening? Is it days? Is it weeks? Is it months?

And same for the bridge: Are we talking about weeks, months? Are we talking about years?

SECRETARY BUTTIGIEG: Too soon to be certain. What I’ll say in the case of the bridge is that the original bridge took five years to construct. That does not necessarily mean it will take five years to replace. But that — that tells you what went into that original structure going up.

Again, we need to get a sense of the conditions of the parts that look okay to the naked eye, but we just don’t know yet, especially in terms of their foundational infrastructure.

So, it is going to be some time where commuters are going to need to depend on that 95 and 895 tunnel, and it’s going to put pressure on them.

As far as the port, again, too soon to venture an estimate. The vast majority of the port is inside of that bridge, now, which means most of it cannot operate; although, there is a facility at what’s called Sparrows Point that can handle some amount of cargo shipping but nothing close to the totality of Baltimore.

Q And for the port workers, you mentioned there’s going to be an economic cost but also incurred to them, I’m sure. Any of the funding that you’re talking about, in terms of emergency funding — would that cover them as well?

SECRETARY BUTTIGIEG: Yeah. This — this is a major concern. The President has directed the administration to find any and all resources that could come into play here.

I don’t know this to be an automatic eligibility for the emergency relief funding that I mentioned earlier. But we’re going to turn over every stone we have. And of course, beyond DOT, there may be other resources that come into play.

Q And, sorry, just one more quickly. Have you been in any communication with the owners of this vessel in terms of them paying some kind of consequence here?

SECRETARY BUTTIGIEG: I have not, and I’d really defer to NTSB and law enforcement for that.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: Kelly O.

Q Mr. Secretary, do you envision that this would be constructing a very different bridge going forward? You referenced the 1970 state of affairs. Then do you believe it would be an entirely new span? And would you envision different safety mechanisms as you are assessing this at this point?

SECRETARY BUTTIGIEG: I can’t speculate on that.

What I will note is that some of the other bridge collapses that are — were of these proportions — notably, the Minnesota bridge collapse — happened because of a design flaw and the bridge spontaneously collapsed.

This is, of course, not that. This was the result of an impact. But we don’t yet know what NTSB will find or how that might inform plans going forward.

Q And based on what you’ve seen so far, do you recommend that any other spans take any steps based on what we’ve learned about — however remarkably unusual it was for that impact — do you think there need to be different steps to protect others spans going forward?

SECRETARY BUTTIGIEG: Some modern bridges around the world, especially after the 1980 Tampa incident, have been designed with different features to mitigate impacts and protect their piers. Right now, I think there’s a lot of debate taking place among the engineering community about whether any of those features could have had any role in — in a situation like this.

Again, it’s difficult to overstate the impact of this collision we’re talking about. It’s not just as big as a building. It’s really as big as a block — 100,000 tons all going into this pier all at once.

But one other thing I would add, more broadly speaking, is that the President’s infrastructure package has the first-ever dedicated federal fund for resilience. Largely, that’s been construed in terms of seismic resilience and resilience in the face of extreme weather events. But, certainly, it’s something we’ll be looking at going forward, knowing what we’ve experienced in Baltimore.

Q And lastly, the status of the crew of the cargo ship. Maybe the Vice Admiral is better suited for that. Are they still on board? And are they fully cooperating with what you need?

VICE ADMIRAL GAUTIER: The crew is cooperating with what we need. They’re the — they remain on board, and predominantly an Indian crew with one Sri Lankan crew member on board. But they’re still there and very much engaged in the dialogue and the investigation.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: Go ahead, Sabrina.

Q Thank you. To the Vice Admiral, are there any early indications of what caused the Dali to lose propulsion during its voyage? And what are some of the areas of focus so far when it comes to the investigation into the accident?

VICE ADMIRAL GAUTIER: Yeah, I think we all want to know as quickly as possible at least some initial findings. But I really need to refer you to the National Transportation Safety Board and their messaging in terms of moving forward very deliberately in a factual basis to uncover some of those answers.

Q And then, Secretary Buttigieg, you talked about, you know, how, you know, the bridge simply was not built to withstand an impact of this nature. But do — is it your view that the bridge was built strongly enough? Why didn’t it have some of the defensive structures around the support column, as many other bridges do?

SECRETARY BUTTIGIEG: Again, I don’t want to get ahead of any investigation either. I will say that a part of what’s being debated is whether any design feature now known would have made a difference in this case. We’ll get more information on that as the investigation proceeds.

Q Thank you. Secretary Buttigieg, you’ve been talking about the President vowing to pay for the cost of the bridge in full to expedite that rebuilding process. But are you going to go after the shipping company?

SECRETARY BUTTIGIEG: Any private party that is found responsible and liable will be held accountable. I think our emphasis and the President’s goal is to make sure that that process is not something we have to wait for in order to support Maryland with the funds that they need. And that’s what these emergency relief tools can help us do.

Q What could that accountability look like?

SECRETARY BUTTIGIEG: Again, I don’t want to get ahead of law enforcement, NTSB, or any of the other players here. But needless to say, there’s a lot — going to be a lot of focus on that. Anybody who is responsible will need to be accountable.

Q Rebuilding obviously won’t be cheap. And you talked about possibly needing to give that supplemental request to Congress. How much money are we talking about?

SECRETARY BUTTIGIEG: Just too soon to say.

Q And just one question for the Vice Admirable — Admiral. When it comes to, you know, getting the situation cleaned up and recovery efforts, what are the biggest challenges that you’re facing and the kind of equipment that you have to move in?

VICE ADMIRAL GAUTIER: I think the main challenge here is — as you can see by the imagery on scene, is removing that — those large trusses and steel members off the bow of the ship. Once that happens, we’ll have the underwater survey complete in terms of how that vessel is connected to the bridge pier there. But I think once that’s done, I think the salvors will be ready to do the necessary actions to refloat that vessel and remove it.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: Go ahead. Go ahead.

Q On the contents of the ships, sir — on those 4,700 containers. Besides the fuel and oil and hazardous materials, can you give us some general categories of what other goods are on board? Is it —

VICE ADMIRAL GAUTIER: (Inaudible) on any given container ship, you can have a very, very wide range of packaged ha- — packaged materials, consumer goods, and many, many other things. So, it’s going to be a very, very broad cross-section of cargoes.

Q Okay. And then on the other ships that are stuck in the port. Can you talk a little bit about what coordination is being done with those ships? And what kind of cargo they have? And — and where they’re bound for?

VICE ADMIRAL GAUTIER: Yeah, absolutely. So, I think we can give you some more specifics on the ships in the port, but I think roughly we’ve got about a dozen ships that remain in the port that are unable to get out. The majority of those are foreign-flagged vessels and, I think, just sort of typical of what we see in the Port of Baltimore in terms of dry — dry bulk carriers, car carriers, and other things. There are a number of Maritime Administration ships that are there as well.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: Go ahead, Nandita.

Q Thanks —

Q And then, Secretary Buttigieg, on regulations and requirements. Are you discussing waiving any regulations or requirements to help speed along the reconstruction of this bridge?

SECRETARY BUTTIGIEG: Too soon to say what exact administrative issues may come up. But, certainly, we have a clear direction from the President to tear down any barriers, bureaucratic as well as financial, that could affect the timeline of this project.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: Go ahead, Nandita.

Q Thanks, Karine. This is for the Secretary. You mentioned you were meeting with shippers and supply chain operators tomorrow, but just sort of curious about your early assessment so far. Do you expect the closure of the poor to lead to a full-blown supply chain crisis? Or what is your early assessment so far?

SECRETARY BUTTIGIEG: Well, this is not of the proportions of, for example, L.A. and Long Beach when it comes to container traffic. That’s — that’s one port complex — or two ports that collectively represent 40 percent of the U.S. container traffic. It’s nothing like that.

But it is an important port and an important system of the East Coast ports. Now, a lot of the goods that come on or off there go as part of runs where ships also visit the ports of New York and New Jersey and Virginia. And so, right now, I think there are already diversions taking place to those and other East Coast ports helping to absorb some of that need. So, those are the kinds of things we’re getting more information on right now. And I’m looking forward to getting a better sense tomorrow after talking to the shippers.

Q Okay. And a quick question on sort of safety reviews. You know, obviously the ship was involved in an accident in Belgium, I believe, in 2016. Is this incident going to prompt a full-scale review of vessels like this?

VICE ADMIRAL GAUTIER: So — so, we’ve seen what’s in the news in terms of that particular incident. I don’t know whether that’s particularly informative to this — probably a different vessel crew, different pilots, different weather conditions, and so on and so forth.

But nevertheless, we have — the Coast Guard keeps the histories — the safety histories of all the vessels that call into U.S. ports. And so, we’re reviewing that and in terms of the investigation.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: Toluse.

Q Thank you. For the Vice Admiral, can you discuss your decree — your degree of confidence in the victim numbers that we’ve heard so far? We have seen evidence that there is sonar that’s picked up cars at the bottom of the river. Do we know that all those cars belong to the construction workers? Or is there a chance that other cars may have fallen into the river?

VICE ADMIRAL GAUTIER: So, we’ve heard similar reports in the news. And so, basically, the Coast Guard is going off of the numbers of individuals that had been provided to us by the state of Maryland, as they were the ones who are administering the bridge and had the best idea of how many individuals might have been involved.

Q And for Secretary Buttigieg, you mentioned earlier that there is not an air traffic control-type body for shipping. Is that an indication that you think that there should be something like that for the future?

SECRETARY BUTTIGIEG: No, it’s — it’s a very different system. But I do think it’s important for the public to understand that if a runway or an airport goes out of service, and then there’s immediate instructions from a central authority on what to do and where to go. It just doesn’t work that way in shipping.

What I will say is we have felt, especially since the summer of 2021, that there needs to be more coordination than there — there has been in the past. And I think sometimes even — not just as a matter of practice, but as a matter of culture, different shippers and other entities that have been rivals just don’t coordinate.

We built a program called FLOW, which invites different participants — cargo owners, shippers, ports, terminal operators, and others — to begin sharing data. That’s something that served us well going to the Red Sea issues. It’s certainly serving us well right now, because that data can help us get a sense of how these effects are rippling through other ports.

So, we welcome that coordination. We’re trying to promote it. But that doesn’t mean that it’s happening on a command-and-control basis.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: Go ahead.

Q Thanks, Karine. Secretary Buttigieg, when was this bridge last inspected? Was it on a list for replacement? It’s more than 50 years old. And can you give us a ballpark figure of when you’ll reopen the port? You said five years on the outside to rebuild the bridge, but just ballpark it for me — days, weeks, months, years — to reopen the port?

And finally, what’s the estimated economic impact for the closure of this port and — and the downing of this bridge?

SECRETARY BUTTIGIEG: So, on the first one, I’ll refer you to the state. They’ll have the most up-to-date information on the bridge. On the —

Q Well, according to the state, they inspected it — it — but what — what I’m asking: Was it on a list of — and — and they noted it was 50 years old, and they also noted that it had some questionable parts to it. But was it on a list to be replaced with the infrastructure bill?

SECRETARY BUTTIGIEG: It certainly was not the subject of an immediate discretionary grant to replace it or something — anything like that. We do have some work going on — on a — on I-895. But to my knowledge, nothing immediate in terms of any discretionary grants going to the — to the bridge.

Economic numbers. About 8,000 jobs, we think, are directly implicated, and over $100 million of cargo moves in and out of that port a day.

And what was the middle question?

Q The — ballpark it when you’re going to — when the port will be reopening.

SECRETARY BUTTIGIEG: I’ll say this: Reopening the port is a different matter from rebuilding the bridge. The —

Q Yes.

SECRETARY BUTTIGIEG: — the port, that’s just a matter of clearing the channel. Still no simple thing, but I would expect that can happen on a much quicker timeline than the full reconstruction of the bridge.

Q So, can you ballpark it just a little?

SECRETARY BUTTIGIEG: As you can imagine, I’m asking our teams the same question, but I don’t want to —

Q But days —

SECRETARY BUTTIGIEG: — put something out just yet.

Q — weeks, months, years?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: We just got to keep going.

Q I understand, but —

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: We got to keep going.

Q — just give us something there. The — just give —

SECRETARY BUTTIGIEG: As soon as we have something, I’ll tell you.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: Yes, go ahead, Jon. We got to — we got to (inaudible.)

Q Thanks, Karine. Secretary Buttigieg, another supply chain issue for you has to do with a significant amount of automobiles, cars, trucks, coal, LNG that goes through the Port of Baltimore. What will be the impact on the supply chain on those specific industries?

SECRETARY BUTTIGIEG: Yeah, so, this is one of the key ports, again, for — for vehicles, and some vehicles are actually finished at facilities that are on port grounds, so it is significant.

That being said, of course, it’s not the only facility that can accommodate roll-on/roll-off vehicles. You see that in Savannah; certainly, in New York, New Jersey, and Virginia. The tractor equipment will be more complicated than the ordinary light-duty vehicles. These are exactly the kinds of information that we’re going to be seeking over the coming days, including at tomorrow’s convening.

Q And you expect, because of those supply chain issues, that we could see impacts on the U.S. economy as a result of those supply chain issues?

SECRETARY BUTTIGIEG: We want to get a little more fidelity on how disruptive it can be. Again, we’re not talking about a single point of failure that it’s the only possible place to get through or even something that is as impactful as some of the issues that affected the Panama Canal, for example.

This does not automatically mean that a trip to the East Coast has to be substituted with a trip to the West Coast, which would be much more of a cost impact. It could probably be accommodated up and down the East Coast. But the effect clearly will not be trivial.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: We got to start wrapping up.

Go ahead.

Q Thank you. Mr. Secretary, you said that you had received a request for emergency funding from the Maryland authorities. Can you tell us what that number was or is?

SECRETARY BUTTIGIEG: Those don’t necessarily include a full estimate of the costs. But they —

Q Just initial.

SECRETARY BUTTIGIEG: — do make it possible through what’s called a quick-release authority for us to start getting dollars out.

I was just notified that this is coming in as I was stepping out here, so I — I don’t have more details than that right now.

Q Okay.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: Go ahead.

Q Hi, Secretary Buttigieg. So, just purely speaking about economic impact, each day that the port is shut down, what is the economic impact per day?

SECRETARY BUTTIGIEG: Well, again, there’s between a — last I checked, between $100- and $200 million of value that comes through that port every day, and about $2 million in wages that are at stake every day. And that’s one of the areas we’re most concerned about.

It’s one thing for a container or a vehicle or a sugar shipment to be absorbed or accommodated somewhere else. But these longshore workers — if goods aren’t moving, they’re not working.

Now, right now there is work taking place, even inside of that bridge, because of the work that has to be done to offload some of the vehicles that are — that are stuck there and get that back onto the surface transportation to go out to other sites. So, they’re — they’re likely working right now. But that work won’t last long. And that’s one of our main areas of concern.

Q And for the Vice Admiral — thank you very much. So, then you look at CFR — you know, the Code of Federal Regulations — you earlier talked about how, you know, you inspect these vehicles — right? — the Coast Guard inspects these vehicles. Is it done on a regular basis to see if all of those items are, you know, being followed or do you do spot checks?

VICE ADMIRAL GAUTIER: Pretty thorough. So, every ship that comes to a United States port has to report to the Coast Guard and Customs and Border Protection 96 hours in advance.

What we do then is look at cargo, look at the vessel history, look at the individuals onboard. And we’ll put them through a risk matrix to determine based on their past history and ano- — another set of factors on whether we should board and inspect or not, but it’s a pretty thorough process.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: Go ahead, April.

Q Vice Admiral and Mr. Secretary, when does cleanup begin? Because we’re hearing after the first stage of rescue and recovery, cleanup begins. And the question is: Once cleanup starts, will there be at least one channel to come through because of the importance and the uniqueness of this port not just for Baltimore but for the country, to include the Midwest with the farming equipment that goes on the CSX line that’s right there?

And also, how are you going to push back to Republicans who don’t want anything to go through from this Biden administration budgetarily when the President says he wants to pay for everything?

SECRETARY BUTTIGIEG: I’ll take the latter and leave it to you on the channel, if you want. (Laughter.)

VICE ADMIRAL GAUTIER: (Inaudible.)

SECRETARY BUTTIGIEG: So —

VICE ADMIRAL GAUTIER: I’m fine with that. (Laughter.)

SECRETARY BUTTIGIEG: Look, infrastructure is or at least ought to be a bipartisan priority. I know that partisanship has gotten in the way of some important functions and expenditures.

But I would also note that the infrastructure package that was passed is known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law for a reason. Some — not all — Republicans crossed the aisle to work with President Biden and work with Democrats and get this done. It is our hope that that same spirit will prevail here.

And I would also remind any member who might find themselves on the fence when this — when any request that might come through materializes that, you know, today, this is happening in Baltimore; tomorrow, it could be your district. And we really need to stand together — red, blue, and purple — to get these things done.

Q And what about the channel? The cleanup and the channel. That’s right. Yes.

VICE ADMIRAL GAUTIER: So, in terms of cleanup — in terms of the debris assessment removal now, again, the Army Corps of Engineers under General Spellmon are being very aggressive in mobilizing equipment, beginning the underwater surveys and the necessary actions and — in order to first understand what they’re facing in terms of challenges with the — not just the debris on the surface but underwater. So, they can give you an idea on sort of what their assessment looks like.

Q So, we can safely say the process for cleanup and possibly opening that channel is already underway, because you are assessing what’s going on down below?

VICE ADMIRAL GAUTIER: So — so, Admiral Gilreath, the Coast Guard Incident Commander, and General Spellmon from the Army Corps are very tightly linked and coordinated on the necessary actions to do this — not waiting in order to begin this process.

Now, we do need to be sensitive because the state of Maryland is conducting the body recovery operations in and around the same area where that debris assessment removal needs to take place.

But, again, in terms of those details, Army Corps is best to answer that.

Q Thank you so much.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: Go ahead, Ed.

Q Thanks, Karine. Mr. Secretary or Vice Admiral, what kind of changes could this lead to the operations at the ports, like could we see tug escorts going through for bridges like this? And would that make a difference in this?

SECRETARY BUTTIGIEG: For us, again, I think it’s too soon to speculate whether any design feature or other practice would have made a difference. But that’s the kind of thing that NTSB does, and they do it well. At the end of their investigation, they issue recommendations which often become part of policy, design, or even technology for the future. And it’s part of why we’ll be very interested in their work.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: Go ahead.

Q Thanks, Karine. Mr. Secretary, can you tell us if you are seeing an impact on inflation? And you said that the bridge was not made to withstand such an impact, but should it have been reinforced during the past decades?

SECRETARY BUTTIGIEG: So, again, I don’t know how a bridge possibly could withstand the forces that were at play when this vessel, about the same size as the Nimitz-cra- — -class U.S. aircraft carrier, struck the key supporting beam for that bridge. But we will always — as always learn from — from the NTSB investigation.

What was the first bit?

Q About the impact on inflation?

SECRETARY BUTTIGIEG: Too soon to — to say. I think, you know, this is a — definitely a different ballpark from what we saw of the West Coast issues in 2021. But that’s part of what we hope to gather more data on soon.

I will say, you know, a lot of the disinflation that we’ve seen has been a result of the work that the President led to improve and smooth out our supply chains. So, we see a clear relationship between supply chains and inflation. But this is more localized and more specialized than what we saw in 2021.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: All right. Go ahead.

Q Secretary Buttigieg, have you or the President been able to reach the family members of the six victims or do you plan to try to contact them?

SECRETARY BUTTIGIEG: First of all, our hearts and our thoughts are with them. I know right now they are shifting from yesterday, where they were really in the mode of — of hoping for news to today facing the worst kind of news you possibly could.

I can’t speak to anybody else’s conversations with them other than that I know Governor Moore spent time speaking with them.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: Final question. Go ahead.

Q For the Vice Admiral, you had said earlier that there’s a process by which the Coast Guard will keep track of ships that may have been involved in previous incidents. And we already know that the Dali was involved in a — in a previous incident not similar to this one but an incident nonetheless. So, was the ship on the radar for the Coast Guard in terms of, you know, keeping an eye on it?

And if not, a second follow-up question is: If ships have already been flagged, if you will, for having been involved in incidents, what’s the process for that when they’re coming into a United States port?

VICE ADMIRAL GAUTIER: So, maybe I’ll answer the first part of that question first. It’s — it’s the same process for every ship. We get the notification 96 hours in advance of arriving at a U.S. port. We do an examination together with Customs and Border Protection — a review of the histories of these ships and other factors, cargoes that they carry, and so on and so forth — to do a risk ranking and then make a determination about whether a local Coast Guard team — and CBP participates as well — whether we should do a boarding and do a safety examination there.

In terms of the history of the ship, again, I think this one incident that has been discussed within the media — I think it — we need to take that within context in terms of what may or may not have happened with a different crew on board, different situation, different pilots, and so on and so forth — maybe not related to the vessel condition, so to speak.

But in terms of our examination, this particular ship had a fairly good safety record.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: Okay. Thank you so much, Vice Admiral. Thank you so much, guys.

Q What are the tugboat rules for guiding cargo ships in that port, sir?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: Thank you. Thank you. Have a g- — have a great week.

Q What are the tug boat rules for guiding cargo ships in that port, sir?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, guys.

All right, thanks, guys.

Q Thank you.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: Thank you so much, Vice Admiral. Thank you so much, Secretary Buttigieg.

All right, I have a couple of things at the top before we continue with the briefing.

So, just a few more updates here to share that I — I — and then, as I said, I’ll take some questions.

So, last night, voters in Alabama made their voices heard and voted overwhelmingly for Marilyn Lands, who made clear that she would fight to protect access to reproductive healthcare, including IVF. It was a decisive victory in a la- — in a long-held Republican House district. And the President congratulates her on her win.

As we saw last year in Ohio and previously in Michigan, California, Kentucky, Vermont, Kansas, and Montana, in every state where abortion has been on the ballot, the American people overwhelmingly vote to protect reproductive freedom.

President Biden and Vice President Harris stand proudly and firmly behind the majority of Americans in this fight. And they will continue to take action to protect this fundamental freedom that is under relentless attack by extreme Republican elected officials.

But the fact remains that the only way to ensure the right to choose for a woman in every state is for Congress to restore the protections of Roe v. Wade into federal law. Only — only Congress can pass that law, which President Biden — if it were to get to his desk, he would indeed sign it.

Now, today, we had another announcement. The Biden-Harris administration also launched the SAVE Day of Action to promote SAVE, the most affordable student loan repayment plan ever, which President Biden announced just last year. The SAVE Day of Action is a coordinated effort to bring together public, private, and NGOs that could reach 100 million Americans with information about SAVE.

Vice President Harris kicked off the campaign this morning, encouraging people to visit StudentAid.gov/SAVE, where they can join the more than 7.7 million borrowers representing every congressional district who are currently enrolled.

Thanks to SAVE plan, more than 4.5 million borrowers have a monthly payment of zero dollars, and an additional 1 million borrowers have payments of less than $100.

Finally, I want to acknowledge a solemn anniversary that will happen later this week. Friday will mark one year since American journalist Evan Gershkovich was arrested and wrongfully detained in Russia.

Just yesterday, Russia extended his detention after yet another sham hearing. In yesterday’s hearing, the Russian authorities did not even provide any evidence of a crime. In fact, they have provided no real justification for holding him. That is because he has done nothing wrong.

Journalism is not a crime. Let me say that again. Journalism is not a crime.

This administration will continue working every day to secure his release. We will continue to push back against Russia’s attempts to use Americans as bargaining chips. And we will continue to stand strong against all those who seek to attack the press or target journalists.

To Evan, to Paul Whelan, and to all Americans held hostage or wrongfully detained abroad: Keep the faith, we are with you, and we won’t stop working to bring you home.

With that, Seung Min.

Q Thank you. A quick one. Any update on when the President would go to Baltimore?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: I don’t have an update for you. Obviously, we want to — we want to do it when it is the appropriate time on the ground. We’re going to continue to have conversations with, obviously, local officials on the ground to get — to get a sense of what their needs are. But we want to make sure that we do not disrupt their efforts.

You just heard from the Secretary and Vice Admiral: This is a major, major undertaking. And so, we don’t want to get in the way. But you heard from the President. He wants to get there as quickly as he can.

Q And one on Israel. Our understanding is that talks are restarting between the U.S. and Israel about rescheduling that meeting that was supposed to be held this week on Rafah. So, what is the U.S.’s understanding of why Prime Minister Netanyahu is having this apparent change of heart? Did the meetings with Defense Minister Gallant go particularly well this week and came to the conclusion?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: So, obviously, I’m going to let the Prime Minister speak for himself on that first part of the question.

What I can say on — on Israel more broadly, as you asked me about meetings that we — that were held here — they were constructive discussions with Israel’s Defense Minister over the last two days. Rafah was one of the many topics discussed with Jake Sullivan, Tony Blinken, Lloyd Austin, and Bill Burns.

The Prime Minister’s office has agreed — has agreed to reschedule the meeting dedicated to Rafah. So, we’re — we’re now working with them to set — to find a convenient date that’s obviously going to work for both sides. But he — his office has agreed to — to reschedule that meeting that would be dedicated to Rafah, which is a good thing.

Go ahead, Selina.

Q Thanks, Karine. And actually, on that note, we have received a statement from the Prime Minister’s office saying that Netanyahu did not approve the departure of the delegation to Washington. So, disputing that they agreed to the rescheduling, could you just talk about what might be going on?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: So, look, I would say that we are working to set a date. The Prime Minister’s office agreed to reschedule this meeting. You — you saw that the defense — the Israel Defense Minister was here for two days — extended a day and added another day — to meet with Jake Sullivan, Tony Blinken, Lloyd Austin, and Bill — and Bill Burns.

So, that is the conversation that we’re having. We are working to convene that — that meeting — an important meeting on Rafah. And when we have a date, certainly, we’ll share that with you. That is what we know from our side.

Q And what is the message that Defense Secretary Austin had to Gallant about the alternatives in Rafah?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: I’m just not going to get into specifics of — of those conversations. Obviously, as I just stated, Rafah — the operations — the military operations, more broadly — Rafah was — was indeed discussed, but I’m just not — as topics, obviously, that were discussed. I’m just not going to go into further details.

Q And have talks for that hostage deal and ceasefire — have they reached another stalemate? And what are the sticking points on it?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: So, I can confirm that talks continue and we are — the United States is actively engaged in those conversations. We remain hopeful that we can bre- — we can broker a deal to secure the release of hostages and establish a temporary ceasefire. This is something that we’ve been asking for some time.

A ceasefire and this hostage deal, obv- — obviously, would allow us to bring home some hostages to their — to their family, to their loved ones, and they include American hostages as well. And as well, bring into Gaza that all-important humanitarian aid that is needed in Gaza on the ground. I don’t have anything beyond that.

But we can confirm that — that we continue to have this incred- — incredibly important conversation on getting that hostage deal, which would lead to a ceasefire.

Go ahead.

Q Just following up on what Selina was saying, Karine. Does the administration believe it was able to convince Israeli officials to take a relook at a potential Rafah operation after the series of meetings that he had with the administration?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: So, look, I — I mean, Rafah, obviously was part of the — part of the agenda — their military operations. And so, I’m not going to go into detail. It is important that we have heard from the Prime Minister’s office that we’re going to reschedule and try to lock in this meeting with — with their — obviously, their folks on — on the Israeli government side and — and folks here. And so, I think that’s important.

I’m not going to get into — into that. They — I — you know, they — I would say they discussed how best to ensure Hamas’s lasting defeat in Gaza, and the need to — to protect civilians. So, of course, that was part of the conversation. But I’m not going to provide any more details beyond that.

Q And is the President thinking about reconsidering sending arms to Israel given, you know, the unfolding situation and the — the unfolding humanitarian situation in Gaza?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: That is — that is —

Q Any fresh thoughts?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: — that is — there is nothing new there. There is — that is not under consideration.

As you know, we have — we have — we have done more to get humanitarian aid into Gaza with the airdrops. You know about the pier.

And we’re working with — obviously, with Israel to get — to make sure that we get more of the trucks inside of Gaza. It is incredibly important. We know the dire situation in — in Gaza as it relates to humanitarian aid.

And — but the most important thing — the most important thing here is to get that hostage deal so we can get the humanitarian aid, to get those hostages back home to their family. And it is — and it would — we believe, would lead to a ceasefire, obviously. And so, that is what we’re working towards. We got to get that hostage deal done, and we are actively, actively continuing those talks.

Q Because restricting weapons to Israel should also be a top consideration, right?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: I — I’m not going to get into — into, you know — into hypotheticals, into conditions from here. We’ve been very clear where we stand, and we’ll continue to do so.

We want to get that hostage deal done. The talks can — is active. They continue. That is important: to get the hostage deal, to get the ceasefire, to get that humanitarian aid into Gaza. It is incredibly, obviously, important, as we — as you all have reported the dire situation in — in Gaza. And so, that is our focus.

We’re going to get that pier going. We’re going to continue the airdrops, continue to get those trucks in. Working with Israel on that.

I just don’t have anything else beyond that.

Go ahead.

Q On the Rafah talks, you said that both sides are working to find a new date that works with schedules. But what level of urgency does the administration assign to holding those talks?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: I mean, it’s — it’s urgent. It’s important. We have said that. The President has said that. The National Security Advisor was here at this podium saying those — those very words — the importance of making sure that there is a plan and that — that we protect civilians. You’ve heard — you’ve heard us say there’s more than 1 million Palestinian civilians in Rafah — about 1.5. We have to make sure that they are protected.

But at the same time, we want to make sure that — that Israel also makes sure that Hamas is no longer operating. Right? And so, that is important as well.

But these talks will get us into a place where there is a plan — that we hear their side; they hear our side. I think the Defense Minister being here from Israel was really important for two days having those all-important, all-critical conversations about Rafah, about military operations. I’m just not going to get beyond that.

When we have a date locked in, certainly we would share that with all of you.

Q There’s been reporting that the talks could happen as soon as next week. Do you see that as feasible?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: I’m — I’m just not going to get into a — a set date or time here, but we want it to happen. Obviously, it’s urgent. We think it’s urgent. It’s important to — to lock this in, and so we’re going to work really diligent to make sure that that happens.

Go ahead, Kelly.

Q Tomorrow, the President will be in New York, and he is going to be with two former presidents. I’m not asking about the campaign piece of that. Could you speak to the historical significance or the stature of the moment to have three presidents together?

And while he is in New York, you, I’m sure, have seen reports there was a New York City police officer who died in the line of duty. Any plan to acknowledge that officer?

So, a two-part question, but first about the historical significance of the presidents being together.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: So, let me — and I’m going to get be really mindful, and I have to say this. This is a Hatch Act. I am a federal employee, and I’m going to follow the law and not comment on 2024 campaign, but I’ll say a couple of things at the top.

That President Obama and President Clinton strongly support President Biden’s leadership and obviously his agenda. All three have — agree overwhelmingly on the issues that this President has been fighting for for the past three years, including an economy that works for all, leaves no one behind; that is an economy that’s built from the bottom up, middle out; making sure that we protect our critical freedoms — that is something that they all three agree on — like a freedom to choose or protecting our democracy.

And so, they are, of course — there are, of course, many conservative leaders in the country who oppose the dark vision put forward by extreme Republican officials that would drag us into the past with trickle-down take — tax giveaways to the rich, cuts to Medicare and Social Security, radical abortion bans, and attacks on the rule of law. That is not these three presidents.

So, we understand the importance of the three of them being together. Obviously, this is going to be an up- — and important — an important event.

I want to be really careful and not speak to a campaign event. Obviously, the campaign could speak more — more specifically to — to the broader significance of them being there.

But look, these are — these are presidents — two former presidents, the current president — that believe in what we’re trying to do in the Biden-Harris administration, trying to move this country forward, try and make sure we’re protecting our democracy, protecting our freedom, building an economy that leaves no one behind. And I think that’s what — the most important here.

As it relates to the death of the officer, look, our hearts go out to this officer who tragically lost his life in the line of duty. We’re also praying for his family during this difficult time, who now has an empty seat at their dinner table.

President Biden is deeply grateful for the sacrifices police officers make to keep our community safe.

This shooting is yet another painful reminder of the toll of gun violence that — what it’s — what it’s doing to inflict on families and our communities and our nation.

And that’s why the President signed more than two dozen executive actions. That’s why we’re able to pass a bipartisan agreement to deal with the gun violence that we’re seeing in this country. Obviously, more work needs to be done. We need Congress to continue to act on making sure that our communities are safe.

And, again, our hearts go out to the — to this officer and — and his family. It’s a difficult time for them.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: Go ahead, Sabrina.

Q Thank you. Do you have any comment on the decision by a federal appeals court today to continue blocking Texas’s migrant deportation law, SB 4?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: So, a couple of things on that. Obviously, I want to first take a step back and just remind us how we got here.

We have said from the beginning that SB 4 is an extreme unconstitutional law that will burden law enforcement and make communities less safe. We disagreed with the Supreme Court order yesterday letting the law go into effect, and we welcome the Fi- — the Fifth Circuit and their decision overnight oppose — pausing the implementation of it.

Ultimately, we need real solutions, right? We need that decision, that negotiation proposal that came out of the Senate in a bipartisan fashion. We need that to move. We need it to move out of the Senate. We need it to move out of the House and to get to the desk of this President.

And we believe — we believe that that bipartisan border security agreement would not only be the toughest but it’d be the fairest. And it took us a couple of months to work on it. It got support from the Border Patrol union. It got support from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, something that you don’t see nowadays.

And so, we are going to continue to encourage Congress to move forward. As we know, the former president, President Trump, told Republicans on the Hill to not move forward with it, to reject it because it would help — it would help us. It would help Joe Biden, and it would hurt him.

And that’s not how — who we should be as a country. We should be where — where majority of Americans are. They want us to deal with what’s happening at the border, and they want us to fix this immigration system.

Q In the back.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: All right. We’ll go — go ahead, Aurelia. I haven’t called on you.

Q Thank you. On airdrops and humanitarian aid. Eighteen people have died in Gaza on Monday during an airdrop. Twelve of them drowned trying to fish out food from the water. So, does the administration intend to continue with these operations? And if so, is there a way to make them safer or should we just expect to see more people dying like that?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: So, we — we express our condolences to the families of those who died — who were — while trying to retrieve desperately needed humanitarian aid. We know — we understand what’s going on on the ground. We know that the humanitarian situation on the ground, as I’ve stated many times already just in the past couple of minutes, is dire.

And so — which is why we’re working around the clock to increase the flow of humanitarian assistance going on — into — going into Gaza. So, we’re going to continue to do that.

Look, you know, this is, again, why that hostage deal is so important — why we’re going to do everything we can, working around the clock to get that hostage deal done because, yes, it’s about getting the hostages home to their families and their loved one, which is critical, important — let’s not forget there are American hostages, as well, included — and to get that humanitarian aid, to lead to a ceasefire, but also get to that all-needed humanitarian aid.

Our hearts go out and our condolences go out to the families. It is a devastating situation. We have to make sure that we continue to get that humanitarian aid into Gaza.

Go ahead, Jacqui.

Q Thank you, Karine. On the delegation issue. You know, I heard messaging from the administration earlier this week explaining, you know, that the U.S. abstaining from that U.N. vote and allowing it to go through didn’t really matter because it was a nonbinding resolution. But if it doesn’t really matter, you know, why not vote no again and avoid this whole fallout with Israel, because it obviously mattered to them?

And so, I guess where I’m coming from is how did we get here? You know, what — what caused this? And is it politics?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: So, look, the principles of the deal were there. Right? It talked about a ce- — it talked about a ceasefire. It talked about hostages, which we believe the principles were there.

But we believe the only path forward to a ceasefire is to negotiate a release — the hostage deal — a hostage release as well. Right? We believe those two things are both important and to do that together.

And so —

Q You guys —

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: — this —

Q — didn’t do that though. It didn’t condition that.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: Well, that’s not how we saw it. Right? And so, we have long said — we have long said a ceasefire will not be achieved in the Security Council but through diplomatic — diplomacy on the ground. That’s what we have said. We have to see that diplomacy on the ground.

And so, the resolution, as I’ve stated, as you just stated in your question is nonbinding and does not create new obligations under the international law, such as what the council does when it imposes obligatory sanctions.

But nevertheless, that shouldn’t matter. Even though the resolution lacks the binding provision, all Security Council resolutions carry great weight and should be implemented.

In this case, however, it is irrelevant whether the resolution imposes any new legal objections, as the text demands exactly what the United States has long been pushing: both. We want both a hostage deal and a ceasefire, making sure that humanitarian aid gets in. And that’s what we want to see.

That’s why we believe the principles were right. But we didn’t feel like it did exactly where we stand on our — on our policy.

Q This wasn’t — it wasn’t nothing. You know, the U.S. has blocked previous votes from going through that looked exactly like this. So, what caused the shift? And what is the President’s reason for allowing this to go through? It is a change.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: No, it is not. It is not a policy change. We’ve been very clear.

Q It’s a messaging change.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: Well, no. We disagree — disagree. We’ve been very clear that in or- — in order to get a hostage deal that would lead to a ceasefire, we also got to get that humanitarian aid. We believe it is all connected in that way.

And so, that is where we stood. That’s where we’ve been.
It is not a policy change. The principles were there, but we needed to — we — we have a way that we want to do this — right? — a hostage deal.

Those are the critical conversations that are happening — the active conversations that are happening, making sure that we get those hostages home — American hostages are also included — to their loved ones. We also got to get that humanitarian aid. And we believe that diplomatic effort — the diplomacy — the diplomatic work that is being done would lead us to that.

And so, we’ve been very clear and s- — and steadfast about this. And that’s what we’re going to continue to be.

Q So, no part of this is —

Q One in the back?

Q — linked to the President worried about losing —

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: No —

Q — support from Gen Z or —

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: No, this is — let me be very clear. Let me be very clear. This is not about politics. It’s not. The President does not lead his national security or things that are the right thing to do, in this sense — right? — getting that hostage deal, making sure hos- — hostages come home — including, as I said over and over again, American hostages; getting that humanitarian aid into Gaza and making sure that it — it — we believe that would lead to a ceasefire — that is not about politics. That is about the right thing to do.

This is why we continue those active conversations and making sure that we can get there. It is important to get this done.

Q One in the back?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: Go ahead.

Q Why do you think that the United States, which is Israel’s most important ally, seems to have so little clout right now with Israel?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: I — I disagree. I don’t think that is — that is the case. You know, our position is going to continue to — to remain the same. We have been really clear. We are committed to supporting Israel in — in its fight against Hamas. We’ve shown that. We are committed to that. And we’ve — we’ve said Hamas has said that they’re going to repeat — they’ve said this — they’re going to repeat October 7th again and again until Israel is annihilated. And because we — we cannot expect Israel to accept a situation in which their citizens continue to live under that threat.

At the same time — at the same time, it’s critical that Israel do everything possible to protect civilian casualties —

Q Do you feel they are?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: — and conduct operations.

Look, we are having those diplomatic conversations. We are. We — you — you just heard me lay out how the Israel Defense Minister was here. He stayed for two days. He met with Jake Sullivan. He met with Lloyd Austin. Those are high-level —

Q Netanyahu has been very clear —

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: — those high-level — those high-level conversations. And that is important.

And the Prime Minister’s office said that they — they want to reschedule this — this meeting so that we can talk about the Rafah operations. We welcome that. And we’re going to work with their teams to make sure that happens.

Q But you — but your op- — you have made it clear that you think a land invasion of Rafah is a mistake. Netanyahu has made it clear that he’s going to go ahead and do it anyway. So, I’m just wondering —

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: Wait. Hold on. But wait. Their — they have agreed to come and have a discussion about that. That’s important too. We can’t miss that. We can’t miss the fact that there’s an agreement to have a meeting here to talk about the Rafah operations. That is what we’re going to do.

The Israel Defense Minister was here for two days — for two days. That was on the table — was part of — Rafah operations was certainly — Rafah was certainly — one of the agenda items. That’s important.

So, conversations are happening. We’re going to set — set this date in the upcoming days to have this meeting about the Rafah for operations. We’re going to share our side; they’re going to share their side. And that’s what you do. That’s what diplomacy is about. And I think that’s also really important.

I know I have to wrap.

Q To the back. One more?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: This has been a very long briefing.

Q Is the President concerned about the college —

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: Go ahead. I haven’t called you. I haven’t —

Q — financial aid delays?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: — called you. Go ahead, go ahead.

Q Thanks, Karine. Has the President spoken with or plan to speak with those that were rescued from the bridge collapse or to the families of those who were lost?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: I know Secretary Buttigieg was just asked that question. I think it might have been the la- — one of the last questions he got before leaving here.

Obviously — obviously, as I started off this briefing, our hearts go out to the families of the — of those six — six people and — who are now missing. And I can’t imagine how hard it is for them right now.

And so, I don’t have anything to read out to you about a president conversation or a call. But we’re thinking of them. And this is a President that has always said he will be there for that family. I just don’t have anything else to share.

Q And — and the Republican National Committee has been asking those seeking employment within the organization if they believe the 2020 election was stolen, serving as an apparent litmus test for hiring. Do you have any comment about this kind of prerequisite from (inaudible)?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE: Yeah, I mean, I want to — do say a couple of things. I want to be mindful not to comment on 2024.

But I’ll say, more broadly, this is a president that believes in the rule of law, believes that — the need to respect the officers who put their lives at risk on that day on — and to keep everyone safe. We saw what happened on January 6th. Some of you covered that. Our democracy was on atta- — under attacked. We lost lives.

And it is — it is — what we saw was because of the dangerous conspiracy theories. There were people — 2,000 folks — right? — 2,000 people who were mobsters — who were mobs, who — and — and they were there because they didn’t believe in a free and fair election. And that’s why they were there.

The Trump administration itself certified that the 2020 election was the most secure in our history. But yet, this is what we saw.

And so, we’re going to continue to stand with law enforcement. We’re going to continue to fight for our democracy.

And I’m going to be very careful not to speak beyond that on what the RNC decides to do.

All right, everybody. Thank you so much.

2:34 P.M. EDT

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The Roosevelt Room

Certain words have the power to make time stop. Malignant. Aggressive. Terminal. Cancer.

Like a spell, they still the air around us. Frozen in place, we feel the world we knew slipping away.

And when the hands of the clock begin to move once again, we are not the person we once were, and it can feel like we’re all alone.

But with a patient navigator by your side, you’re never alone.

Navigators guide patients and their families through the complex and daunting world of cancer. They help patients with everything from scheduling appointments to keeping track of medications to coordinating things like transportation and child care.

When you have someone who knows the system by your side every step of the way, it changes everything.

But for too long, these services weren’t available to many Americans. That’s because the proper billing codes didn’t exist. And this meant that insurers couldn’t pay for patient navigation services, so most medical practices couldn’t provide them.

Through the Biden Cancer Moonshot, Joe found a solution.

His Administration put in place new billing codes, ones that Medicare and other health insurers can use to pay for patient navigation services.

But for those codes to help the most people, insurance companies need to use them. That’s where you come in.

You’ve stepped forward – using these codes so that more of your members can benefit from the support that patient navigators provide.

That choice will change lives – and save them.

It’s not just the right thing to do for patients, it’s also the right thing for your businesses.

Patients with navigators miss fewer appointments, are more likely to complete their treatment, and are less likely to need to go to the emergency room or be hospitalized.

So, on behalf of the President and me, thank you.

The companies that have stepped forward serve 150 million Americans – nearly half the country. And we know that those aren’t just numbers.

They’re the father who will be able to enroll in a cutting-edge clinical trial because his navigator helped him find it.

The student whose pain no longer keeps her from class, because her navigator is helping her control the side effects of her treatment.

The grandmother who can keep traveling and seeing her grandkids because a navigator helps her follow her treatment plan.

Yes, the word cancer has the power to strike fear into our hearts. But, as we’ve seen today, we have power too.

Together, through the Biden Cancer Moonshot, we’re building a world where our power is greater than ever before, where patients and their families have a trusted navigator by their side, where no person has to face cancer alone. And I can tell you from personal experience that it makes all the difference.

Thank you.

###

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3:31 P.M. EDT

THE VICE PRESIDENT:  Hello.  Hello, North Carolina.  (Applause.)  (Laughs.)  Oh, it’s good to be back.  It’s good to be back.  Please have a seat, everyone.  Please have a seat.

So, before I begin, I will say a few words on the terrible accident in Baltimore this morning.  I know we are all praying for the families of those who are missing and all those who have been touched by this tragedy.

I spoke with the governor of Maryland this morning, and we have directed the federal government to use all the resources that are available to assist with the search and rescue, to reopen the port, and to rebuild the bridge as quickly as possible.  And, of course, I know we all will stand and continue to stand with the people of Maryland.

And now, I will discuss the reason why we are here today. 

So, again, it is good to be back in this beautiful state.  It is good to be here with my dear friend, Governor Roy Cooper.  (Applause.)

Governor Cooper and I served together as Attorneys General.  And so, I have known his work for many years.  And I will tell you, no one fights harder for the people of this state than Roy Cooper.  (Applause.)  Yes.

I also see your extraordinary Attorney General, Josh Stein — (applause) — who is a powerful, powerful defender of our most fundamental rights and freedoms.  And thank you, Josh, for all your work.

And to all the leaders here today, thank you.

So, we here agree that access to healthcare should be a right and not just a privilege of those who can afford it.  A- — (applause) — yes.

And guided, then, by that fundamental belief, over the past three years, President Biden and I have made healthcare more accessible and more affordable for millions of Americans. 

We cut the cost of prescription drugs for millions of seniors.  We expanded access to Medicare and Medicaid.  We made the largest investment in youth mental health in history — (applause) — with 14,000 new mental health counselors in schools across our nation, including hundreds right here in North Carolina.  And we strengthened the Affordable Care Act so that, today, more Americans have healthcare coverage than ever before in the history of our country.  (Applause.)

As you have heard and know, 14 years ago, when he was vice president, Joe Biden helped pass the Affordable Care Act.  And he is without doubt one of our nation’s greatest champions for affordable healthcare.

Eleven years ago, when I was Attorney General of California, I led 10 other state Attorneys General to defend the ACA in the United States Supreme Court. 

And together, we have since signed up millions of Americans for affordable care.

We have also taken on the crisis — the healthcare crisis of maternal mortality.  (Applause.)  Because in the 21st century, in the United States of America, it should not be the case that women here die in connection with childbirth at a higher rate than women in any other wealthy nation in the world — (applause) — that Black women — that Black women are three times as likely to die in connection with pregnancy; Native women, twice as likely to die in connection with pregnancy; rural women, one and a half more times as likely to die. 

It is also the case that one of the most significant factors that contributes to this crisis of maternal mortality is that millions of women in America do not have access to adequate postpartum care.

In fact, when we took office, in most states, women on Medicaid were only entitled to two months of coverage for postpartum care — two months.  And only three states — when we took office, only three states in our nation offered 12 months of postpartum care.  

So, many of you know how I am.  We came in and I said, “Okay, let’s issue a challenge,” which I did, “to every state in our nation: Extend postpartum Medicaid coverage from a measly 2 months to 12 months.” 

And I am proud, North Carolina, to report: So far, a total of 45 states have now completed that challenge — (applause) — including North Carolina.  And, Governor Cooper, thank you for answering the call.  (Applause.)

But while President Biden and I are fighting to expand access to affordable healthcare, there are extremists in our country trying to take away healthcare coverage or make it more expensive — extremists who want to take away coverage from our seniors by trying to cut Social Security and Medicare.  They want to take away coverage from working families by trying to gut Medicaid.  And they want to take away coverage from people with preexisting conditions by continuously trying to repeal the Affordable Care Act.

And across our nation, extremists attack a woman’s access to healthcare and reproductive healthcare.  They have proposed and passed laws that criminalize doctors and punish women.  Laws that threaten doctors and nurses with prison time, even for life, simply for providing reproductive care.  Laws that even make no exception for rape or incest.  The result is a healthcare crisis with real harm.

Consider: Since Roe was overturned, I have met women who were refused care during a miscarriage.  I met a woman who went to the emergency room and was turned away repeatedly because the doctors there were afraid they may be thrown in jail for helping her.  And it was only when she developed sepsis that she received care.

Earlier this month, I visited a clinic in Minnesota, where I met with medical professionals — courageous and dedicated women who provide critical healthcare — (applause) — who also see, around our country, that clinics just like theirs are forced — being forced to close around our nation.

And understand: The clinics that extremists are forcing to close, they provide so much more than abortion care.  They provide breast cancer screenings, contraceptive care, paps — essential, lifesaving care being denied to millions of women across our country.

So, I’ll end where I began: Access to healthcare should be a right and not just a privilege no matter who you are, where you live, or how much you earn.  (Applause.)  And President Biden, with your support, will continue to make sure that everyone in our country has the healthcare they need.

And now, to say a few words about the profound impact that access to affordable healthcare has on a family, please join me in welcoming Lori Kelley.

Lori.  (Applause.)

MS. KELLEY:  Good afternoon, everyone.

AUDIENCE:  Good afternoon.

MS. KELLEY:  My name is Lori Kelley, and I am from Harrisburg, North Carolina.

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  Wooo!  (Laughter.)

MS. KELLEY:  I’m a — I’m a mother of three and a grandmother of six. 

After spending 16 years being locked out of affordable healthcare, today I stand in front of you having coverage now, thanks to Medicaid expansion in North Carolina.  (Applause.)

In 2008, I was diagnosed with a progressive eye disease.  It affects everything in my daily life, from driving to reading to working.  And it — no health insurance meant no regular checkups for my eyes and no access to care if I got sick and nothing to be done if I had an accident. 

And, indeed, an accident happened to me in December.  I hurt my finger, and I got a terrible infection.  I was really scared because emergency care and surgery that was necessary for me was not in the budget.  And it was right then that I found out that I qualified for Medicaid.  (Applause.)

Right in the nick of time, I — I found out through an email, and I thought it was a hoax.  But it was true. 

And it was because of the Affordable Care Act and the closing of the gap, which President Biden, [Vice] President Harris, Governor Cooper, and many others worked to make a reality.  And today, here we are with something to celebrate.  (Applause.)

Because of Medicaid expansion, and the tireless advocates who worked to close the gap, now I don’t have to worry about how I’m going to have to pay for surgery or the routine care that I need.  I have peace of mind now.

I often say that I feel like I got the keys to the kingdom.  And I know that there are millions more like me with similar stories.  I am truly grateful for the blessing that this is and continues to be for myself and for so many others, which is why I am honored to introduce to you someone who has been fighting for people just like me.

Ladies and gentlemen, the President of the United States, Joe Biden.  (Applause.)

THE PRESIDENT:  Hello, hello, hello, Raleigh!  (Applause.)

Please, all, have a seat.  (Applause.)  Thank you.

Thank you, thank you, thank you.  Please.  Thank you.

Lori, thank you for that introduction and for sharing your story with us.  As a daughter, a mom, a granddaughter — grandmother, I should say — you’re doing everything you can to care for the family and for yourself while still taking care of others in need.  You’re incredible — pretty incredible.

And so is Kamala.  She is really incredible.  (Applause.)

As Vice President of the United States, as Attorney General of California, Kamala always fought for people like Lori who stood for the basic truth that healthcare is a right — should be a right not just a privilege in America. 

And I want to especially thank your incredible governor, Roy Cooper — (applause) — and by the way, he is an incredible governor — and First Lady Kristin Cooper for welcoming us today and for their friendship. 

You know, when I think of the Coopers, I think of one word, and I mean this sincerely — highest compliment I can give anybody who has ever been elected to office.  They have enormous integrity.  They have enormous integrity.  (Applause.) 

And because Roy Cooper ne- — never gave up, North Carolina finally extended — expanded Medicaid coverage, which already is helping 400,000 North Carolinians so far — 400,000.  (Applause.)  That all by itself is a heck of a legacy. 

I also want to thank your Attorney General, Josh Stein, who defended ACA — (applause) — and fought to expand Medicaid as well.  He’s an outstanding leader. 

And, folks, look, speaking of great leaders and legacies, 14 years ago this week, I stood by O- — President Obama when he signed the Affordable Care Act into law — Obamacare.  And as many of you know, I thought it was a big deal.  (The President makes the sign of the cross.)  (Laughter.)  Thank God my mom wasn’t around.  (Laughter.)

Well, look, even as — it’s even a bigger deal today.  The Affordable Care Act is the most consequential healthcare since Medicare and Medicaid, and that’s a fact.  

It was always about millions of Americans lying in bed staring at the ceiling at night wondering, “What will happen if I lose my insurance?” 

I’ll never forget, my dad came home one day.  We lived in a three-bedroom house with four kids and a grandpop living with us.  And my bedroom wall backed up to where they were.  And I could hear my dad was restless as hell.  I couldn’t understand why. 

And the next morning — I was 14 years old — I asked my mom, “What’s the matter?”  She said, “Well, they just — he just lost his health insurance.  The company he worked for no longer is paying for health insurance.”

You know, there’s a lot of people lying in bed at night, staring at the ceiling, literally wondering, “What will happen if my spouse gets cancer or my child gets seriously ill?  Will I have enough insurance?  Can we afford the medical bills?  Will we have to sell the house?  What are we going to have to do?” 

Because of all of you in this room and across the country, we changed that and made the Affordable Care Act the law of the land.  (Applause.)

But Donald Trump and his MAGA friends are, if nothing than — but persistent.  They’ve tried to repeal it 50 times.  Not a joke.  Fifty times they’ve tried to repeal it, but we stopped them every time. 

And now — (applause) — and now they just released a budget again.  A hundred and twenty or a hundred and sixty — I’m not sure how many — of the House members put out their budget for next year.  They want to get rid of the Affordable Healthcare Act again. 

But I got news for them.  (Laughter.)  We’re going to stop them again.  (Applause.)

Look, Kamala and I have come back to North Carolina to celebrate the ACA and to remind all of us we can’t take anything for granted. 

Just think back before the ACA.  A patient with a heart disease, diabetes, or a child with asthma couldn’t get coverage.  Why?  Because the insurance company considered those a preexisting condition that allowed them to deny you coverage —

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  What about healthcare in Gaza?

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  What about the healthcare in Gaza? 

THE PRESIDENT:  Everybody deserves healthcare.

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  Hospitals in Gaza are being bombed!  (Inaudible.)

AUDIENCE MEMBER:  Women are being raped!  (Inaudible.)

THE PRESIDENT:  Be patient with them.

They have a point.  We need to get a lot more care into Gaza.  (Applause.)

But, folks — (applause) — back to the subject at hand. 

Even pregnancy was considered a preexisting condition.  Did you all know that?

Well — (laughs) — for all — for all the young people out there, before ACA, you could get kicked off your parents’ healthcare plans before you turned 26, just as you’re heading out on your own.  A lot has changed. 

For so many other people, they couldn’t leave a dead-end job or start their own business because they couldn’t risk losing the healthcare they had where they were.  

And imagine this: Prior to the ACA, many insurance companies imposed lifetime caps on how much coverage your insurance policy would give you — lifetime caps.  That meant a cancer patient could be halfway through chemo when they reached the cap and their insurance cut out. 

No, I’m serious.  I know it sounds hard to believe.  Many of you pray to God you haven’t had to go through that.  But companies would stop covering, and — and that life was put in danger.  They just cut off the insurance. 

Think about that.  At the most vulnerable point in their life, so many Americans heard these words: “Sorry, you’re on your own.”

Look, for God’s sake, this is the United States of America.  We’re so much better than that.  And that’s why the Affordable Care Act is so important and why Kamala and I are making it stronger than ever before.  (Applause.)  

Folks, through laws I wrote and signed — the American Rescue Plan, the Inflation Reduction Act — both of which not a single, solitary Republican in the Congress voted for — I enacted tax credits that save an average of $800 per person per year, reducing healthcare premiums for millions of working families under the Affordable Care Act. 

Those tax credits expire next year.  I’m calling on Congress to make that $800 expanded affordable healthcare tax credit permanent.  (Applause.)  Otherwise, millions of Americans with that coverage could lose their coverage. 

Folks, it’s because we’re making the ACA stronger and more affordable AC- — ACA enrollment is breaking records.  Today, everyone can get affordable coverage through the ACA.  And 80 percent — 80 percent of the folks on the ACA plan can get a plan for $10 a month — $10 a month. 

Twenty-one million people covered under ACA, a 75 percent increase just since Kamala and I came to office.  And that includes over 1 million folks right here in North Carolina.  (Applause.)

And on top of that, more Americans have healthcare today than any other pre- — than under any other president, and it’s saving the American taxpayers money.  It saves money.  They talk about we’re spending — it saves the taxpayers money.  It’s cheaper to pay for a preventive mammogram than it is to treat a cancer.  (Applause.)  

And today, 100 million Americans can no longer be denied health insurance because of preexisting conditions, whether you get your insurance through ACA or not.  Nearly 25 million low-income adults have gained Medicaid coverage because of ACA, including, as I said, 400,000 right here in North Carolina because of Roy Cooper.  (Applause.)

And Kamala and I are making — making healthcare more affordable and accessible in other ways as well.  Americans pay more for prescription drugs than anywhere else in the world. 

I could get you on Air Force One, and you tell me if you have a prescription to fill out here in North Carolina.  I c- — say — take — I could fly you to Toronto, to Berlin, to London, to Rome, and I can get you that same prescription from that same company somewhere between 40 and 60 percent less than you pay for it here.

But through the Inflation Reduction Act — again, not a single Republican voted for it — we finally beat Big Pharma.  (Applause.)  Finally.

For example, instead of seniors with diabetes paying as much as $400 a month for their insulin they so badly need, they now only have to pay $35 a month, period.  (Applause.)  And, by the way, you know how much it costs to make that insulin?  Ten — T-E-N — dollars.  Package it, everything: $12.50.

Folks, I want to extend those savings to everyone who needs lifesaving insulin, whether you’re a senior or not — everyone.  Everyone.  (Applause.)

And, folks — and it saves the American taxpayers money.  Guess what that one little act did when we passed it?  It saves the American taxpayers $160 billion — (applause) — $160 billion.  They no longer have to pay $400.  They pay $35, among other things.

Folks, for — people have talked about giving Medicare the power to negotiate lower prices for prescription drugs the federal government pays just like VA pays.  I’ve been fighting for that since I — and the congressman and I have been fighting for that since we were almost kids in the Congress.  (Laughter.)  Well, guess what?  We finally got it done. 

Now, that’s not just saving seniors money.  As I said, it’s saving taxpayers, and the federal deficit is down by $160,000 — 160 million [billion] bucks in the next 10 years.  Medicare will no longer have to pay exorbitant, big prices.

Because of the law I signed, Medicare is able to continue to negotiate lower prices for some other of the costliest drugs — for example, for heart disease, for arthritis.  Now it’s time to go further and give Medicare the power to negotiate lower prices for even more drugs over the next decade. 

This along with other nations — and other actions we’ve taken — but this first time for us — will not only save lives, it’s going to save the taxpayers an additional $200 billion on top of the $160.  This saves money.  Saves money.

Because the law I signed, starting next year, we’ve capped total prescription drug costs for seniors on Medicare at $2,000 a year no matter what the total costs are, even for expensive cancer drugs that cost $10-, $12-, $14-, $15,000 a year.  It’s going to be capped at $2,000 a year and save a hell of a lot more money as well.

And, folks, I want to make sure that’s available for everyone.  That’s my objective in a second term.  (Applause.)

And, by the way, the pharmaceutical company will still make billions of dollars.  They’re not going to go broke. 

Folks, here’s the deal.  My predecessor and MAGA Republicans in Congress have a different plan.  Let’s remember four years ago this month we saw how my predecessor didn’t care much about science and reason.

During the pandemic that went on to claim 1 million American lives — and for every life claimed, it’s estimated there’s between 8 and 10 people left behind — Trump didn’t level with the American people.  He told Americans all they had to do was inject bleach in themselves.  Remember that?  Not a joke.  You’d think I’m making this up if you were — “Just take a sh- — or take a real shot of U- — of UV light.”

Even before the pandemic, my Republican — Republicans in Congress were hell-bent on getting rid of the ACA, and they came within one vote.  But a close friend of mine — we used to argue like hell, but we spent a lot of time together over the years.  But it failed because of my deceased friend John McCain going like this.  (The President makes a thumbs-down gesture.)  (Applause.)

But even during the deadly pandemic, Trump and his MAGA friends in Congress wanted to get rid of the ACA, kick millions of Americans off their health insurance.

It’s sick.

Now they want to, quote — his word — “terminate” the ACA, as my predecessor says.  If that ever were to happen, we’d also terminate a lot of lives as well.  But we’re not going to let that happen, are we?

AUDIENCE:  No!

THE PRESIDENT:  We’re not going to let that happen.

Here’s what it would mean if they get rid of the ACA.

Because of Donald Trump and his MAGA Republicans in Congress, 45 million people nationwide would lose their health insurance, including 1.4 million right here in North Carolina.  A hundred million Americans with pre-existing conditions, from heart disease to asthma, could lose their protection as well.  And millions of young people, like a 20-year-old kid who just graduated from college could be kicked off his parents’ plan because he can’t stay on until he’s 26 any longer.

Trump and the MAGA Republican officials want to take us back where cancer patients were cut off from insurance halfway through the chemo because they’d reached what they call “their limit” and that — what their willing to pay — the insurance company.

They want to take us back when women could be charged more for healthcare and preventive services like mammograms and they’d no longer be free. 

And — I’m seri- — this is what — if you didn’t know any better, you’d think I’m making this stuff up. 

But they aren’t stopping there.  MAGA Republicans in Congress just proposed a plan to get rid of the power of Medicare to negotiate lower prescription drugs, which could drive the cost of insulin back to 400 bucks a month instead of $35 for seniors and so much more.  No, I’m — this is their —

They plan to slash Medicaid as a result.  It could close out a hundred rural hospitals — hundreds of rural hospitals.  You know how these rural hospitals make it?  They make it because of the healthcare plans that p- — made available through the ACA.  That’s how they can afford to stay open.  So many across the country — rural plans are closing because they couldn’t keep it open.  They couldn’t afford to stay open.

The Republican plan would deny millions of seniors with diabetes [disabilities] access to quality long-term care they get now under Medicaid.

That includes 30 million children who now have access to Medicaid — they’d be at risk of losing that coverage as well.

Trump also recently said, about Social Security and Medicare — he said, quote — I’m quoting — “There’s a lot you can do in terms of cutting.  Tremendous amount of things you can do” — if you cut.

Right on cue, the same budget that 180 House Republicans just proposed to gut Medicare and Medicaid — they’d also raise Social Security retirement age and slash Medicare, giving billions of dollars in tax breaks to the very wealthy instead.  They proposed another $2 trillion tax cut.  They raised the debt la- — larger than anybody did in four years, and they’re going to — about to do it again if they win.

I have a better idea.  I’ll protect Social Security and Medicare.

Instead of giving the very wealthy another $2 billion — $2 trillion tax cut, I’m going to make sure the wealthy begin to fin- — pay their fair share of taxes to sustain these programs.  (Applause.)

Folks, my predecessor and MAGA officials are going after seniors and people with disabilities and children.  As we all know, they’re going after women as well.

Trump proudly says, quote, “After 50 years with no one coming close, I was able to kill Roe v. Wade.”  That’s his statement.  You’ve seen it on television.

Well, he’s talking about how Donald Trump killed Roe v. Wade.  He says it has to be “punishment” for women exercising their reproductive freedom.

Trump and MAGA Republicans are responsible for the chaos that followed, and they’re now calling for a national ban on choice for every state — in every state, not just what is in law now.

On top of that, just this morning, the Supreme Court heard a case to gut access to a medication that was approved by the FDA 20 years ago to give women a choice.

Folks, if America sends me a Congress that are Democrats, I promise you, Kamala and I will restore Roe v. Wade as the law of the land again.  (Applause.)  We will.

Folks — (applause) — look, let me close with this.  History is made when you decide there’s a greater risk in doing nothing rather than doing something when it comes to the health and well-being of the nation.

Through the leadership of President Obama, we made history with the Affordable Care Act.  And while there are those who want to take us back in time, all of us together are determined to move us forward.  And here’s the future I see.

I see a future where we defend democracy, not diminish democracy.  I see a future where healthcare is a right and we restore the freedom to choose and protect the freedoms, not to — and not take it away.  I see a future where the middle class finally has a fair shot and the wealthy begin to pay their fair share.  (Applause.)

Folks, you notice the leading economists aren’t making much fun of Bidenomics anymore.  They’re thinking maybe it works to build from the middle out and the bottom up.  The wealthy can still be very wealthy. 

You know how many billionaires there are in America?  There’s now a thousand billionaires.  You know what their average tax they pay — federal tax?  8.2 percent.  Anybody want to trade with a billionaire — their tax rate?  (Laughter.) 

Well, guess what?  If they just paid 25 percent — it’s not the highest bracket by a longshot — 25 percent — do you know what that would do?  That would raise $40- — $400 billion over the next 10 years. 

Imagine what we could do with that.  We could fundamentally sh- — slash the federal deficit.  We could make sure there’s home care.  We could do so many things — consequential — including finally making sure that we take care of Ukraine from that butcher Putin.  (Applause.)

Look, I see a future where we save the planet from the climate crisis and our country from gun violence.  Above all, a future for all Americans, for a country of all Americans, and I’ll always be president for all Americans.

I’ve never been more optimistic about our future.  And I know I’m only 40 years old — (laughter) — times 2, plus 1.  (Laughter.)

Look, we just have to remember who in God’s name we are.  And I mean this sincerely, and I’ll end with this.  We’re the United States of America.

No, I’m serious.  We’re the United States of America.  We’re the only country in the world that’s come out of every crisis stronger than we went in — the only country in the world.

There is nothing beyond our capacity when we act together — not a single thing. 

This is the United States of America.  Let’s get together and get it done.

God bless you all.  And may God protect our troops.

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

This is the guy, right here — (applause) — one of the best governors in America.  All right.  (Inaudible.) 

Thanks, everybody.  (Applause.)

Every time I’d walk out of my grandfather’s house up in Scranton, he’d yell, “Joey, keep the faith.”  And my grandmother would yell, “No, Joey.  Spread it.”  Let’s go spread the faith, guys.  (Applause.)

Thank you.

  4:04 P.M. EDT

The post Remarks by President Biden and Vice President Harris on Lowering Healthcare Costs | Raleigh, NC appeared first on The White House.

Raleigh Marriott City Center
Raleigh, North Carolina

5:10 P.M. EDT

THE VICE PRESIDENT: Roy Cooper, everyone. Roy Cooper. (Applause.) Thank you, Roy.

Please, everybody, have a seat.

It is so good to be back in North Carolina. Every time I come to North Carolina as Vice President, Roy meets me on the tarmac at Air Force Two. And — and as soon as I take the last step, he tells me what visit it is in terms of what number it is — keeping track. And I think now we’re at — what? — 11, I think — 11 trips to North Carolina since I’ve been Vice President. And you are a dear friend and an extraordinary leader, Roy.

As Roy mentioned — (applause) — he and I did work together as attorneys general. And, of course, each state has a representative in that group at the National Association of Attorneys General. And Roy was always a leader among leaders.

And as governor of this state, you have been courageous, you have been fearless, you always do your work with incredible conviction, you believe in the foundational principles upon which we stand as a country, and you’ve been a dear friend to the President and me.

Can we please, again, applaud Roy Cooper for his work? (Applause.) Truly. Truly.

And earlier today, it was good to see the next governor of North Carolina, Attorney General Josh Stein. (Applause.) And I don’t need to tell you all, as attorney general, he has a long track record of taking on special interests and defending the people of the state of North Carolina. And I look forward to continuing the work we will do together.

So, many of us have been through these election cycles, for years, every four years — for many years now. And each time we have said, for good reason, “This is the one.” Well, friends, this is the one. (Laughter and applause.) This is the one.

This is the most existential, consequential, and important election of our lifetime. We all know that.

I’ll tell you, as Vice President, I have now met with over 150 world leaders — presidents, prime ministers, chancellors, and kings — including, many of them, multiple times. And most recently, saw a number of them at the Munich Security Conference just last month.

More than a few world leaders have said to me in the last many months, “Kamala, is America going to be okay?” And understand, they ask that question purely out of self-interest.

The United States is a global role model for freedom, democracy, and rule of law. Imperfect though we may be, we have the earned and self-appointed authority to walk in those rooms and talk about the importance of democracy and rule of law.

But here’s the thing about being a role model. It’s a room full of role models. When you’re a role model, people watch what you do to see if it lines up to what you say.

The world is watching America right now. They are watching. And they see, as we do, the urgency, then, of this moment. Across our nation, we witness a full-on attack on hard-fought, hard-won freedoms and rights: the freedom to vote, the freedom to live safe from the horror of gun violence, the freedom to be who you are and love who you love openly and with pride, and the freedom — (applause) — and the freedom of a woman to make decisions about her own body — (applause) — and not have her government telling her what to do.

And among the big issues that we are dealing with right now that are not binary, November, it’s binary. This election: binary.

Just pull up the split screen. On the one hand, you have our President, Joe Biden, a champion of freedom and opportunity for all. And we have made historic progress on issues of longstanding concern. Roy was talking about them.

We have lowered prescription drug prices for our seniors. We have forgiven student loan debt for millions of people. We have invested billions of dollars in our entrepreneurs and small-business owners and passed the first major gun safety legislation in 30 years.

And when we win — when we win reelection and when the United States Congress passes a bill that restores the protections of Roe, Joe Biden will sign it into law. (Applause.)

When we win in November, we will invest in affordable childcare and paid family leave. (Applause.) We will invest billions of dollars in lower housing costs for millions of Americans — (applause) — renters, homeowners, and homebuyers — building on the work of Erskine Bowles and the work he has done for years. I’ve talked to Erskine about this.

So, that’s one side of the screen: competence, care, and calm. On the other side: cruelty and chaos; a former president who openly praises dictators and has said he will be a dictator on day one; who openly talks about his intention to weaponize the Department of Justice against his enemies; who openly says that he is, quote, “proud” that he handpicked three members of the highest court in our land — the court of Thurgood and RBG — with the intention that they would do what they did in overturning Roe.

So, North Carolina, ultimately, then, in this election, I believe we each face a question: What kind of country do we want to live in? What kind of country do we want to live in? A country of liberty, freedom, and rule of law or a country of disorder, fear, and hate?

And we each have the power to answer that question with our voice, with our feet, and with our vote. (Applause.)

So, I’ll close with this. The election is 224 days away. Sounds like a lot of lo- — a lot — a long time. It is not a lot of time. So, we know what is in front of us. We know that this is not a time for us to throw up our hands. This is a time for us to roll up our sleeves and to fight.

And when we fight, we win. (Applause.)

And now it is my great, great honor to introduce a leader who we know knows how to fight — he likes a good fight — (laughter) — a leader who has a bold vision for our future and who has the strength, the skill, the capacity, and the compassion to make that vision real: our President, Joe Biden. (Applause.)

THE PRESIDENT: Hello, North Carolina. Thank you.

I should probably leave now. (Laughter.)

Kamala, thank you for the introduction and, more — much more importantly, for your — for your partnership and your friendship all across the board. Kamala is incredible. She does what she says, she knows what she’s talking about, and she has — like Roy, she has enormous integrity.

You know, and I want to thank Roy and Kristin Cooper also for — incredible people and dear friends. You know, last thing — and I’ve met both the kids — two of the three girls — and, you know, there’s nothing like being the child of an elected official. (Laughter.) You get to come to all those things that bore the living hell out of you. (Laughter.)

But all kidding aside, thank you for being here. I want to thank the Coopers because I think of — when I think of Roy, I think of one word, and I’ve said this about half a dozen times since I’ve been here. The word that I think a — the highest compliment an elected official can receive is he has great integrity. He has enormous integrity. (Applause.)

Roy is going to be missed in the governor’s office, and it’s up to all of us to make sure integrity remains in that office. And he couldn’t be here now, but we saw him earlier — Josh Stein, your next governor. (Applause.)

Folks, with your help, we’re going to win North Carolina up and down the ticket.

And I also want to thank another great North Carolinian, a leader of integrity and a good friend of mine, former congressman, Chair of the Congressional Black Caucus, G. K. Butterfield. G. K. (Applause.)

Folks, we’re seeing an incredible enthusiasm all over the country. I’ve traveled to Pennsylvania, Michigan, Georgia, Wisconsin, New Hampshire, Nevada, Arizona, North Carolina, and I don’t know how many other states. But Jill, Kamala, and Doug — we all travel as well. Our dau- — our husbands and our wives.

Look, our grassroots support keeps getting stronger. So far, we have over 1,300,000 people who have contributed to our campaign. (Applause.) Five hundred thousand of these contributors are new from 2020, and 97 percent of them have contributed less than $200. (Applause.)

Folks, we’re ramping up our campaign headquarters and field offices. We’re opening up nearly 100 field offices so far. We’re hiring staff across the country here in North Carolina, before Trump and MAGA Republicans even open one single office.

And while we probably haven’t read a lot about it, in the last few days, there have been several national polls showing us leading now. We’re up five points in Pennsylvania. (Applause.)

And I should have said at the outset: I thank you all, because many of you in this room are the reason why we were elected in the first place. Not a joke. You stood with us in 2020, and you’re with us again.

You know, the first time, you can be — blame it on you. You know what I mean? Second time, if you did it twice, it’s all your fault. (Laughter.)

But, look, I know everyone is not feeling the enthusiasm. The other day, a defeated guy walked up to me and said, “Mr. President, I’m being crushed by debt. I’m completely wiped out.” I had to look at him and say, “Sorry, Donald. I can’t help you.” (Laughter and applause.) “Just ca- — just can’t do it.” (Laughter.)

Speaking of Donald Trump, last week, he asked a famous question: Are you better off today than you were four years ago?

AUDIENCE: Yes!

THE PRESIDENT: Well, the fact that we have the best economy in the world shouldn’t matter much. But, Donald, I’m glad you asked. (Laughter.)

I hope everyone in this country takes a moment to think back to th- — what it was in March of 2020. COVID had come to America. Trump was president. Hospitals and emergency rooms were overwhelmed. First responders were literally risking their lives. Nurses were wearing garbage bags as garments because they couldn’t get any other help. And there were ventilator shortages. Mobile morgues were being set up. And loved ones were dying all alone, and they couldn’t even say goodbye to them. Unemployment shot up to 14 percent. The stock market crashed. Grocery store shelves were empty.

And it was — you know, Trump tried to downplay the virus. He told us — remember this? — hard to believe now. He said, “Don’t worry. Just stay calm. We’ll be out of this by Easter.”

He also said: Why don’t you just go and inject a little bleach in your system? (Laughter.) Not a joke.

Folks, look —

AUDIENCE MEMBER: Crazy.

THE PRESIDENT: Yes. (Laughter.) Yes.

Of course, we now know from Bob Woodward’s book that Trump was lying to the American people all along. He knew how dangerous this virus was, but he tried to h- — hide it from us because he thought it would hurt him politically.

He told Americans, as I said, to inject bleach. He told us to hit the body — hit our body with UV light.

And then, by the summer, American’s peaceful protested for justice in front of the White House. He wanted to tear-gas them for a photo op.

And then, after losing in 2-20 election — the 2020 election, I should say — Trump finished his presidency by sending a mob to attack the Capitol.

Think about it. I mean — I mean, it’s hard to ima- — if I said that in 2019, this is going — even though we knew a little bit about him, I doubt whether anybody would have thought that would happen.

But four years later, look how far we’ve come. Donald Trump is not president. I am, and Kamala is a historic vice president. (Applause.)

COVID no long controls our lives. We’ve created 15 million new jobs. We have the lowest unemployment rate in over 50 years. We have record growth, record small-business creation. The stock market is as high as it’s ever been. American manufacturing is booming — over 800,000 manufacturing jobs.

I was always asked, “What makes you think we can be man- –manufacturing is done in America?” Where is it written that we can’t lead the world again in manufacturing?

We’ve attracted $650 billion in private investment for clean energy, advanced manufacturing, semiconductors all across America, including right here in North Carolina. (Applause.)

We made the biggest investment in history to combat climate change.

And in January, I came here to North Carolina to announce an $82 million to deliver high-speed Internet to everyone in this state by the end of the decade — everyone. (Applause.) It’s going to save them an average of $75 a month.

We’re doing the same thing to replace lead pipes so every child in North Carolina can drink clean water without fear of brain damage. (Applause.)

And, folks — and today, Kamala and I come back to North Carolina to celebrate the 14th anniversary of the Affordable Care Act. You know, as you know, I thought it was a big deal at that time. (Laughter.) (The President makes the sign of the cross.) (Laughter.) Thank God my mom wasn’t around.

Well, it’s an even bigger deal today. Because of Roy Cooper, it’s even a bigger deal because he expanded Medicare coverage, which is already — (applause) — what you did, Roy — you’re already expanding and helping nearly 400,000 North Carolinians so far — 400,000.

And, folks, Josh Stein defended it as Attorney General. He’s going to make a hell of a governor. (Applause.)

But that’s not all. Because of the law I signed, insulin for seniors costs 35 bucks a month instead of $40 — $400 a month. And you know what? You know how much it costs to make it? The guy who invented it did not patent it because he wanted everybody to have access to it. It costs 10 — T-E-N — dollars to make it; $12 to — total to make it and package it. And they’re still making three times that.

Folks, look, if I said to you — if you had a prescription to be filled by any — any American drug company, I said, “Let’s go get in Air Force One, and I’ll fly you to any city in the world.” Not a joke. “Toronto, Paris, London, an- — anywhere in the world. I can buy you that same prescription for 40 to 60 percent less than you pay for it right here.” And it’s wrong.

I’ve been fighting to get Medicare under control — excuse me — allow Medicare to negotiate prices for drugs since I was a senator. And, folks, we finally made it.

Like I said, we will also have in the bill that’s already passed pocket — out-of-pocket costs for prescription drugs for seniors is capped beginning in 2025 at $2,000 a year no matter what their costs are. (Applause.) No matter what. And as you know, a lot of cancer drugs are $10-, $12-, $14-, $15,000 a year.

And it doesn’t just save seniors money. It saves the American taxpayers money by reducing the deficit. Guess what? The one — just the one implementation so far for — of that legislation, which not one Republican voted for, you know how much it reduced the deficit — it will reduce the deficit over 10 years? One hundred and sixty billion dollars. One hundred and sixty billion dollars. (Applause.)

And I might add, when Trump was President, he increased the deficit more in one term than any other president has. I’ve lowered the deficit. (Applause.)

Look, folks, we have more to do, of course. Inflation peaked at 9 percent a little over a year ago. Now it’s down — dropped to 3 percent, the lowest in the world and still dropping. But more to do.

So, let me ask you: Does anyone here want to go back to 2020?

AUDIENCE: Nooo —

AUDIENCE MEMBER: Hell no! (Laughter.)

THE PRESIDENT: When fear ruled our lives, when Trump was president — I don’t think so.

But, look, folks, the problem isn’t just looking back to where Trump had the — had the country. The problem is where he and the MAGA Re- — extremists want to take it now. I didn’t think they could get worse, but — I’m being deadly earnest. I’m serious.

Look what they’re saying. Trump and his MAGA extremists want to, quote, “terminate” — his phrase — I love this choi- — choice of word — “terminate” the ACA, as he says. He wants to get rid of the savings just the la- — and put all — that we just put into law for lower prescription drug prices. He wants to get rid of allowing Medicare to negotiate drug prices so we’re back up to 400 bucks a month.

Look, he — he — he’s enacted a $2 trillion tax cut. Okay. I — that’s — that’s not bad, if it — as long as everybody starts paying their fair share.

You know, we have a thousand billionaires in America right now. You know, at the end — I — I’m a capitalist. If you can make a billion bucks, have at it, as long as you do it under the law and as long as you pay your taxes. You know what the average tax rate of billionaire is today? Not a joke. It is 8.3 percent. Anybody want to change tax brackets? (Laughter.)

No, I — I’m being deadly earnest. It’s way out of whack.

As I said, the last time he exploded the national debt more than any previous president has.

And if anyone doubts that Trump and the Republicans want to cut Social Security and Medicare, just look at what he said in the last few weeks. Trump recently said Social Security and Medicare, quote, “There’s a lot we can do in terms of cutting.” Right on cue, 180 Republicans in the House of Representatives introduced their budget for next year, where they raise the retirement age and cut Social Security.

I got a better idea. Let’s protect Social Security and Medicare.

And that’s not all the Trump extremists want to do across America and here in North Carolina. Another school shooting recently, about th- — three months ago, as you recall — remember what he said when they said, “What are you going to — what do you think about that?” He said, quote — I’m quoting him now; I’m not making this up — “Just get over it.” “Just get over it.” Geez.

No, I want to stop it. I don’t want to get over it; I want to stop it.

Trump brags about how he’s the reason Roe v. Wade was overturned — that’s already been mentioned — and the freedom to choose was taken away. America needs to know Donald Trump and his extremist MAGA friends are calling for a national ban, not just — not just some states, every state in America. That’s what they’re pushing.

On top of that, the MAGA candidate for governor here said, quote — quote, “I want — absolutely want to go back to the America where women couldn’t vote.” What an enlightened guy. (Laughter.) Where the hell — I — (laughter).

I — I never thought I’d see that. I’ve been involved in politics for a couple of days. (Laughter.) You should know, with a Democrat in Congress, Kamala and I are going to make Roe v. Wade again the law of the land — again, again, and again. (Applause.)

Folks, but for all the threats posed to the country, the greatest threat he poses is to our democracy, and that’s not hyperbole. The violence of two thou- — of January 6th, Trump embraced it. He’s running on it.

You know, if you ever watch his — his rallies, he starts off with the folks in prison that have either been convicted or pled guilty singing the National Anthem, and he’s repeating the Pledge of Allegiance over top of it.

He calls insurrectionists who are imprisoned — he calls them “patriots.” And he says, if reelected, he wants to pardon them.

Trump says if he loses again in November, there will be, quote, “a bloodbath.” What in the hell is going on here?

No, I’m serious. Think about it. Think — did you ever think that any president of the United States would say that?

Folks, we can’t stand this, including here in North Carolina, where you have MAGA extremists on the ballot. Not just for governor, but the MAGA candidate for State Superintendent of Education said the potential for killing a public official is that she, quote, prefers to watch it on Pay-Per-View “in front of the firing squad.”

I mean, this is the United States of America. Folks, that’s not North Carolina, and it’s not America.

We have to say, with one vote — as Americans, as Democrats, as independents, and Republicans — there’s no place in — in America for any political violence, period, period, period. (Applause.)

I don’t want to get started. (Laughter.) Some of you are standing and — anyway.

Let me close with this. There’s a lot of focus these days on how old Trump and I are. I’m 40 — (laughter) — times 2, plus 1. (Laughter.)

But the real question is: How old are our ideas? That’s the question.

And, by the way, I’ll be happy to compare physical characteristics with Donald Trump. Granted, I don’t have his orange hair, but I — (laughter).

Donald Trump’s vision for America is one of anger — for real — anger, hate, revenge, retribution — some of the oldest ideas known to humankind. I generally have a different vision for America — focused on our future and answers another important question: Will we be better off four years from now?

Here’s the future I see, and I mean this. I see a future where democracy is defended, not diminished. I see a future where we restore the right to choose and protect our freedoms, not take them away. I see a future where the middle class finally has a fair shot and the wealthy pay their fair share in taxes.

My dad used to have an expression — for real. My dad was a wonderful man, very well-read. He got into Johns Hopkins during — just before the war, but he ended up working in a — in the shipyards, and he never got to go. But my dad used to say — and I mean th- — give you my word to this. He’d always come home before he went back and closed the dealership — he didn’t own, but he managed.

And he’d say, “Remember, Joey, a job is about a lot more than a paycheck. A job is about your dignity. A job is about respect. A job is about being able to look your child in the eye and say, ‘Honey, it’s going to be okay,’ and mean it.”

I see a future where we save the planet from the climate crisis and our country from gun vi- — did you ever think — those of you or anybody over 40 years old — none of the women are in this audience, but some of the men are. (Laughter.)

All kidding aside, did you ever think you’d see where your children or grandchildren went to school and were learning how to duck and cover? Not — not a joke. Duck and cover.

Look, above all, like all of you, I see a future for all Americans, where we demonize no one, where we give hate no safe harbor. We leave nobody behind. It’s a future we can build together. And it’s the reason I’ve never been more optimistic.

We just have to remember who in the hell we are. We’re the United States of America. There is nothing — and I mean this from the bottom of my heart. All the time I’ve been in public office, I’ve never been more optimistic about our potential — not because I’m President; because the world is changing.

Things are in flux. What we do in the next — the last two years and the next four or five years is going to determine what the next four or five decades are going to look like.

But there’s nothing beyond our capacity — nothing we — beyond our capacity when we act together.

And that’s what you all are allowing me to do. Your generosity has allowed me to stay in the game in a way that we’re going to be able to make our case. And I’m confident — I’m confident, over the next — between now and November, we’re going to make the case as strongly as we can. And I believe we’ll prevail because of you.

Thank you. (Applause.)

Thank you very much.

Every time I’d walk out of my grandfather Ambrose Finnegan’s house up in Scranton, Pennsylvania — he came out — he came out west to go to school. He went to Santa Clara. He was — by the way, he was an All-American football player in 1906. But any rate.

He — he was in the newspaper business on the business side. And he’d look and he’d yell, “Joey, keep the faith.” And my grandmother would say, “No, Joey, spread it.”

THE VICE PRESIDENT: There we go.

THE PRESIDENT: Let’s go spread it. (Applause.)

5:38 P.M. EDT

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12:46 P.M. EDT
 
THE PRESIDENT:  Hello, folks.  Sorry to keep you waiting.  I was waiting to talk to the last member of the delegation in the region.
 
Good afternoon.  Before I leave for North Carolina, which I’m going to do in a few minutes, I want to speak briefly about the terrible incident and accident that happened in Baltimore this morning. 
 
At about 1:30, a container ship struck the Francis Scott Key Bridge, which I’ve been over many, many times commuting from the state of Delaware either on a train or by car.  I’ve been to Baltimore Harbor many times.  And the bridge collapsed, sending several people and vehicles into the water — into the river. 
 
And multiple U.S. Coast Guard units, which are stationed very nearby, thank God, were immediately deployed, along with local emergency personnel.  And the Coast Guard is leading the response at the port, where representatives from the Federal Highway Administration, the FBI, the Department of Transportation, the Army Corps of Engineers, as well as Maryland officials and Baltimore Police and Fire — they’re all working together to coordinate an emergency response.
 
Officials at the scene estimate eight people were unaccounted for still — not still, were unaccounted for.  That number might change.  Two have been rescued — one without injury, one in critical condition.  And the search-and-rescue operation is continuing for all those remaining as we speak.
 
I spoke with Governor Moore this morning as well as the Mayor of Baltimore, the County Executive, United two — both United States senators and the congressman.  And my Secretary of Transportation is on the scene. 
 
I told them we’re going to send all the federal resources they need as we respond to this emergency, and I mean all the federal resources.  And we’re going to rebuild that port together.  
 
Everything so far indicates that this was a terrible accident.  At this time, we have no other indication — no other reason to believe there was any intentional act here. 
 
Personnel on board the ship were able to alert the Maryland Department of Transportation that they had lost control of their vessel, as you all know and have reported.  As a result, local authorities were able to close the bridge to traffic before the bridge was struck, which undoubtedly saved lives. 
 
And our prayers are with everyone involved in this terrible accident and all the families, especially those waiting for the news of their loved one right now.  I know every minute in that circumstance feels like a lifetime.  You just don’t know.  It’s just terrible.
 
We’re incredibly grateful for the brave rescuers who immediately rushed to the scene. 
 
And to the people of Baltimore, I want to say: We’re with you.  We’re going to stay with you as long as takes.  And like the governor said, you’re Maryland tough, you’re Baltimore strong, and we’re going to get through this together.  And I promise: We’re not leaving.
 
Here’s what’s happening now.  The search-and-rescue operation is our top priority.  Ship traffic in the Port of Baltimore has been suspended until further notice.  And we’ll need to clear that channel before the ship traffic can resume.  The Army Corps of Engineers is on the spot and is going to help lead this effort to clear the channel. 
 
The Port of Baltimore is one of the nation’s largest shipping hubs.  And I’ve been there a number of times as a senator and as a vice president.  It handled a record amount of cargo last year.  It’s also the top port in America for both imports and exports of automobiles and light trucks.  Around 850,000 vehicles go through that port every single year, and we’re going to get it up and running again as soon as possible.
 
Fifteen thousand jobs depend on that port.  And we’re going to do everything we can to protect those jobs and help those workers.
 
The bridge is also critical to — for travel, not just for Baltimore but for the Northeast Corridor.  Over 30,000 vehicles cross the Francis Scott Key Bridge on a daily basis.  It’s virtually th- — well, it’s one of the most important elements for the economy in the Northeast and the quality of life.
My Transportation Secretary is there now.  As I told Governor Moore, I’ve directed my team to move heaven and earth to reopen the port and rebuild the bridge as soon as hu- — humanly possible.  And we’re going to work hand in hand with the support of Maryland — to support Maryland, whatever they ask for.  And we’re going to work with our partners in Congress to make sure the state gets the support it needs.
 
It’s my intention that federal government will pay for the entire cost of reconstructing that bridge, and I expect to — the Congress to support my effort.

This is going to take some time.  And the people of Baltimore can count on us, though, to stick with them at every step of the way until the port is reopened and the bridge is rebuilt. 
 
You know, we’re not leaving until this job gets done — not leaving until then.
    
So, I just want to say God bless everybody who — everyone harmed this morning and their families.  And may God bless the first responders, who — many of whom risking their lives.

And I’m going to — the reason I’m not going to take a lot of questions — there’s remaining issues that are open that we got to determine what’s going to happen in terms of — of the rescue mission and the like.  But I’ll — I’m —

Q    Do — do you plan to go to Baltimore, sir?  And if so, how quickly?

THE PRESIDENT:  I do and as quickly as I can.  That’s what we’re working on —

Q    You said the federal government is also going to pay for the repairs.  I’m just curious — this was a ship that appears to be at fault.  Is there any reason to believe that the company behind the ship should be held responsible?

And then, also, you mentioned —

THE PRESIDENT:  That could be, but we’re not going to wait if that happened.  We’re going to pay for it to get the bridge rebuilt and open.

Q    What did you make of Israel’s decision not to attend this meeting this week?

THE PRESIDENT:  Oh, I don’t want to get into that now.

Q    Regarding Rafah.

THE PRESIDENT:  We’ll have plenty of time to talk about Rafah.

Q    You mentioned the port — 

THE PRESIDENT:  Thank you.  Thank you.

Q    Can I ask about cars?

THE PRESIDENT:  Thank you. 
 
12:51 P.M. EDT

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