Karine Jean-Pierre White House Press Briefing on 9/03/24

Good afternoon, everyone.

Good afternoon.

And welcome back. Okay, just a couple of things and then I’ll turn it over to our guest. Today, President Biden spoke virtually with people from across the country, who shared how the Biden-Harris administration’s Investing in America agenda is benefiting their lives, and how it is planting the seeds for a brighter future for their community. The call included local elected officials, community leaders, and people who are benefiting directly from the Biden-Harris administration’s agenda, including from lowering healthcare and energy cost, local economic development, once-in-a-generation investments to America’s infrastructure, and competitiveness and so much more. This is the first in a series of conversation President Biden will have in the upcoming weeks. He will talk about how the Biden-Harris administration’s historic agenda is creating jobs and opportunity, strengthening communities, lowering costs, and building a better future for Americans. Looking ahead to the president’s schedule for the rest of the week, on Thursday, the president will travel to Wisconsin, on Friday, he will travel to Michigan. During these visits, the president will highlight how his Investing in America agenda is ensuring a brighter, more prosperous future for families.

(02:34)
And now, I am thrilled to introduce Secretary Tom Perez, former secretary of the Department of Labor, obviously, a director of intergovernmental affairs, to talk about his engagement and what he’s experienced on the ground, talking about Investing in America, and also talking a little bit about what the president was able to do moments ago.

Excellent.

All right.

Thanks, Karine.

(02:58)
Good afternoon, everyone. It’s great to be here with all of you. As you heard from Karine and you saw recently a few minutes ago, quite frankly, from the President, President Biden kicked off the first in a series of engagements to highlight the impact of his Investing in America agenda. In addition to the travel that was described to Wisconsin and Michigan, he will have conversations on a regular basis with American families who’ve been positively impacted by the historic investments of the Biden-Harris administration. He’ll also hear from mayors, local elected officials, community leaders, and others, about how these investments have transformed their lives and their communities.

(03:40)
And as a senior advisor to the President and the director of our Office of Intergovernmental Affairs, I work closely with state and local elected officials, with union leaders, faith leaders, community leaders. I’ve had the privilege, to make a long story short, of making a lot of house calls in communities across the country over the past 15 months or so, and observing how they’ve been transformed by this Investing in America agenda. You’re well aware of the historic progress that the Biden-Harris administration has made in job creation, healthcare access, and so many other critical areas. Behind every statistic, I learned a long time ago, is a real person, a family, a community, that’s seeing progress and seeing hope.

(04:24)
When I went to Wausau, Wisconsin, for instance, I joined the Fowl family in front of their home that they’ve owned for over 40 years, and for as long as they’d lived there, they’d been drinking lead contaminated water. Through funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, they had their pipes removed and replaced. By union labor, I might add. One of their young grandkids even helped switch on the new water service line. Thanks to the President, three generations of the Fowl family now have access to clean water. No family should have to worry that the water from their tap will poison their kids or their grandkids. President Biden and Vice President Harris know that a fighting chance at the American dream includes access to clean water, and have made this historic commitment to replacing every lead pipe in America, in homes, in schools, over the next decade.

(05:17)
In the Osage Nation in Oklahoma, I met a mom who had moved off the reservation in search of opportunity. She didn’t want to leave, but she needed to find work. After our administration invested $40 million to deliver affordable high-speed internet to the Osage Nation, she returned home and got a job installing the fiber optic cables that will bridge the digital divide across the reservation. She loves her work and she loves serving her community. In today’s world, high-speed internet is like water. It’s an essential public good that should be affordable and accessible to everyone.

(05:55)
It’s also a healthcare imperative. I learned this from meeting a woman who runs a health clinic in rural Wisconsin, and explained that telemedicine is a critical element of their healthcare delivery, especially mental health treatment. If our patients lack high-speed internet, she explained, they lack healthcare, because for all too many people who don’t have a car, it’s way too far to drive, and as she explained tragically, the gaps can have literally life and death consequences. That’s why the President and Vice President have made unprecedented investments to connect Americans in every corner of our country to high-speed internet so that a person’s zip code never determines their destiny.

(06:42)
In Macungie, Pennsylvania, I met with union members and company leaders and elected officials at the Mack Truck plant that, thanks to significant federal investments, is retooling to produce clean energy trucks. For instance, they’re manufacturing electric garbage trucks for municipalities that are trying to meet their clean energy goals. They even let me test drive one. I used to work on the back of a trash truck when I was in college, and that was a thrill, parenthetically. But in communities like Macungie, one of the greatest fears that parents have is that their children will have to leave town to chase opportunity to find a good job. These investments in Macungie, and in other communities like Macungie across the country, are changing that equation across America. Grandparents don’t have to get on a plane to see their grandkids, because their sons and daughters have gainful employment in local union shops like the Mack Truck plant.

(07:41)
An IBEW member from Alaska told me a while ago that, thanks to the infrastructure investments from the Biden-Harris administration, he has work for the rest of his career, and his son, who also is now a member of the union, has work for years to come. I frankly heard the same thing yesterday from union members in Pittsburgh when I traveled there with the President. The sense of hope and optimism is indeed contagious.

(08:08)
I was with Mayor Turk in Allentown, Pennsylvania, and he introduced me to the de la Rosa family, a hardworking family that was struggling to make ends meet because the dad had some health issues and was having some challenges. But thanks to funding from the American Rescue Plan, they were able to move out of their very small apartment, that didn’t meet their needs, into a subsidized, newly constructed townhouse apartment, that finally gave their family some breathing room. Their son, David, who is 18 years old, gave me a tour, and his highlight, he said to me, and I remember this like it was yesterday, “Tom, I’ve never had a backyard before.” And he showed me the backyard, first time they ever had one. And by the way, he’s got a full ride to UPenn, he just started last week, and we’re going to continue to stay in touch.

(08:58)
Because Mayor Tuerk and mayors across America, Republicans and Democrats, have said to me repeatedly during my house calls that they have never had the opportunity to do more good for more people than they’ve had over the last three and a half years, thanks to these investments by the Biden-Harris administration. And I’ll note that business leaders have expressed a similar sentiment. As a former labor secretary, I have a habit of talking to businesses, and I always ask them the same question, “What keeps you up at night?” The most frequent response I hear these days is workforce, we have a workforce shortage. We have so much opportunity, we need to make sure that we build the skilled workforce to compete. That’s undeniably a challenge, but it’s a great challenge to have, and it certainly beats the alternative, which is having no work.

(09:47)
And one of the glaring lessons I’ve learned from my travel and conversations with these mayors is how prior waves of infrastructure investment actually created or exacerbated opportunity divides in communities across the country. The fact that American-English has the phrase wrong side of the tracks tells you everything you need to know about our awareness deep down that infrastructure can divide just as much as it can connect. In my travels to places like Pittsburgh, Milwaukee, Buffalo, Denver, Syracuse, to name only a few, I observed firsthand how prior infrastructure projects from prior generations, like highways and bridges, literally cut generations of families of color off from opportunity, all in the name of progress.

(10:42)
In partnership with mayors and state and other local officials, we have been steadily investing to redress these historical wrongs, and including impacted communities in the process. In each of these cities, I’ve heard from residents who are encouraged by the possibilities these investments present for them and for their communities. Smoother transportation routes equal equal access to jobs, education and healthcare, more green space, cleaner air. In short, reconnecting communities has been about, and will continue to be about, reconnecting opportunities. “We want out of the shadows,” that was what a person in Syracuse, New York said to me, referring to literally the shadow that I81 cast along the middle of her neighborhood when it tore it apart. That’s ultimately what Investing in America is designed to do. It’s designed to lift communities out of the shadows, lift the tide so that it floats all the boats, not just the yachts.

(11:47)
President Biden has kept his promise to be a president for all people, from small towns to big cities, red, blue, purple states, places that, for all too long, were overlooked or left out. Because of the President’s actions and the Vice President’s actions and vision, Americans all over the country are seeing and feeling a better, fairer, and more prosperous future on the horizon, a future of endless possibilities. I’ve had the privilege of seeing those possibilities, and it is indeed exciting. So thank you, and we’re happy to take whatever questions folks have.

Thank you. Thanks for being here. Just on the Investing in America agenda that you were talking about, is there anything you can share on just how the President’s thinking about these projects, these goals, might have shifted, how he may be reorienting himself since he decided not to seek a second term, for example, are there projects that he’s now viewing with added urgency than compared to a couple of months ago?

Well, I think the president views every project with urgency, because he knows that behind every project is a community clamoring for change and hope and opportunity. And throughout all of these projects, we have seen real progress. I mentioned Internet for All, we’re making progress through the infrastructure bill in ensuring that we are dealing with middle-mile, last-mile, every mile, and this work is going to continue. I’m frequently asked, “Well, can we do this faster?” And the President has a healthy impatience for progress. And so, we’re going to continue working with our agency partners to ensure that we can break ground on every project where we’ve moved forward and get as much done as soon as possible.

(13:39)
But when you’re trying to correct a problem that is 50 and 60 years in the making, the reality is that you don’t replace every lead pipe overnight, it’s not an on-off switch. But we’re making tremendous progress. The President and the Vice President are very good at setting benchmarks and holding ourselves accountable, the cabinet secretaries as well, and so we’ll continue that work.

In your travels to Pittsburgh and throughout the Rust Belt, what kinds of conversations are you having with unions, companies, workers, about the proposed takeover of U.S. Steel and what that would mean, and how is it informing administration policy right now?

Well, the president spoke very clearly about that fact yesterday. Well, he’s spoken about it multiple times, as recently as yesterday. U.S. Steel is an iconic United States company, and in his judgment, should remain an iconic United States company. And so, I think the President has been very clear on that and will continue to be, and our conversations yesterday with union members were very much along those lines.

And is the administration going to actively move to block that deal?

Well, there’s a process underway now that is working its way through, and I won’t comment further because I want to respect that process.

Thank you. So I’ve been talking to a lot of voters in battleground states, and the top issue I hear over and over again is the economy, they still feel like prices are too high and that wages and opportunities aren’t keeping up. So why do you think so many Americans are either unaware of Biden’s economic investments or haven’t felt those benefits, and will any part of the Investing in America agenda impact voters between now and November?

Well, it’s always important to understand where we were, where we’ve come, and where we need to go. Four years ago, we were in the throes of a pandemic, a pandemic exacerbated by a president who got so many things wrong and so many needless funerals because he didn’t follow the science. We were in a pandemic-induced recession that resulted in millions of jobs that were lost. And the President came in, and the American Rescue Plan is aptly named

Because it really did not only rescue the economy, but it rescued many lives and it ensured that we could move forward. And a number of the investments I’ve described, lead pipes, high-speed internet for all, these are investments that are well underway, but undeniably there’s still more work to be done in those areas. When you look at wage growth, wage growth is growing by more than the rate of inflation, which means now people are making more than the cost of living, so they have more money in their pockets, and what we need to continue to do because people are living their lives. I understand this because I’ve spent a lot of time at kitchen tables and people don’t spend the amount of time devouring politics that some folks here in Washington do. They’re living their lives.

(16:59)
And the purpose of this tour, quite frankly is to remind people, because I can’t tell you the number of times people look at a community center in a city or a town and they were unaware that that community center got built and no small measure because of money from the American Rescue Plan. So we undeniably understand that there’s more work to be done, but at the same time as people understand where we were and where we’ve come, I see excitement everywhere about where we’re going.

I’m hoping you can expand on this a little bit. Is the purpose of this tour to promote policies that were already passed to build public enthusiasm for the president’s agenda? And obviously you’re a political creature who was a former DNC chair, and I don’t want you to violate any rules, but is it a coincidence that the president is going to two critical blue wall swing states for the first stops on this tour?

Well, the first speaker today was Randall Woodfin, the mayor of Birmingham, Alabama. We not here. We looking at red or blue, we’re looking at red, white and blue. If you look at where infrastructure dollars, if you frankly follow ARPA dollars, follow every funding stream, you can’t disaggregate red states, blue states. The president has said repeatedly and the vice president have said, “We are the president and vice president for everyone.” In my travels that I described, I’ve been to Oklahoma, I’ve been to Texas, I’ve been everywhere, where we are seeing investments and the purpose of this, it kind of gets back to the most recent question here is educating people about what has been accomplished.

(18:46)
People have a right to know how their taxpayer dollars are being spent and a big part of this tour is to educate folks that your library that didn’t used to have high speed internet and I’ve been to one of those libraries and it now has it. And by the way, libraries are workforce hubs in many communities because that’s where people go to do interviews. That’s where people who don’t have a computer at home go to write their resumes and things of that nature. Educating people. I think it’s a really important part of governance. It’s a really important part of making people believe that government can work for them. So that’s what this tour is about.

And just the Wisconsin and Michigan being the first-

Well, again, Birmingham, Alabama was the first conversation he had.

And Air Force One landing.

Well, I mean I think if you look at the president’s travel and the vice president’s travel over the course of this year, when there’s a hurricane or a storm, a weather event in Iowa, we were on the phone with the governor of Iowa approving an emergency declaration overnight. Same thing in Texas, in Oklahoma and elsewhere. Storms don’t just go to blue states or red states. Storms go everywhere and that’s been the focus of the president, and vice president.

Thanks Secretary. Put two things together. You said the purpose of the storm is to remind people what the president has done for them. You also said taxpayers have a right to know how their tax dollars are being spent, so how much can you account for what the budget is for the Biden promotional piece of reminding voters of what the president has done for them, this Air Force One travel, the events that he’s been holding versus spending that money back in their communities?

Well, it’s minuscule. Look at the investments that have been made over the course of the last 3 1/2 years. They are unprecedented in scale and scope, and I can take you to virtually every community across the country and we can take a tour and you can see where ARPA dollars were put to bear, where you now have a new housing project. The project in Allentown, Pennsylvania was ARPA dollars and some HUD dollars and they were put together. So I think it’s really important for folks, and again it gets back to her question of a few minutes ago, to educate people about the fact that government can work.

(21:11)
There have been a lot of folks over the course of a long period of time who have tried to shake people’s faith in government. And if there’s one thing I’ve seen over the course of the last 3 1/2 years, and I’m also a former local elected official, when you’re working with mayors and county executives and you’re working together with them, they’re the people that get seen in the supermarket and your local church or your mosque or your synagogue, and when you’re able to talk to them and explain to them, “Here’s how we’re improving our education system through these investments.” When you’re able to show folks that this bridge, finally… People used to talk about infrastructure week, but we now have an infrastructure decade. The Brent Spence Bridge is not an idle hope. It’s about to break ground in the months or so ahead because of work from actually Republican and democratic people coming together.

Taxpayers put that bill to burnish. The President’s legacy shouldn’t your campaign dollars-

This isn’t a legacy issue. This is about educating the American people about what we’re doing and what we’re accomplishing so that they can see the fruits of their taxpayer investments.

Hi. Thanks for doing this. There’s one word that I did not hear in your remarks and that’s binomics. So is this infrastructure spending part of binomics?

This infrastructure spending it’s part of ensuring that every community in the country, you have safe infrastructure, you have infrastructure projects that are inspired by considerations of equity. So you’re not building I-43 and I-94 in Milwaukee by taking out 15,000 black homes and 1500 black businesses. And people can understand that it’s a project that’s going to work for everyone. That’s everything that the president has done, whether it’s the CHIPS and Science Act, whether it’s the infrastructure bill, whether it’s the American Rescue Plan, whether it’s the Butch Lewis Act, which helped literally millions of retirees retain their pension, their hard-earned pension. These are all about opportunity and making sure that people get a fair shake and making sure we’re addressing our climate imperatives and making sure we’re building an economy that works for everyone.

But it’s not using the word binomics and acknowledgement that messaging didn’t work.

It’s about results and that’s what this tour is about, showing results from our investments.

It was a yes or no question.

You talked a moment ago about high-speed internet and I wanted to ask you, Brendan Carr, one of the commissioners on the FCC has expressed frustration that despite the $42 billion that was included in the President’s infrastructure failed in 2021 through a program called the Broadband Equity Access and Development Program, that not a single project is underway and not a single home has been connected to Broadband as a result. Is that accurate? Can you tell-

I’d have to talk to the families who have been connected as a result of Middle Mile programs. I was up in New Hampshire seven months ago-

This program specifically-

Well, I don’t know. I did not get the precise funding stream through which the homes of people I met in New Hampshire are now connected or the library in Wisconsin is now connected. But what I can tell you is because of leadership at both a federal and a state and a local level, these communities and federal dollars, these communities now have affordable high-speed internet. The one thing I will say about the FCC is we worked very closely with them to make sure that people who couldn’t afford internet could get a subsidy. The American Connectivity Program was something the president and the vice president very strongly supported. It expired in May I believe of this year and we spent a lot of time… We sent over a supplemental budget request and by the way, almost 50% of people eligible for that subsidy are military families. And that’s unfortunate that the Republicans in Congress chose not to extend that because more people participated in that program than were participating in food stamps.

This is not a small program, $42 billion, I mean that’s a big deal. Does the White House have an estimate of how many homes have been connected to-

I don’t have that at hand, but I can certainly work with you to answer that question.

We can get that for you.

Sure.

All right. Thank you, Tom.

Thanks a lot.

Appreciate it. Thank you.

Take care.

All right. First time at the podium. Thank you, Mr. Secretary. Okay. Zeke, I don’t have anything else at the top, so go for it.

Thanks, Karine. What did the president mean when he said Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, wasn’t doing enough to reach a hostage and ceasefire deal?

So here’s what I’ll say. He was asked a question by a colleague, a direct question and he answered it. What I will say, I think more broadly, which is important to note, and the president said this in his statement over the weekend is that, ” Make no mistake about it, Hamas leaders are going to pay for these crimes,” and he and his team for sure will keep working around the clock to get this hostage deal done. And this is a president that has been pretty clear about that. He’s spoken about making sure that we get this hostage deal done. He’s met with the hostage families, all of them. We know that the National Security Advisor, Jake Sullivan, is going to have a conversation with the American hostages this week.

(27:02)
So this is something that we are working again around the clock 24/7. This is something his team is really steadfast, making sure that they’re continuing to be focused on this. And look, our teams are in constant conversation with the Israeli government on all levels on a daily basis and I think that’s important to note as well. But we will make no mistake as to who is responsible for this, and this is Hamas leaders.

Specifically to my question, what did the president mean that Benjamin Netanyahu is not doing it?

I don’t have anything more to add. What the president was asked, the direct question, he answered that question. What I can say is this is that we have made it very clear. The president over the weekend made it very, very clear as to who is responsible. It is devastating. The heinous acts that we have seen by Hamas is devastating and those six hostages, their families are grieving. The president was very clear about that in his statement over the weekend, and he’s going to continue to work around the clock and that’s the focus of the president and this administration.

A different topic. The president yesterday also said that he was little remorseful that the Secret Service wouldn’t let him go into the crowds the way he was as candidate. Was that response to any specific change or just has something changed in terms of the security around the president or is that just being [inaudible 00:28:33]?

I did see the president say that. I would have to refer to the Secret Service to speak to the President’s comment. That is something that, when it comes to the President’s security or any of the security of the four principals, I can’t speak to that from here. You have to speak to the Secret Service. Kathleen.

Thanks, Karine. Kirby said that President Biden has been very personally involved in the ceasefire negotiations. Can you give any color on any meetings he’s had today on the Middle East, meetings with his aides or board leaders on this today?

So as I said, his aides are in regular touch on a daily basis on this particular issue of trying to get this hostage deal. It is a priority. It is a must. We want to get this done. The president, as you know and the vice president, were in the situation room yesterday, meeting with a few of their advisors of this administration to talk about next steps, to talk how we’re going to move forward here. We talked about how we are also continuing to engage with our co-mediators, the co-mediators, which is Egypt and Qatar, that continues.

(29:38)
So the president gets daily updates from his team. He had the PDB this morning and got an update from his team then and even during the past two weeks, we have read out multiple conversations that the president has had with leaders in the region, including Egypt and Qatar. So that is not going to end. The president focuses on that on a daily basis. He is passionate, committed, and wants to see this happen, and his team is working around the clock to get this deal done. And that’s what we’re going to focus on.

President was the last person to face Donald Trump on the debate stage. Vice President Harris will be doing so in the week. Has President Biden shared any pointers or advice to the vice president?

So as you know, they were together yesterday. They were shoulder to shoulder, as they have been in the past 3 1/2 years working on behalf of the American people. You certainly will continue to hear, as we heard from Secretary Tom Perez, on what we’re going to do to continue to make sure we deliver on the unprecedented results that we’ve gotten for the American people. Look, what I can say, and I’m going to be super mindful because there is the Hatch Act, as I say all the time. I know you guys love me saying that. The president said this, the best choice that he’s ever made is to pick the vice president as his running mate. So he certainly very proud of the vice president, and has seen her as a critical partner over the last 3 1/2 half years. They talk regularly, they talk very much regularly. You saw them yesterday and they certainly stay in touch. I just don’t have anything beyond that to share. [inaudible 00:31:23].

What more could Prime Minister Netanyahu be doing to get a deal done in the President’s view?

So look, I don’t have anything to add or any color or anything more specific to add to what the president said yesterday. Again, he was asked a direct question, he answered it. Don’t have anything else to add. What we’re going to continue to do is continue to have conversations on next steps with our co-mediators. As I mentioned moments ago, Qatar in Egypt to figure out how to move forward. We are committed. This president is committed to making sure that we get a ceasefire deal. We

We got to remember what this means. This means that it ends the war. The president wants to see this war ended. The president wants to see the Palestinian people continue to get relief. We want to up the assistance into Gaza, to the Palestinian people, and we want to get hostages home. We want to get hostages home to their family. And the story that came out over the weekend of these six hostages, obviously one of them being an American citizen, is devastating. It’s devastating. It was a devastating news and heinous act that we saw by Hamas.

Does the president regard any of the Israeli demands that have been put on the table during these negotiations as unreasonable?

I’m not going to negotiate from here. As my colleague from NSC, Admiral Kirby, said as well, we just are not going to negotiate from here. We’re not going to go point by point here. We are looking at all options, as we have said before, and we’re going to continue to have those consultations with co-mediators, Qatar and Egypt. I just don’t want to get ahead of that from here.

Does the president see Prime Minister Netanyahu as a good-faith actor in these negotiations?

Look, the president sees the prime minister as someone who he has known for some time now, for decades. They tend to have honest conversations, direct conversations. I’m going to not get into a yes or no here. I’m going to get into what I know their relationship to be, and I think that’s what’s important. The president wants to get this done, and I’m just going to leave it there.

Okay, and when is the president going to speak to the prime minister next?

I don’t have anything to read out. As you know, over the past several months, almost a year now, the president has talked to the prime minister several times, and we have read out those conversations. I just don’t have anything else beyond that. And I also added a couple of times, moments ago, that our team here talks regularly to the Israeli government on all levels on a daily basis. On a daily basis. Because we want to get this done. We want to get this done. Yeah?

Okay, thanks, Karine. You referenced the president’s statement over the weekend saying that, “Hamas leaders will pay for their crimes.” Are you making a specific reference to actions the US is planning to take to ensure that that will happen?

So, I’m not going to get into… As you know, we just don’t telegraph those types of things. We wanted to send a clear message, and we did. The latest events were heinous, they were heinous murders, and Hamas has even more American blood on its hands. And that’s what we want to make sure. And as you stated to me, Hamas leaders will pay for this crime. I’m not going to telegraph from here, from this podium, what that’s going to be. That’s not something I’m going to do from here. But we wanted to make it very clear about who’s responsible, and where the United States is on this.

So, you are saying that you are referring to that outcome coming from the US’s actions? Can you just clarify whether you’re talking just generally about eventually, Hamas will pay for what they have done, or are you talking about the administration ensuring that something will happen, action will be taken, to make sure that Hamas leaders will be-

I’m not going to go beyond the statement. As I said, Hamas leaders will pay for this crime. What we saw over the weekend was a heinous… The latest heinous murder, and that’s what it was. And so we are going to be very clear on calling that out. If anything, Hamas has even more American blood on their hands, even more. And so we’re going to continue to be really clear. I’m just not going to go beyond that statement, beyond what I’m saying here. Not going to telegraph anything from here. And we wanted to make… The president, in his statement, I think, was pretty clear, but we do not telegraph on what that could look like.

And just following the death of another American hostage, can you talk to us about where the administration is now on the idea of some kind of deal, some kind of attempt to rescue just the American hostages, not as part of a broader package?

No, and I understand the question, I know that’s come to us a couple of times. I’m not going to get ahead of what we’re trying to do right now, which is get a ceasefire deal. I don’t want to get into hypotheticals at this time. I’m just going to be super, super mindful. We are going to focus, continuing to have our conversations, consultation with Qatar and Egypt, on the next steps, on how to get this done. It is a priority for us. And so not going to get beyond the hostage deal that we’re trying to get at this time.

Is the president concerned that there could be another moment, another day, when he learns that an additional American hostage has been killed-

Absolutely.

… as he’s working on this deal?

Yeah, he is the president of the United States, and he cares about American citizens, he cares about innocent people. And this is why he’s been working around the clock with his team. His team has been leading this effort, and working around the clock in getting this deal done. Of course. And we can’t predict what’s going to happen next. We can’t. And so these are dynamic situations, and so we have to continue to work around the clock to get this done. And that is the president’s commitment. Okay? I don’t think I’ve seen you in the briefing room before?

It’s nice to be here.

Yeah. What’s your name?

It’s Scott Macfarlane.

Hi. That’s right! Hi. Good to see you.

Let’s talk about this some more. This is lovely.

Yeah, sure! Let’s go have some back and forth. Hey, Scott.

Last month, the president, in an interview, said he’s not confident at all about a peaceful post-election in America. What’s the White House’s concern about? Unrest? Baseless challenges to election certification? Is the administration doing anything to prevent or protect against danger?

So, I’m going to be really also very thoughtful here, not get ahead of what’s going to happen in the upcoming months. I think, and going back to the answer that the president gave, if you saw what happened on January 6th in 2021, I think any president who cares about our democracy, who cares about our freedom, who cares about free and fair elections, who truly cares about that, would be concerned. You can’t be blinded by what happened under the last president. You can’t be blinded or forget what happened on that day when 2,000 mobsters, or not mobsters, but a mob of 2,000 people, attacked the Capitol. They did. They attacked the Capitol. And they were told to go after the former vice president. And they were told that the elections that had just occurred, that dozens of Republican judges said it was free and fair, and the results were the results, they didn’t believe in that. And so, that is a scary thought. That is a scary thought.

(39:14)
The president obviously is going to do everything that he can to protect our democracy, to protect our freedoms, to protect the free and fair elections. And that’s what he was talking about. All you got to do is go back, go back three years, and see what happened, and see what the former president did and what he led. But obviously, I’m not going to dive into the specifics of that. There’s an investigation, but we heard from the former president what he said directly. And so I’m going to be super mindful. But yeah, the president said it himself. He has concerns. So, there’s a lot at stake here, something that I’ve said before. And we know that the American people, we saw this in 2022, they care about our democracy, they care about freedoms. This is something that they truly want to see protected. And that’s something that the Biden-Harris administration is going to continue to work on to protect that, that democracy and freedom. Thank you.

Thanks, Karine. Does the president support the 10,000 hotel workers that went on strike?

So, obviously we have seen the reporting of what’s currently happening with Unite here. The president was out and about yesterday with the vice president in Pittsburgh on Labor Day, which is something that… Obviously the president, when it comes to labor, when it comes to being the most pro-union president, he is very proud to have that title.

(40:40)
Look, so what I can say, as far as Unite here and the 10,000 workers, I believe, in 24 or 25 hotels that we’re talking about now, we support collective bargaining. That’s something that the president has said throughout his career, and believe it’s the best way for Americans, American workers and employers, to come to agreement that works for all parties. All workers, including hospitality workers, should have good jobs, with fair pay, and benefits that give them the opportunity to provide not just for themselves but also for their families. And that’s what the president wants to see. So, what we will encourage, this is what we’ve done before, when we’ve seen these types of strikes, is we encourage for folks to come to the table, negotiate in good faith towards reaching a strong, strong contract. And that’s what the president believes, and that’s what the president wants to see.

And also has the White House been in touch with Turkish authorities over the attack on the two Marines in Turkey?

So, obviously we’re troubled by the assault that we have seen, that you all have been covering, on the US service members, and are happy to hear that they are safe now, and have returned to the USS Wasp. I believe the National Security Advisor was going to put out a statement, Jake Sullivan, on this. If he hasn’t, I’m sure it’s coming shortly. We appreciate the Turkish police, the actions that they have taken. This is a serious matter, and we are holding those responsible accountable, and they are holding, to be more clear, those accountable responsible. And so anything more on details or specifics on what happened, what’s happening, what the Turkish government is doing, or Turkish police is doing, I would refer you to the Department of Defense, who also put out a statement on this as well. Okay, Peter?

Thank you, Karine. In the president’s public comments, why is he harder on Benjamin Netanyahu than he is on the terrorist leader of Hamas?

The president has been very, very clear about Hamas leaders and what they have done. He was very clear on October 7th. He has been very clear multiple times thereafter on what Hamas has done. And it is a heinous murder, what they did recently, and what they did on October 7th, and more than 1,200 souls were taken, and then hostages were taken. That’s why we’re trying to get this deal done, to get people home to their families, including American hostages. And we’re continuing to be very, very clear about that. He was asked a question, he answered it directly, but Hamas is responsible. They have more American blood on their hands. The president was clear about that in his statement, and he has been, he has been over almost a year now, has been very clear about that, and will continue to be so.

A different topic. Since when does the vice president have what sounds like a Southern accent?

I have no idea what you’re talking about.

She was talking about unions in Detroit using one tone of voice.

Is this something that you think-

Same line-

Okay, Peter-

She used the same line in Pittsburgh, and it sounded like she at least had some kind of a Southern drawl.

Do you hear the question that you’re… Do you think Americans seriously think that this is an important question? You know what they care about? They care about the economy. They care about lowering costs. They care about healthcare. That’s what Americans care about. That’s what they want to hear.

So, okay, this is something-

They care about, your colleague just asked me about democracy, basically we talked about, went back and forth about democracy and freedom. That’s what they care about.

Right, I agree.

I’m not even going to entertain some question about the… Hearing it sounds so ridiculous.

But hearing it is-

The question, I’m talking about the question, is just insane.

Is that how she talks in meetings here?

I’m just… Peter, we’re moving on. We’re so moving on. Go ahead, Anita.

Thanks. Starting with Ukraine and this recent attack, has it shifted the administration’s response to Ukraine’s request to be able to do long-term strikes in Russia? And then just quickly, when the General Assembly happens, we understand that Zelenskyy’s going to come to the US. Is he going to meet with President Biden and Vice President Harris?

Your last question, you’re jumping way ahead of me. I don’t have anything for you, as far as President Zelenskyy specifically attending. That’s something that you would have to talk to the Ukrainian government. What I will say is the latest strike is, obviously, it’s horrific. It’s a reminder of Russia’s brutality. It’s something that we cannot forget. And it is also critical that the world continues to stand with Ukraine as they’re fighting for their sovereignty, as they’re fighting for their freedom. And so what we can say from here is that President Biden has been very clear for his support for the Ukrainian people, and that continues to be unshakable. And that’s what I can say. As far as our policy, to your first part of the question, nothing’s changed. I don’t have a change of policy to speak to.

China’s shooting for the moon-

Shooting for the moon?

The president of China is coming to the APEC meeting in Peru. President Biden is expected to attend. Are they going to meet?

I know National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan spoke to this when he was doing his press conference, and when he was in Beijing, I believe last week, I lose track of days and times sometimes. And so I don’t have anything to share beyond on what the National Security Advisor shared during his press conference. So, I’ll leave it there. Okay?

The president returned to Pennsylvania yesterday. He made a statement to the pool about not getting back out into the large crowds, that the Secret Service’s saying, essentially, that it was too dangerous. Can you clarify?

Yeah, I was just asked this question, I believe, by Zeke, your colleague, moments ago. I don’t have anything else to share beyond what I just shared with Zeke. I believe you asked me this question? Okay, good. But I just don’t have anything to share. No, you have to… When it comes to the president’s security or any of the principals’ Secret Service, you have to talk to Secret Service about that. They can share more, if they choose.

And he is going back on the campaign trail this week, so nothing’s changed?

Nothing has changed, as far as his travel. We are going to be out there, as you just heard me speak to him going to Wisconsin on Thursday. He’s going to be in Michigan on Friday. We just got back, to your point in your question, when he was answering question or making a statement yesterday, he was in Pennsylvania. He’s looking forward to it. He’s looking forward to being out there talking, speaking directly to the American people, talking about what we’ve done this last three and a half years. And so he’s excited about that and wants to continue that. Okay?

Thank you. The vice president released a political ad this morning where she mentioned that price gouging is a problem in the United States, when it comes to grocery prices. And I wanted to see if there’s anything that the Biden administration is doing to address price gouging, if there are targets in mind, and the activity that the administration has around this issue.

So, look, obviously we have been very

… very much and the administration has focused on lowering costs. That is something that we continue to do as one of the most recent events that the President and the Vice President had was indeed talking about how to lower prescription drugs. And so that is something that you know that we’ve done over the past couple of years. As it relates to the ad, I’ve got to be mindful, just I have to say this at the top, the Harris campaign can speak specifically to the ad, but we have made some progress in lowering prices, as I just mentioned about the Medicare, what we’ve been able to do with beating back pharma and lowering some prices there when it comes to healthcare and they have taken on price gouging. This is something that we have done here in this administration, including partnering with state attorney generals to crack down on anticompetitive behavior in grocery and agriculture markets.

(48:58)
That is something that we have done in the past three and a half years in this administration. And so obviously it’s something that we have focused on, what we want to do, and this is an issue that Americans care about, the economy. We want to continue to lower costs for Americans. We want to make sure that big corporations and billionaires pay their fair share and we want to make sure that we build an economy that works for all from the bottom up, middle out. This is all connected, all connected, and what the President and this Vice President has tried to do over the three and a half years.

Does the White House believe that price gouging is…? Despite the efforts that you described, price gouging continues with grocery prices.

Oh yes. We’ve talked about this. We have seen… Now, to be clear, we have seen grocery prices come down over the past year or more. And so that is important and a lot of that is the work that’s been done from this administration. The President has called out companies who we know were doing just that, raising the cost, but what we believe is that we want to make sure that Americans are not played for suckers. You’ve heard the President say this, they’re not played for suckers, and that we’re going to continue to do everything that we can to protect them. And so again, we’ve done work on dealing with price gouging, working directly with state attorney generals to crack down on certain actions that we have seen and we’ll continue to do that.

And then just one other topic. It was striking, at least to me, to see the White House tweet out a photograph of the President yesterday meeting with his hostage team in the situation room. Is there a military option that’s being considered to help release the US citizens that are being held against their will?

Yeah. It’s a very similar question that I just got from your colleague. I appreciate the question. I am not going to get into any plans or policies from here. That is not something that I’m going to do. What I can say, and this is something that we have talked, something that you’ve heard from this administration is we are going to continue to get that ceasefire deal. We believe it is critical. We believe it’s important to get that done. We want to see this war end. We want to see hostages come home, including American hostages come home to their families. I just don’t have anything beyond or outside of working around the clock, around the clock to get the ceasefire deal.

You’re not pulling out of the deal?

I just cannot get into that from here. What I can speak to is the ceasefire deal that we’ve been working on to get, we believe we are closer and closer and that is our focus. That is the President’s focus. I’m not going to speak to military operations. I’m not going to do that. That’s not something that I could do from here. I would never do that, never telegraph anything like that from here, not from this podium. And so that’s what I can say. Our focus, ceasefire deal, working continuously with our co-mediators, Qatar and Egypt, on next steps on getting to that hostage deal. That’s our focus. Okay.

What’s the White House reaction to the UK’s decision to withhold some arms from Israel over those concerns about that they would be used essentially to violate international law?

So I know that they’ve spoken to this, the UK government, so certainly I would refer you to the UK on their own determination and what that actually means, what standards under the UK law specifically and how it’s been applied here. So that is something that they have to speak to. I just don’t have anything beyond that.

On the White House side, has there been any conversations with the UK about what that means and does that have any impact? Does this kind of decision have any impact on the goal of getting a ceasefire deal?

So look, what I can say is we’re going to continue to try and work and get those ceasefire deal. That’s our focus. That’s what we’re going to continue to do. If you’re asking me if we were given a heads-up by the UK government, we were given a heads- up by the UK government, but this is something… This is their determination. This is something that they have to speak to on how they get to that decision. We are determined to get and committed to get the ceasefire deal. Our commitment to Israel’s security remains ironclad. That is something that we are committed to. And we’ve said this, we’ve said this from this podium many times. Israel faces a number of threats from throughout the region. And so that is ironclad. That has not changed, but we are trying to get that ceasefire deal, working around the clock. That’s what we want to see. That’s our focus. Okay.

How concerned is the White House for Vladimir Putin getting a red carpet welcome in Mongolia despite the arrest warrant of the ICC?

So obviously we’re aware of the visit… Of Putin’s visit to Mongolia and we have said this before and I’ll say it here. We don’t believe any country should give Putin a platform to promote his war of aggression against Ukraine. There is no doubt that members of Russia’s forces and other Russian officials are committing war crimes or other violations of international law in Ukraine. And we have been clear that those responsible must be held to account. We expect that Mongolia will adhere to its commitment and support for the principles of the UN Charter, including sovereignty and territorial integrity, and convey that these principles must be upheld across the world in Europe as it is in Asia. So that’s what we want to see.

Thanks a lot, Karine. On the Investing in America event that we had earlier today, the events that the President will have later this week, obviously the President wants credit for his domestic legislative accomplishments. Has the administration just simply considered putting a sign on an infrastructure project saying, “This infrastructure project brought to you by the Biden administration?”

So I believe when we’ve traveled, I’ve seen some of those signs. And so that’s not uncommon to see signs when a big project or a big legislation is passed into law. And there’s federal funding to see signs like that. I think I’ve seen it across the country when we’ve traveled. But look, this is about… And this is very much what the secretary was saying, is that making sure Americans know what this administration has done, making sure they know what’s available to them, making sure that there are opportunities, whether it’s the economy and lowering costs, whether it’s making sure that you can buy a home, an affordable home, medication that you might need because you’re paying too much and because Big Pharma was certainly gouging you. And so the President has been able to beat Big Pharma.

(55:52)
Those are things that the American people need to know. They need to know what this administration has done and this is what we’ve been doing the three and a half years. Yes, we’re talking about Wisconsin, we’re talking about Michigan, and obviously the President was in Pennsylvania yesterday. But this is one of the things that the President enjoys doing, being out there, talking directly to the American people, and also making sure that news gets there, right? That gets there about what this administration has done and what we will continue to do in the final four months of his term.

And the President was out with the Vice President yesterday in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. What do you think he brings to the table when he is right there beside the Vice President as she’s campaigning for President?

You just talked about investing for America. You just heard from the secretary about his own experiences. He gave anecdotal stories about what he has seen across the country with what the President’s Investing in America’s agenda has done to change their lives. That could not have been done without the President’s leadership. It couldn’t have, and I think the American people understand that. They understand that leadership matters. They understand that this was a partnership that was done between the President and the Vice President. And they understand that the President has been… If you think about… Senator for 36 years, Vice President for eight years, and now President. He brought leadership and experience and was able to reach across the aisle to get historic legislation passed. The secretary talked about infrastructure week.

(57:27)
In the last administration, that was a joke. It was. We would all joke about how… “Oh wow, this week again is infrastructure week.” And now because we’re able to pass a bipartisan legislation in this political environment, now we have infrastructure decade and that matters. And that was done because this President had the leadership, had the experience, has the foresight to understand what the American people need and what is discussed around the kitchen table. And so that’s what he brings. He brings experience and understanding and he can speak to the partnership that he’s had with the Vice President for three and a half years. I think that’s important. Get Karen.

Congress is set to come back to Washington soon and government funding will be a big priority for them. So here we are again at this time of year. House Republicans seem to be floating a timeline that would push the deadline, like fund the government through next year into 2025, but attach the stay back to this funding bill. What is the White House’s position on the timeline of that, including that at this point?

So look… And you’re right, here we are again, another period during this year, this time of year, I should say. Look, house Republicans need to stop wasting time on extreme policies and do their job and keep the government open. And they could do that by passing a clean CR, a clean CR. This is something that they can do. And so look, we said it in a statement of an administrative policy. We said this in July. We strongly oppose this Republican stunt. And as fact-checkers across the board have made clear, it is already illegal for non-citizens to vote in federal elections. It’s already illegal. If Congressional Republicans truly cared, if they really cared about fixing the broken immigration system and securing our border, they would actually pass this bipartisan proposal that came out of the Senate. Instead, they got out of the way because of what the former President said to them. Donald Trump said, “Do not pass it. Do not move forward with this proposal.” So we want to see a clean CR. That’s what we want to see.

And what kind of outreach is the White House doing with the Hill at this point? Does the President have any plans to engage with Congressional leaders?

Look, I don’t have anything to speak to as it relates… We don’t have anything to speak to as it relates to the President’s engagement specifically on this issue. As you know, we have an Office of Ledge Affairs. That Office Ledge Affairs is in constant contact with members in Congress about an array of issues, important matters that the American people care about. And so we’ll continue to do that. All right, everybody. Thanks. See you tomorrow.