Biden Signs Order For Projects with Better Benefits

Thanks. Thank you very much. Thank you very much. Good afternoon, Ann Arbor. Good afternoon to our friends in the labor movement, the House of Labor. This is a fantastic House of Labor. I'm a bit jacked. Anybody jacked up here? And certainly good afternoon to UA Local 190, Randall Whitaker and the whole staff of 190. How about a round of for Randall and the crew? As the warm-up act, I'll be short and sweet. We got wonderful speakers, cabinet secretaries, and quite frankly, the greatest union president we've ever had in the history of the United States coming up behind us here. (00:47) This president has four months left to go and he is running through the tape. He's still delivering on the promises he's made four years ago for working men in the United States. He's still doing the things that he needs to do, and his executive order today will even prove it some more. I want to speak on just three different things though that he has ... Of for today, tomorrow, and from years to come. One is the IRA Act, the Inflation Reduction Act. Not one member or the other party signed off on that and thank goodness gracious, the biggest decision this president made was to put Kamala Harris in that tie-breaking seat to get that over the finish line. $80 billion in a multi-employer pension act besides all the other good labor standards in it. (01:40) The other is the CHIPS Act, bringing manufacturing back to this country, 900,000 jobs back to the country. 16 million jobs under the 3.5 years, 16 million jobs in America after we just lost 4 million jobs previously with the other guy. (02:01) The last thing I want to say about is the Infrastructure Act. I was blessed. I was blessed. I was honored with my labor leaders that were here to go to the White House under any administration, the last administration, the last guy, and on day one he says, "I'm a builder. You guys are builders. We're going to have the biggest infrastructure act we've ever had." We got nothing. We got zero. I'm a Jersey guy. I want to say that's bull something, but I'm going to talk from a guy from Claymont, Delaware, and you know what he would say and what he'll probably say. "It's malarkey." It was malarkey. We got nothing. Infrastructure Week, zero. And President Biden got a bipartisan infrastructure that is putting the men and women to work. The unionized sector is back to work. We're back strong in Michigan, and it is my great honor and pleasure to introduce Ann Arbor's own and a fantastic congresswoman, Debbie Dingell. Thank you very much. God bless you. Let's go.

Mark said, "These are my folks," and you're my folks. It's an honor to be here with President Biden, who is the most pro-worker president of our lifetimes. And we're joined by two labor secretaries, who ... I mean two cabinet secretaries, labor, Julie Su, Pete Buttigieg to Secretary of Transportation, who we welcome. There go my remarks. I had to have remarks so I didn't be me. You guys aren't laughing at that. I'm trying to behave and not ... I never use the word malarkey. We all know that. I tell the truth. I call bullshit when I see bullshit. (04:11) And I like Mark, want to say how great it is to be in the UA House with Randall Whitaker. And by the way, we do ... Very close to us is IBW and the house of ... So we're in 190 for UA and IBW 252, Ryan Hutt. Let's hear it. And there are presidents here too. We're joined by a lot of labor presidents you're going to see up on this stage, and it's really my honor, because I love the working men and women of this country. You have always had my back. You have always fought for everybody, and that's what it's about. But you guys, you're too quiet today. You better get a little more lively ... Please. You're not me. Okay. I want to talk about Joe Biden for a minute. I want to tell you, I mean, first of all, I love Joe Biden. He has been John Dingles and my friend for more than 40 years. He and Jill got married when Joe and I got married. I can remember the late night calls that Joe and John would have about so many different issues that matter to working men and women in this country. 2008, when we were looking at the auto bailout and people were going to be put out of their jobs, Joe Biden has never, ever, ever stopped worrying about working men and women in this country. (05:37) And I've been a firsthand witness to it for decades. But that's why he spent the last four years creating thousands of good paying union jobs through historic domestic investments and bringing manufacturing jobs back to this country and stop shipping them overseas. He brought them home. He advanced executive actions to raise wages and improve job safety, led a resurgence in union organizing, walked a picket lie and would never, ever, ever ... He would never, ever tell somebody they should be fired for walking a picket line. He supports you and your right to speak up. And do not forget. Do not ever forget that your union brothers and sisters, retirees who I held in my arms, who lost their pensions, including 60,000 Michiganders, their pensions were restored and protected by the Butch Lewis Act. President Biden's investments in American manufacturing industry and infrastructure and the resulting union jobs will strengthen, our strengthening families and communities for generations to come. They're keeping jobs here, bringing them home. We believe every American deserves better than just getting by. They deserve to get ahead. And that's what we're going to tell Joe Biden today. Okay, you guys, I'm going to introduce one of our cabinet secretaries, but you got to promise me, I'm used to Michigan energy, Michigan cheer. So you can behave because it's me, but I don't want you behaving when the president comes out here. Okay? I just want to ask that. So now I'm proud to introduce Secretary Pete Buttigieg, whose leadership ... No, come on out. No, come on. That's what I want to see. And he's a Michigander, Michiganian now. I was going to say-

How about Representative Debbie Dingell? I'm so excited to be with you. My name's Pete Buttigieg. I have the best job in the federal government because I have the privilege of being out there every day, seeing the good work that is happening to improve and modernize America's infrastructure under President Joe Biden's leadership. And we're excited that it's being built by union workers with the skills that you bring, the benefits you deserve, and the wages that you've earned. Just since getting this job, I've been to every one of America's 50 states, and earlier today I was in Lansing. We were celebrating and marking construction where 127 meets 496. I think a lot of you know about the headache of that interchange. We're fixing it. And it's one of 60,000 projects getting support from the Biden-Harris infrastructure vision. We're so proud of it. (09:27) We are improving commutes, we are supporting the economy, and with the safety improvements, we're also saving lives with these projects. But it's not just about what we build, it's about how we build it. It's about who gets to build it. And yes, that includes supporting the good-paying union jobs that this construction represents. And we're seeing all of the trades benefiting. Over in Lansing, we were with the laborers, we got any laborers here? [inaudible 00:09:57] the operating engineers, the laborers, operating engineers, carpenters and others we saw there, we've got some carpenters. 175,000 miles of roadway getting improved in this country, and you are doing the work. Then we toured a training facility with IBW. I don't know if anybody's heard of the electrical workers who among many other things are installing and maintaining America's growing network of electric vehicle chargers. It's doubled to over 190,000 just since Joe Biden took office. And there's more where that came from. (10:28) And how about our UA plumbers and pipe fitters? Thank you for having us over. [inaudible 00:10:41] folks from local 333. They have a problem that is what we call a good problem to have. They got to build a new, bigger training facility to fit all those apprentices that they're signing up. And a big thanks to Local 190 for hosting us here. Look, the pattern is clear. Union workers are getting more work and it's making all of America stronger. One of the apprentices I met earlier today, I asked her, what does apprenticeship meant to her? She said, "The apprenticeship and the license she's about to get means freedom for her." It'll be the freedom to live where she wants, the freedom to know that she can work on different projects and the freedom that comes with knowing that your future is secure. (11:20) And then there was another, there was a journeyman there who talked about what was most exciting for him about all this. It wasn't the income that was coming to him. It was that he was in a position to help sponsor Little League and help with football and make his community a better place. And that's what we see again and again. When we support union workers, those union workers are supporting families and communities that make every American better off. This is what America's infrastructure comeback looks like. But it didn't just happen otherwise it would've happened all along. This is hard work, and not everyone had President Biden's back when he led the charge to do all this, but you did and we're never going to forget it. We are seeing the difference between an administration that talks the talk and leadership that walks the walk. (12:17) In fact, literally because we're about 20 miles from where President Biden made history as the first sitting president to walk a picket line with the UAW. That is walking the walk. Walking the walk means saving the pensions of millions of workers with the Butch Lewis Act. Walking the walk means getting serious about prevailing wage in Davis-Bacon like we have in the Biden-Harris administration. And yes, it means launching the biggest round of American infrastructure investments in over 70 years. So we are fired up. And/but we know there's more to do, and that's the historic moment you are about to see because in a few moments, President Biden will announce further steps to expand and cement that progress that's been made. That includes project labor agreements, that includes registered apprenticeships, includes making sure that every worker feels the benefits of this moment. (13:21) Because if there's one thing I've seen in my travels across the country in this job, it's that union workers aren't just building roads and bridges and factories and airports. You're building livelihoods. I see it everywhere I go. I see it in the stories and the faces of the workers and the apprentices that we meet. They are standing taller. They are walking prouder, knowing that better future we're building together. And that's why I'm excited to be here because that is what America's infrastructure decade looks like, and you're the ones making it happen. So with that, I have the pleasure and privilege of introducing to you a great friend of American workers and a great friend of mine, not to mention a great colleague in President Biden's cabinet. Please welcome your Acting United States Secretary of Labor, Julie Su.

Thank you. Thank you all so much. Thank you to Secretary Buttigieg for all you do for your partnership on this and so much else. UA Local 190, good afternoon. How are you? It is great to be with all of you. You've already heard this today, but since day one, the Biden-Harris administration has promised to be the most pro-worker, pro-union administration this country has ever seen. And for us, that is not just a slogan. It's a promise, and it's a promise that we are keeping every single day. So what does that look like? (15:11) Nearly 16 million jobs created since the president came into office. That's more jobs created under any president in the same amount of time in history. And as everybody in this room knows, we don't just care about the number of jobs, we care about the kinds of jobs, we care about the quality of those jobs. We want jobs to be jobs that provide a good wage, where every worker knows they're going to come home healthy and safe at the end of the day, where you have benefits so you can take a day off if you need to, and you can retire with dignity. That's what a good job does, and where you can work with a good union contract. So as I've traveled the country this past summer in the Good Job Summer Tour from Phoenix to Fort Lauderdale, from Las Vegas to Milwaukee to Birmingham, and right here in Detroit, we know that we have to stay committed to creating those kinds of good jobs in every single community. (16:13) And as has already been said too, these jobs don't happen by accident. They're happening because the Biden-Harris administration's historic investing in America agenda is putting more money into communities than ever before. And as we repair our nation's roads and bridges, as we modernize airports, as we make sure that every family turns on the faucet gets clean drinking water, and every community has access to high-speed, reliable internet, all of those things are also creating good jobs in every single community. And in President Biden and Vice President Harris's America, those are going to be good union jobs, and we got to keep on doing this work to make sure that that keeps happening. This work is being done by unionized plumbers and pipe

... fitters, unionized electricians, unionized laborers. It's auto workers, it's hospitality workers. Right? It is using American steel made by unionized American workers, and using raw materials being mined by unionized American workers. That's right. And this is happening because we've had Project Labor Agreements. In fact, more Project Labor Agreements on federal highway construction projects than in the last 10 years combined. (17:36) That's why, when I travel to union training halls like this one, apprenticeship programs are bursting at the seams, and communities that have been left out before are seeing themselves in the good jobs that are being created. It's also happening because our investments in electric buses are also prioritizing workers, which is why I've been to Fort Valley, Georgia and Anniston, Alabama, where workers in the South are unionized for the first time, winning record wage increases, winning paid days off, and winning real job security. And it's happening because President Biden and Vice President Harris believe that communities that have been left behind, because factories shuttered in the last administration, should be able to come home and get a good job right in their communities. Because you all know, like I know, that every single person should be able to get a good job, that moves a family from poverty to prosperity, that moves communities from racial exclusion to real inclusion, and that allows women to show that when given a shot, there is nothing we can't do. (18:44) So, my friends, President Biden says all the time that American workers are the best workers in the world. And he knows that when we invest in America, we invest in America's workers. So, let's keep building the country that we know we can be. The action that he's taken today is another step in building the most pro-worker, pro-union country this country has ever been. And let's keep doing that together. Thank you all so much. Thank you. Thank you, thank you. Oh, this way.

Baby, everything is all right. (22:19) Uptight, out of sight. (22:19) Baby, everything is all right. (22:19) Uptight, out of sight. (22:19) I'm a poor man's son, from across the railroad tracks. (22:19) The only shirt I own is hangin' on my back. (22:19) But I'm the envy of ev'ry single guy. (22:19) Since I'm the apple of my girl's eye. (22:19) When we go out stepping on the town for a while. (22:19) My money's low and my suit's out of style. (22:19) But it's all right if my clothes aren't new. (22:19) Out of sight because my heart is true. (22:19) She says baby, everything is all right. (22:19) Uptight, out of sight. (22:19) Baby, everything is all right. (22:19) Uptight, clean out of sight. (22:19) She's a pearl of a girl. (22:19) I guess that's what you might say. (22:19) I guess her folks brought her up that way. (22:19) The right side of the tracks, she was born and raised. (22:19) In a great big old house, full of butlers and maids. (22:19) She says no one is better than I. (22:19) I know I'm just an average guy. (22:19) No football hero or smooth Don Juan. (22:19) Got empty pockets, you see I'm a poor man's son. (22:19) Can't give her the things that money can buy. (22:19) But I'll never, never, never make my baby cry. (22:19) And it's all right, what I can't do. (22:19) Out of sight because my heart is true. (22:19) She says baby, everything is all right. (22:19) Uptight, clean out of sight. (22:19) Baby, everything is all right. (22:19) Uptight, clean out of sight. (22:19) Baby, everything is all right. (22:19) Uptight, ha ha ha ha, yeah. (22:19) Baby, everything is all right. (22:19) Uptight, way out of sight. (22:19) Baby, everything is all right. (22:19) Uptight, clean out of sight. (22:19) Well, I won't back down. (22:19) No, I won't back down. (22:19) You could stand me up at the gates of hell. (22:23) But I won't back down. (22:27) No, I'll stand my ground. Won't be turned around. (22:36) And I'll keep this world from dragging me down. (22:40) Gonna stand my ground. (22:41) And I won't back down. (22:41) I won't back down. (22:41) Hey, baby. (22:41) There ain't no easy way out. (22:41) I won't back down. (22:41) Hey, I will stand my ground. (22:41) And I won't back down. (22:41) Well, I know what's right. (22:41) I got just one life. (22:41) In a world that keeps on pushin' me around. (22:41) But I'll stand my ground. (22:41) And I won't back down. (22:41) I won't back down. (22:41) Hey, baby. (22:41) There ain't no easy way out. (22:41) I won't back down. (22:41) Hey, I will stand my ground. (22:41) I won't back down. (22:41) And I won't back down. (22:41) ... down. (22:41) I won't back down. (22:41) Hey, I won't back down. (22:41) I won't back down. (22:41) Hey, baby. (22:41) There ain't no easy way out. (22:41) I won't back down. (22:41) Hey, I will stand my ground. (22:41) I won't back down. (22:41) And I won't back down. (22:41) I won't back down. (22:41) No, I won't back down. (22:41) I call you when I need you, my heart's on fire. (22:41) You come to me, come to me, wild and wild. (22:41) When you come to me. (22:41) Give me everything I need. (22:41) Give me a lifetime of promises and a world of dreams. (22:41) Speak a language of love like you know what it means. (22:41) Mmm, and it can't be wrong. (22:41) Take my heart and make it strong, baby. (22:41) You're simply the best. (22:41) Better than all the rest. (26:09) Better than anyone. (26:20) Anyone I've ever met. (26:22) I'm stuck on your heart. (26:22) I hang on every word you say. (26:43) Tear us apart. (26:43) Baby, I would rather be dead. (26:43) In your heart, I see the start of every night and every day. (26:43) In your eyes, I get lost, I get washed away. (26:43) Just as long as I'm here in your arms. (26:43) I could be in no better place. (26:43) You're simply the best. (26:43) Better than all the rest. (26:43) Better than anyone. (26:43) Anyone I ever met. (26:43) Ooh, I'm stuck on your heart.

Please welcome Andrew Escobedo, second year plumbing and pipe fitting apprentice.

Good afternoon, everyone. My name is Andrew Escobedo. I grew up in a small town, might've heard of it before, San Diego, California. I'm the proud son of an immigrant, and I live just down the road in Canton. Welcome to Ann Arbor, and to my home local union, United Association of Union Plumbers & Pipefitters Local 190. I'm a proud veteran of the United States Coast Guard. I was actually stationed at Coast Guard Sector Detroit, not too far from here, about an hour. And I'm currently a second-year apprentice in UA 190, in this very building. Currently a plumber, working on a hospital at the University of Michigan, also just down the road. And I'm proud to live by the creed, plumbers protect the health of the nation. (28:53) The United Association represents more than 380,000 men and women just like me in North America who build this country. We install medical gas systems, we build hospitals, replace lead service lines in our communities. We deliver clean and affordable energy, and we build the future of American semiconductor manufacturing. Sounds like a lot of hard work. It's because it is. We go through a five-year registered apprenticeship program, where we earn full wages and benefits while we learn the skills that make us the best trained craftspeople in the nation. (29:49) When I left the Coast Guard, I knew I wanted to do something that mattered. A career where I got to work with my hands, where I belonged to something bigger than myself, and where I had the chance to provide for myself, my family, and one day, retire with dignity. Thanks to President Joe Biden and the investments he has made in the American workers, and the men and women just like me, that dream is now a reality. It is my great honor to introduce to you the most pro-worker and pro-union president in American history, President Joe Biden.

Hello, everybody! By the way, I want you to know-

Thank you, Joe! Thank you, Joe!

Thank you.

Thank you, Joe! Thank you, Joe!

No, thanks, thanks. Thank you.

Thank you, Joe! Thank you, Joe! Thank you, Joe!

I want to thank the Coasties. You know the Coast Guard, they're deployed more places around the world than any other branch. And you play with a good outfit, pal.

Yes, sir. Thank you so much.

Thank you.

Thank you, I appreciate that, sir. Thank you so much. Thank you.

Hello, Ann Arbor!

Hello!

Thanks for that introduction. Going from the Coast Guard to the Plumbers & Pipefitters is a good move, because they know how to [inaudible 00:31:35]... Sit down if you have seats. I said that about eight months ago. I said, "Sit down." They didn't have any seats. And they said, "See? He's too damn old." (31:47) Look, your general president, Mark McManus. Mark was sitting behind me somewhere. He didn't run, did he?

Right over here!

All right, I just want to... I was teasing. Local 190 president, Dan, you're sitting next to him? Where's Dan?

There he goes.

There he is!

Danny, you're allowed to be up with us, you know, man. You're trying to avoid us, I get it. Look, Plumbers & Pipefitters have been with me since the beginning. For my whole career, I've either been too young or too old, never in between. I got elected when I was 29 years old in the right-to-work state called Delaware that we changed. And guess what? Plumbers & Pipefitters were the fourth union to ever endorse me, when I was a 29-year-old kid running for the Senate. (32:45) Mark flew over from Washington with me on Air Force One, along with the great national labor leaders, Brent Booker of the Laborers, Brent. Brent? Sean McGarvey, Building Trades. Gwen Mills, UNITE HERE. There you are! By the way, we were talking about, Gwen and I, on the plane. She flew out with me. My dad used the word more than any other adjective, dignity. All these workers bust their neck. They provide our ability to sleep and walk and work and do anything. And they deserve to be treated with dignity. And that's exactly what you've done. (33:45) And Kenny Cooper, IBEW. I'll tell you what, man. Kenny was the first one to stand up for me in 2020. He came out and he said he was going to be for me, and he brought his union along and changed everything.

Kenny, you're not only a great laborer, you're a good personal friend. Thank you.

Thank you.

Thank you, thank you, thank you. Not that it matters to you, but it matters a hell of a lot to me, the first union to ever endorse me as a 29-year-old kid. When I got elected, I wasn't old enough to be sworn in. I had to wait 17 days to be eligible. But guess what? This guy was with an outfit called United Steelworkers, first union to endorse me. First union. I remember where they brought me in to see I.W. Abel, who was then president, and I could see him looking at the local rep from Delaware, going, "Are you sure about this kid?" You did it, man. Thank yo. We're going to make sure steelworkers are still the backbone in this country for a long, long time to come. (34:49) Folks, what a great way to cap off of Labor Day week, to be in a proud union state of Michigan, Michigan, Michigan, Michigan. I mean it. It's always great to be with a dear friend, Debbie Dingell, who's a great, great personal friend. When you're in a fight, you want Debbie on your side, and thank God she's been on mine. Thank you, Debbie. We're joined by other members, and great Congresswoman Haley, who's been there, and one of the most enthusiastic people I know. Haley, stand up. Stand up kid. And Shri, who's doing an incredible job. Where is Shri? She's out there somewhere. There he is. Come on. Stand up, man, because otherwise, they'll think your son's a congressman. (35:49) There are also two members of my cabinet here today, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg and acting Labor Secretary, Julie Su. You know, when Marty left, you know Marty, used to be Labor Secretary? Marty, I tell you, he's in a comfortable place. He's with guys running around, smashing each other with hockey sticks. But I tell you what, I think we've changed the Labor Department. They understand the word, labor means union. They make this administration the most pro-union administration in the history of the United States of America, period. That's how we're growing. It is. Look, a lot of politicians have trouble saying the word union. It ain't worker, it's union, union. Kamala and I know how to say the word. Look, we know a simple truth. Wall Street did not build America. The middle class built America. When I started saying this years ago, the press looked at me like I was nuts, but guess what? I may be nuts, but I'm right. Not only did the middle class build America, you built the middle class. That's a fact. Labor unions built the middle class. (37:41) When I was Vice President, then I became President, I got a little heat because I was so "Pro-union." In fact, I asked the Treasury Department to do a study, and it shows that when union workers do well, every worker in America does better. Everybody does better. By the way, it's the biggest reason why our economy is the strongest economy in the entire damn world, and that's not hyperbole, that's a fact. It all comes down to something my dad taught me, and I mean it sincerely. My dad ran an automobile agency in his last 20 years, and he'd come home for dinner before he went back and shut things down. Didn't own it, he was a manager. Our dinner table was a place we had conversations, and incidentally, ate, and my dad had an expression. He said, "Joey a job," and I give you my word to this, he said, "A job is about a lot more than a paycheck. It's about your dignity. It's about your place in your community. It's about being able to look your child in the eye and say, "Honey, it's going to be okay," and mean it." (38:50) I mean it, it's not a joke. The guys on the other team don't know what the hell it's all about. They don't understand the word dignity. A good job, a job you can raise your family on, a job you can get without leaving your hometown, without a college degree. I don't know how many times I've traveled across this country as a senator for 374 years. Actually, I'm only 40, but I was there 36 years. Look, I'm serious. As I traveled the country, how many times did I hear, and all the rest of you hear, labor people working in other parts of the country, "Mom and dad, I can't stay. There's no jobs for me here. You got a job, mom and dad, but there's no place for me." How many times have people have to say that, and move? Look at how many communities have been abandoned, left behind, whether they're red or blue, Democrat or Republican. (39:54) A good union job, a good job in a union is building a future worthy of your dreams. My vision has always been, and I mean it sincerely, since I was a young senator, to grow our economy from the middle out and the bottom up instead of the top down. Not a whole lot ever trickled down on my dad's kitchen table. Not a whole lot ever had. We put workers first. We invest in all of America and all Americans. We do that, we do well. Everybody in America deserves one thing, a fighting chance. Just a chance. No guarantee, a chance, a fighting chance. (40:39) That's why Kamala and I are so proud of our record, the greatest job creation record of any single presidential term in American history, because of you. Earlier today, we learned the economy created another 142,000 jobs last month. That's 42 straight months in a row, every single month increasing jobs, to a total of 16 million new jobs since we took office. It's a fact. They told us we couldn't do it. Over 1.6 million jobs in construction and manufacturing. Where in the hell is it written that America can't lead the world again in manufacturing? We are leading the world in manufacturing, and we'll continue to. (41:36) Unemployment is down, wages are up. Inflation is way down and continues to come down, and I predict going to come down this month a little more. Just last year, we added 250 new energy jobs, clean energy jobs growing twice as fast as any other sector of the economy. Clean energy. I know the other team doesn't think there's any such thing as global warming. Well, I'd like to put the other nominee for president, the former president, I'd like to put him in the middle of Arizona for a while. Clean energy workers are joining unions at the highest level in history, double any other portion of the workforce. (42:18) I've said it before. When I think climate, I think jobs, good-paying union jobs. I tried for years, one of the first things I did when I became President was protecting the pensions of 1 million union workers and retirees, when I signed the Butch Lewis Act. Butch Lewis. So far-

Thank you.

Over 62,000 workers and retirees across Michigan are benefiting from that signing.

Yes I am.

Before we acted, workers faced cuts in their pensions. Now, they're not only restoring the full amount of their pensions, but they're getting back pay as well. Where I come from, my family, we're making them whole again. It's a big deal, but let's be clear, every Democrat in the Michigan delegation voted to protect those pensions, led by Debbie and others. Hear me now, every single Republican in your delegation voted against protecting those pensions, every single one. No, I'm serious, not a joke, every one. I've been around a long time in politics. It used to be, Democrats and Republicans would argue like hell, but we'd work out compromises, but every one. Vice President Harris had to cast a tie-breaking vote in the United States Senate to make this pension bill real. Folks, I've been talking about it a while, but we followed up with another big deal, as Barack used to kid me about, I call it investing in America agenda. It's a simple proposition that includes our law rebuilding America's infrastructure, fixing, as your governor said, the damn roads. My predecessor, who is seeking office again, promised infrastructure week every week in the four years he was president, and he never built a damn thing, not one thing. Not a joke, not one. Kamala and I have made sure Michigan receives so far, so far, $10 billion, $900 million for 2,000 projects so far. Roads, bridges, removing lead pipes from homes and schools, clean drinking water. Delivered affordable, high-speed internet to every Michigander, and the number's still growing. We're just getting started. That Bill, I got passed, and some said Biden couldn't do it, guess what? A trillion, $300 billion over 10 years. (45:22) And we reduced the budget at the same time. Guess what? With your support, I signed an executive order to make sure that the largest federal construction projects that are being built in America are built with project labor agreements. You all know what that is, but the folks at home who don't know what a project labor agreement is, the contractor, the subcontractor, the unions put in place the conditions for the construction before it begins, before it begins. These agreements make sure construction is top-notch, on time, on task and on budget. It's a big deal for a big project like Soo Locks in the upper Peninsula. That's your two great senators, Debbie and Gary Peters, are instrumental in delivering. We're investing $693 million to build better locks, accommodate bigger shipping vessels, carry more products to the market, get them there cheaper, and throughout the Great Lakes, it's already created hundreds of jobs, hundreds of union jobs, with more to come. (46:36) But here's another big deal, buy American. It's been the law of the land since the 30s, when the Republicans at the time under Roosevelt were trying to break unions, and allow the companies to come in and crush them. To prevent it from happening, they passed laws relating to union movements, and how they could not be interfered with. But it also had a provision that no one paid much attention to, that every penny a president is authorized to spend on any project that the Congress gives the money for has to go to doing two things, hiring an American worker and using an American product. The only time you could not use an American product or an American worker is when there was not one available, or they didn't have the particular product. (47:26) Well, guess what? It was honored in the alternative. Only about 20% of all the money we spent went to hiring union labor. Forget union, hiring American labor, and using American products. Past administrations, including my predecessor, failed to buy American. You know why? They went overseas for cheaper labor. They supported companies sending... no, I'm not joking. Think about it.

Bull shit.

Well, you said it better than I can. But here's the deal, they did. They sent it overseas because labor was cheaper, and they'd import the product. Not anymore. Not on my watch, not on Kamala's watch either. We buy America and we're making sure federal projects building American roads, bridges, highways be made with American products, built by American workers, creating a good living and American jobs. (48:37) In fact, I'm requiring many of these projects to pay Davis Bacon prevailing wage, increasing pay for 1 million workers over time. Many of these jobs don't require a college degree. In fact, Kamala and I expanded registered apprenticeships. Remember when the company said, "We'll take care of the apprenticeships program?" As they say, "You've done good with that, didn't you?" Registered apprenticeships resulted in the hiring of over, just since we did it, remember all the heat we got for doing it? Well, guess what? Hiring over 1 million apprentices since we came to office, 1 million just since we came to office. A lot of folks who aren't in the industry don't realize that an apprenticeship is like earning a college degree, for real. Some of you apprentices have to be journeyman for four to five years. You get paid to learn a trade, and you're the single best workers in the world, not a joke. (49:44) Like Andrew and his fellow plumbers and pipe fitters, not a joke. It's not a joke. We invented the computer chip about the size of the tip of my little finger, we invented it. We modernized it, we did all the work, and guess what? Other [inaudible 00:50:01] started to export them overseas, because labor was cheaper to build them, make them. Well, we ended up with a situation where I decided I was going to go start off... people thought, even some of my staff thought I was crazy. I said, "I'm going to South Korea, and I'm going to talk to them about it," because they were making a whole hell of a lot of these computer chips. (50:21) I met with Samsung. They ended up investing over $15 billion in the United States to build the fabs, first to construct the facility. A lot of work there, a lot of prevailing wages for construction work. And then, the so-called fabs, they're about as big as a football field, not a joke, and they are, in fact, where you actually make the computers. You don't need a college degree, and the average salary is over $102,000 a year. Well, guess what?

So I asked Samsung, why were they coming in that ... By the way, it's well over $50 billion being invested coming from abroad. I said, "Why are you coming back to the United States?" He said, "Simple reason." Not a joke. This is from the chairman of the board of Samsung. "Because you have the most qualified workers in the world." No joke. That's real. Not a joke. "And it's the safest place in the world for me to invest my money." But here's the deal, guys. We're not going to see it for a little bit because it takes time to build those factories. None of them are open yet, but there's going to be millions of people working in those factories. And guess what? Once that starts, you're going to create entire communities around them. When you build a factory that has 500,000 people working in that factory and they're making good money, guess what? You end up building drugstores, movie theaters, supermarkets. You end up building communities around it.

Small business.

Small ... I really mean it. And by the way, 50% of all the business in America is small business. Small business. (52:06) So look, Kamala and I, we always believed that the National Labor Relations Board should be pro-labor.

Yeah.

Well, that's why one of the most significant things we've done is appointing a National Labor Relations Board members who actually believe in unions and the right to negotiate. Look what's changed. When Trump was president, he appointed union busters, union busters in that organization and it's designed to promote unions. And by the way, you think he has any damn idea of what we do?

No.

No, no. I'm not being a wise guy. I mean, I wonder whether he has any notion, any notion what a hard day's work is.

No.

I mean, all he did was lose his father's money and then get in trouble and have to owe a lot of other people money and then borrow a lot of money and give tax cuts to the super wealthy and end up with the largest debt any president's left behind in four years. He has an incredible record. An incredible record. (53:20) Oh, you think I'm kidding? Look at the numbers, man.

More.

And by the way, he and a guy who was maybe the worst Republican president ever before him ended up with, he's the only one other than the other Republican president, who when he came to office had more jobs than when he left office. Lost jobs. (53:47) Look, Kamala and I are focused on what Michigan is known for as well in the auto industry. I got through school my dad managing an automobile dealership. That's how I got through school. I was proud to be the first president to walk the picket line and do it with the UAW. Walked the picket line with UAW workers here in Michigan. And Kamala walked it as well, but Trump would much rather cross a picket line than walk one. Look, UAW's historic wage increase have led to virtually every automaker across the country to raise wages as well. They're not only unions with recent hard work and success from the SEIU to the writers and actors, dock workers, health care workers, baristas, warehouse workers, there's so many more. We made a lot of progress, but we still have more to do. That's why we're here today. (54:55) In a few minutes, I'm going to sign another groundbreaking executive order. It's called the Good Jobs Executive Order. For the first time in our history, the official policy of a presidential administration is to specify a clear list of higher labor standards for jobs created through my Investing in America agenda. And here's what my executive order will do. For jobs created using federal dollars, good jobs, the executive order will call on a federal agency to protect the workers, the power of the workers to encourage the free and fair choice to join a union.

Yeah.

My executive order goes down to call on federal agencies to include high labor standards and grants that we give, prioritizing projects that pay wages you can raise a family on and provide benefits like childcare. Right now, Davis-Bacon prevailing wage only applies to construction jobs and construction jobs are booming. My executive order, though, promotes federal policies to raise wages beyond construction all across the manufacturing sector because manufacturing is booming. My executive order will also strengthen the pipeline to good jobs. It'll promote policies to create more registered apprenticeships, pre-apprenticeships and other job training programs that don't require a college degree, that put young people on a pathway to getting the skills for good-paying union jobs. And finally, my Good Jobs Executive Order will level the playing field for underserved communities, ensure everyone, everyone gets a fair shot at a job. That means elevating the best practice to prevent discrimination and bias in hiring, protect the safety of workers. It all matters. Kamala and I are going to hold federal agencies accountable by creating a task force led by the Secretary of Labor, by the director of the National Economic Council to make sure we fully implement this new job order and create jobs executive order. Excuse me. (57:08) The ideas just make common sense. Economists have long believed that these good jobs standards produce more opportunities and better outcomes for workers and more predictable outcomes for business as well. It turned out to be a win-win situation for everyone including business. In fact, presidents of both parties have recognized this. Prevailing wage laws date back to President Hoover. Registered apprenticeships date back to Franklin Roosevelt. But too many presidents like my predecessor have looked the other way as companies trample on the rights of workers while cashing in big government checks. But not anymore. (57:52) With today's executive order, Kamala and I are sending a policy across the board in the support of good job standards. And from this point onwards, any president who disagrees with that is going to have to say so out loud, say it to your face, and repeal that order. And I want to see them try to do it. (58:14) Let me close with this. In 2020, I said one of the reasons I was running was to rebuild the backbone of America, the middle class. Nearly four years later, we've done just that in thousands of cities and towns across the country. We're seeing the great American comeback story. My predecessor believes America is a failing nation. He's a failing president, a failing man. He's wrong. America isn't failing. We're winning. We are the indispensable nation in the world. We're the nation of dreamers and doers that led to the greatest advances in human history over the last 200 years. That's who we are. (58:58) But my predecessor doesn't get it. He refused to visit an American cemetery in France that I was just near, because according to his own chief of staff, a four-star Marine general, Trump said, "Those servicemen buried there are suckers and losers." (59:15) My son died because of a year in Iraq. I'm just happy and I mean this from the bottom of my heart. I'm glad I wasn't there. I think I would've done something. No, I think he would've, too. They're heroes. He's the sucker. He's the loser, the way he talks.

Thank you, Joe. Thank you, Joe. Thank you, Joe. Thank you, Joe. Thank you, Joe. Thank you, Joe. Thank you, Joe.

I'm sorry. I'm sorry to get emotional about that-

That's all right. (01:00:09) That's all right.

... but I miss him.

You bet. (01:00:12) Be real.

He was the attorney general of the State of Delaware and volunteered to go. Anyway, our servicemen and veterans are heroes. And you, the American worker are heroes in this comeback story. You're the reason for the comeback story. Because of you, all those who came before ... We're the only nation's that's always emerged every single time. Check it out. Always emerged in American history. We've always come out of a crisis stronger than we went in, stronger than when we went in. Because of you, and I mean it from the bottom of my heart, I've never been more optimistic about America's future. We just have to remember who we are. We're the United States of America. There's nothing, nothing, nothing, nothing beyond our capacity when we work together, when we fight, when we fight. I'm now going to go over and sign that Good Jobs Executive Order and keep it going, guys, you're saving the country. God bless you all. God bless America.

Timing is everything. (01:01:20) Love you, Joe. (01:01:21) We love you.

[inaudible 01:02:24] extra hard to get this done. Thank you. (01:04:37) Hey guys, every time I'd walk out of my grandfather Finnegan's house up in Scranton, Pennsylvania, true story. He'd yell, "Joey, keep the faith." My grandmother Finnegan would come out and say, "No, Joey. Spread it." Spread the faith, guys. Let's go. We have a ...

Thank you, Joe. Thank you, Joe. Thank you, Joe. Thank you, Joe.