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CNN Live Event/Special
Biden: Democracy Remains Unbowed And Unbroken; Biden: My Economic Plan Is About Investing In Places And People That Have Been Forgotten; Biden: Capitalism Without Competition Is Not Capitalism. Aired 9-10p ET
Aired February 07, 2023 - 21:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
[21:00:00]
VOICE OF JAKE TAPPER, CNN HOST, CNN WASHINGTON CORRESPONDENT: What is going through his mind, in this very unique landscape, with a new Republican-led House, and this newly heightened challenged, from China, not a new challenge, but newly heightened.
VOICE OF EVAN OSNOS, BIDEN BIOGRAPHER: There are moments for a political speech. We've heard some of those, recently, from him, during the midterms. And we may, in fact, be hearing more of that kind, if he does run for reelection. That's not what tonight is about. Tonight is about being President of the United States.
And I heard from one of his advisers, the other day, who said, "We're at this point of transition, where we've gotten it done, legislatively. And now, we have to make it real." That is the idea. Make it tangible, put it into people's lives, the idea that you're building these chip factories in the United States, the idea that you're building bridges and tunnels.
You saw the President, go to Kentucky, stand with Mitch McConnell, and talk about bridges that are going to be built. He went to Arizona, talking about a semiconductor factory.
That is the - you're going to hear more of that tonight, about him saying, to people, out there, "I see you. You're not invisible. You're not left behind. We're coming up with an economic strategy that can meet you where you are, and that tries to bring you back into this economy."
VOICE OF JOHN KING, CNN CHIEF NATIONAL CORRESPONDENT, CNN ANCHOR, INSIDE POLITICS: I think, as we watch the pictures, they're about to bring the President, into the room. This is his night, obviously.
But just looking at the floor reminds you of the uncertain moment, we are at, politically for both parties.
Kyrsten Sinema, the Democratic senator, from Arizona, now an Independent, is with two Republican senators, one on either side of her. She's a bit of a pariah, in her own party, right now. And yet, they may need her in the 2024 election.
There are 18 Republicans, in this House chamber, who represent districts Joe Biden carried. They're a little worried about the Marjorie Taylor Greenes, in their party. And there are a whole bunch of Trump-state Democrats, Jon Tester, of Montana who have to be on the ballot, in 2024, and running in states. Is Joe Biden going to be a strong Democratic nominee for them?
So, it's the President's night.
And, Jake, you made it such an important point earlier about this House chamber. We should mention the Insurrection. We should mention the history of that chamber, every single time.
The Chief Justice is there, because he respects the institution.
Kevin McCarthy has begged his members respect the institution. 130 of those members, including the Speaker of the House, did not respect the institution.
VOICE OF TAPPER: Right.
VOICE OF KING: Back on January 6th.
So, we're still in this remarkable moment of transition, in American politics, as we go from the last campaign, which the Democrats did surprisingly well, into the next campaign, with all the questions.
A lot of the Republicans, on the floor here, think Trump is going to fade away. Are they right? They're hoping he does. But are they right?
VOICE OF TAPPER: I've seen that movie before.
VOICE OF KING: Yes. Right, we've all lived that movie before. And he has not.
Is Joe Biden strong enough? The tepid response, from Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, just shows you that a lot of Democrats have those doubts. The uncertainty in American politics, right now, is everywhere.
VOICE OF TAPPER: And if you see all these individuals, sitting by the aisle, and you're wondering, "Well, how did - did they just lock into these good seats?" No, no, no, no, they had been sitting there, for hours.
These are the seats, in which you get to shake the hand, of the Supreme Court Justice, Chief Justice, et cetera. But mainly, so you can shake the hand of the President of the United States. This is a big moment, for a lot of these House members.
And we are waiting, for President Biden, who is not generally the most punctual presidents, in the world. That - I would say George W. Bush was probably the most punctual.
VOICE OF CHRIS WALLACE, CNN ANCHOR: Oh, George W. Bush was fanatical about it. He wanted - if a meeting was supposed to start at 8 - at 9 o'clock, he'd say - at 8:58, "Why isn't everybody in here?"
VOICE OF TAPPER: Here we go. Here we go.
VOICE OF WALLACE: Here we go.
VOICE OF TAPPER: Let's listen in.
(PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN ABOUT TO BE INTRODUCED TO JOINT SESSION OF CONGRESS)
WILLIAM MCFARLAND, ACTING HOUSE SERGEANT AT ARMS: Mr. Speaker, the President of the United States!
[21:05:00]
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
(PRESIDENT JOE BIDEN ENTERING HOUSE CHAMBER)
VOICE OF TAPPER: All right, we're watching President Biden, making his way, down the aisle.
If you are wondering, who the gentleman, on the left side of your screen, and the woman, in front of President Biden are, they are the House Sergeant at Arms, and the Senate Sergeant at Arms.
The House Sergeant at Arms was just appointed to that position by Speaker Kevin McCarthy. The Senate Sergeant at Arms was appointed, in March 2021. Both of their predecessors, shall we say, were shown the door, after January 6th, 2021.
The President is making his way past the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
There is Pelosi and Steny Hoyer, former House Democratic leaders.
Now, he's joining and meeting, greeting his military leadership, or members of the Joint Chiefs.
Traditionally, I do not believe the President greets the U.S. Supreme Court. It is often considered to be a bad mixture of the Judiciary and the Executive branches.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
VOICE OF TAPPER: He looks - John, he looks like a pretty happy guy. It's important for him to show the pep in his step that people remember from watching Joe Biden, since he arrived here, in Washington, in the early 1970s.
VOICE OF KING: And people, for years, say, "Why do we have this speech? Why does it go on for more than an hour?" Any politician, who can speak to millions of people, uninterrupted, for more than an hour--
VOICE OF TAPPER: There he is, with the House Speaker, Kevin McCarthy, shaking hands.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE) VOICE OF KING: This is part of the tradition. You hand the copy of your speech, to the Vice President and the Speaker.
That's a big moment there. We'll see. This is a relationship, Jake, that has started off relatively cordial, despite huge policy differences. We'll see if that continues.
VOICE OF TAPPER: Let's listen in.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
(APPLAUSE)
JOE BIDEN, PRESIDENT, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: Thank you.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
(GAVEL BANGS)
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
REP. KEVIN MCCARTHY (R-CA): Members of Congress, I have the high privilege and distinct honor to present to you the President of the United States.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Mr. Speaker.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Thank you. You can smile. It's OK.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Thank you. Please.
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Mr. Speaker. Madam Vice President. Our First Lady and Second Gentleman. Good to see you guys, up there.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Members of Congress.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: By the way, Chief Justice. I may need a court order. She gets to go to the game, tomorrow - next week. I have to stay home! Got to work something out here!
(LAUGHTER)
BIDEN: Members of the Cabinet. Leaders of our military. Chief Justice, Associate Justices, and retired Justices of the Supreme Court.
[21:10:00]
And to you, my fellow Americans.
You know, I start tonight by congratulating the 118th Congress and the new Speaker of the House, Kevin McCarthy.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Speaker, I don't want to ruin your reputation. But I look forward to working with you.
(LAUGHTER)
BIDEN: And I want to congratulate the new leader of the House Democrats, the first African American Minority Leader, in history, Hakeem Jeffries.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: He won in spite of the fact I campaigned for him!
(LAUGHTER)
BIDEN: Congratulations to the longest-serving Leader, in the history of the United States Senate, Mitch McConnell.
Where are you, Mitch?
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: And congratulations to Chuck Schumer, another - you know, another term as Senate Minority Leader.
I think you - only this time, you have a slightly bigger majority, Mr. Leader. And you're the Majority Leader. About that much bigger? Yes. Well I'll tell you what.
I want to give special recognition, to someone, who I think is going to be considered the greatest Speaker, in the history of the House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Folks, the story of America is a story of progress and resilience. Of always moving forward. Of never ever giving up.
It's a story unique among all nations.
We are the only country that has emerged from every crisis we've ever entered stronger than when we got into it.
Look, folks, that is what we are doing again.
Two years ago, the economy was reeling.
I stand here tonight, after we have created, with the help of many people, in this room, 12 million new jobs, more jobs created, in two years than any president has ever created in four years, because of you all.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Because of the American people.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Two years ago--
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: And two years ago, COVID had shut down our businesses, closed our schools, we're robbed us of so much.
And today, COVID no longer controls our lives.
And two years ago, democracy faced its greatest threat since the Civil War.
And today, though bruised, our democracy remains unbowed and unbroken.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: As we gather here, tonight, we are writing the next chapter, in the great American story, a story of progress and resilience.
When world leaders ask me, to define America, and they do, believe it or not, I say, I can define it in one word, and I mean this: Possibilities. We don't think anything is beyond our capacity. Everything is a possibility.
You know, we're often told that Democrats and Republicans can't work together.
But over these past two years, we proved the cynics and naysayers wrong.
Yes, we disagreed plenty. And yes, there were times when Democrats went alone.
But time and again, Democrats and Republicans came together.
Came together to defend a stronger and safer Europe.
You came together to pass a once-in-a-generation infrastructure law, building bridges, connecting our nation and our people.
We came together to pass the most significant law ever, helping veterans exposed to toxic burn pits.
And in fact--
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: It was important.
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: And, in fact, I signed over 300 bipartisan pieces of legislation, since becoming President. From reauthorizing the Violence Against Women Act, to the Electoral Count Reform Act, to the Respect for Marriage Act that protects the right to marry the person you love.
[21:15:00]
And, to my Republican friends, if we could work together, in the last Congress, there is no reason we can't work together, and find consensus, on important things, in this Congress, as well.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: I thank--
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Folks?
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: You all are as informed as I am, but I think the people sent us a clear message.
Fighting for the sake of fighting, power for the sake of power, conflict for the sake of conflict, gets us nowhere.
That's always been my vision of our country, and I know it's many of yours, to restore the soul of this nation, to rebuild the backbone of America, America's middle-class, and to unite the country.
We've been sent here to finish the job, in my view.
For decades, the middle-class had been hollowed out, and more than - and not no one administration but for a long time.
Too many good-paying manufacturing jobs moved overseas. Factories closed down.
Once-thriving cities and towns that many of you represent became shadows of what they used to be.
And along the way, something else we lost: Pride, our sense of self- worth.
I ran for President to fundamentally change things, to make sure our economy works for everyone, so we can all feel that pride in what we do.
To build an economy from the bottom up and the middle out, not from the top down. Because when the middle-class does well, the poor have a ladder up, and the wealthy still do very well.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: We all do well.
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: I know a lot of you always kid me for always quoting, my dad. But my dad used to say, "Joey, a job is about a lot more than a paycheck." He really would say this. "It's about a lot more than a paycheck. It's about your dignity. It's about respect. It's about being able to look your kid in the eye, and say, 'Honey, it's going to be OK,'" and mean it.
Well, folks, so let's look at the results. We're not finished yet by any stretch of the imagination.
But unemployment rate is at 3.4 percent, a 50-year low.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: A near record--
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: A near record unemployment.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Near record unemployment, for Black and Hispanic workers.
We've already created, with your help, 800,000 good-paying manufacturing jobs, the fastest growth in 40 years.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: And where is it written?
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Where is it written that America can't lead the world in manufacturing? And I don't know where that's written.
For too many decades, we imported products and exported jobs.
Now, thanks to what you've all done, we're exporting American products and creating American jobs.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Folks?
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Inflation--
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Inflation has been a global problem, because the Pandemic disrupted our supply chains, and Putin's unfair and brutal war, in Ukraine, disrupted energy supplies, as well as food supplies, blocking all that grain in Ukraine.
But we're better positioned than any country on Earth, right now.
But we have more to do. But here at home, inflation is coming down.
Here at home, gas prices are down $1.50s from their peak.
Food inflation is coming down, not fast enough, but coming down.
Inflation has fallen every month, for the last six months, while take- home pay has gone up.
Additionally, over the last two years, a record 10 million Americans applied to start new small businesses. 10 million!
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: And, by the way?
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Every time--
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Every time someone starts a small business, it's an act of hope.
And Madam Vice President, I want to thank you, for leading that effort to ensure the small businesses have access to capital and the historic laws we enacted that are going to just come into being.
Standing here, last year, I shared with you a story of American genius and possibilities.
Semiconductors, small computer chips, the size of a fingertip that power everything, from cellphones to automobiles, and so much more. These chips were invented in America. Let's get that straight. They were invented in America.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: We used to make 40 percent of the world's chips. In the last several decades, we lost our edge. We're down to only producing 10 percent.
We all saw what happened during the pandemic when chip factories shut down, overseas.
Today's automobiles need 3,000 chips, each of those automobiles. But American automobiles couldn't make enough cars because there weren't enough chips. Car prices went up. People got laid off. So did everything from refrigerators to cellphones.
[21:20:00]
We can never let that happen again. That's why--
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: That's why we came together to pass the bipartisan CHIPS and Science Act.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Folks?
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: I know I've been criticized for saying this, but I'm not changing my view. We're going to make sure the supply chain for America begins in America.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: The supply chain begins in America.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: We've already created--
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: We've already created 800,000 new manufacturing jobs without this law, before the law kicks in.
With this new law, we're going to create hundreds of thousands of new jobs across the country. I mean, all across the country, throughout not just the coast, but through the middle of the country as well. That's going to come from companies that have announced more than $300 billion in investments in American manufacturing, over the next few years.
Outside of Columbus, Ohio, Intel is building semiconductor factories on a thousand acres, literally a field of dreams. It's going to create 10,000 jobs, that one investment, 7,000 construction jobs, 3,000 jobs, in those factories, once they're finished. They call them factories.
Jobs paying an average of $130,000 a year, and many do not require a college degree.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Jobs-- (CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Because we work together, these Jobs, where people don't have to leave home in search for opportunity.
And it's just getting started.
Think about the new homes, the small businesses, the big-, the medium- sized business, so much more that's going to be needed, to support those 3,000 permanent jobs, and the factories that are going to be built.
Talk to mayors and governors, Democrats and Republicans, and they'll tell you what this means for their communities.
We're seeing these fields of dreams transform to the heartland.
But to maintain the strongest economy in the world, we need the best infrastructure in the world.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: And folks?
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: As you all know?
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: We used to be Number one in the world in infrastructure.
We've sunk to 13th in the world! The United States of America, 13th, in the world, in infrastructure, modern infrastructure.
But now we're coming back, because we came together and passed the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the largest investment in infrastructure, since President Eisenhower's Interstate Highway System.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: And folks?
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Already, we've funded over 20,000 projects, including major airports from Boston to Atlanta to Portland.
Projects that are going to put thousands of people to work, rebuilding our highways, our bridges, our railroads, our tunnels, ports, airports, clean water, high-speed internet, all across America.
Urban. Rural. Tribal.
And folks, we're just getting started. (CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: We're just getting started.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: And I mean this sincerely.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: I want to thank my Republican friends, who voted for the law.
And my Republican friends, who voted against it as well. But I still get asked to fund the projects in those districts as well. But don't worry.
(LAUGHTER)
BIDEN: I promised I'd be a president for all Americans.
We'll fund these projects.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: And I'll see you at the ground-breaking.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Look?
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: This law--
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: This law will further unite all of America.
Projects like Brent Spence Bridge between Kentucky, over the Ohio River, built 60 years ago, badly in need of repairs. One of the nation's most congested freight routes, carrying $2 billion worth of freight every single day, across the Ohio River.
And folks, we've been talking about fixing it for decades. But we're really finally going to get it done.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes!
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: I went there last month, with Democrats and Republicans, and from both states, to deliver a commitment of $1.6 billion, for this project.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: And while I was there, I met a young woman, named Sara, who is here tonight.
I don't know where Sara is. Is she up in the box? I don't know.
[21:25:00]
Sara, how are you?
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Well, Sara, for 30 years--
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: For 30 years, I learned, she told me, she'd been a proud member of Ironworkers Local 44, known as--
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: --known as the "Cowboys in the sky."
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: The folks who built--
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: --who built Cincinnati skyline.
Sara said she can't wait to be 10 stories above the Ohio River building that new bridge.
God bless her!
(LAUGHTER)
BIDEN: That's pride!
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: And that's what we're also building. We're building back pride.
Look, we're also replacing poisonous lead pipes that go into 10 million homes, in America, 400,000 schools and childcare centers, so every child in America, every child in America can drink the water, instead of having permanent damage to their brain.
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Look?
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: We're making sure--
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: We're making sure--
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: --that every community - every community in America has access to affordable, high-speed internet. No parent should have to drive by a McDonald's parking lot, to help to do their homework online, with their kids, which many, thousands were doing across the country.
And when we do these projects? And, again, I get criticized for this, but I make no excuses for it. We're going to Buy American.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: We're going to Buy American.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Folks?
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: And it's totally--
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: It's totally consistent with international trade rules.
Buy American has been the law of the land since 1933. But for too long, past administrations, Democrat and Republican, have fought to get around it.
Not anymore.
Tonight, I'm announcing new standards that require all construction materials, used in federal infrastructure projects, to be made in America.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Made in America!
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: I mean it.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Lumber, glass, drywall, fiber optic cable.
And on my watch, American roads, bridges, and American highways are going to be made with American products, as well.
Folks, my economic plan is about investing in places and people that have been forgotten. So many of you listening to me, tonight, I know you feel it, so many of you felt like you've just simply been forgotten. Amid the economic upheaval of the past four decades, too many people have been left behind and treated like they're invisible.
Maybe that's you, watching at home. You remember the jobs that went away. You remember them, don't you?
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes.
BIDEN: The folks at home remember them.
You wonder whether the path even exists anymore for your children to get ahead without having to moving away.
Well that's why - I get that.
That's why we're building an economy where no one is left behind.
Jobs are coming back, pride is coming back, because choices we made in the last several years. You know, this is my view of blue-collar blueprint to rebuild America and make a real difference in your lives, at home.
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: For example--
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Too many of you lay in bed at night, like my dad did, staring at the ceiling, wondering what in God names happens, if your spouse gets cancer, or your child gets deadly ill, or something happens to you. What are you going to - are you going to have the money to pay your medical bills? Are you going to have to sell the house, or try to get a second mortgage on it? I get it. I get it.
With the Inflation Reduction Act that I signed into law, we're taking on powerful interests, to bring health care costs down, so you can sleep better at night, with more security.
You know, we pay more for prescription drugs than any nation in the world. Let me say it again. We pay more for prescription drugs than any major nation on Earth.
For example, one in 10 Americans has diabetes. Many of you in this chamber do, and in the audience.
But every day, millions need insulin, to control their diabetes, so they can literally stay alive. Insulin has been around for over 100 years. The guy who invented it didn't even patent it because he wanted it to be available for everyone.
It costs the drug companies roughly $10 a vial to make that insulin. Packaging and all, you may get up to $13.
[21:30:00]
But, Big Pharma has been unfairly charging people hundreds of dollars, $400 to $500 a month, making record profits.
Not anymore.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Not anymore.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: So many things that we did are only now coming to fruition.
We said we were doing this, and we said we passed a law to do it. But people didn't know because the law didn't take effect until January 1, of this year.
We capped the cost of insulin at $35 a month for seniors on Medicare.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: The people that are just finding out?
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: I'm sure you're getting the same calls I'm getting.
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Look, there are millions of other Americans, who do not - or are not on Medicare, including 200,000 young people, with Type I diabetes, who need this insulin, to stay alive.
Let's finish the job this time.
Let's cap the cost of insulin, for everybody at $35.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Folks?
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: And Big Pharma is still going to do very well, I promise you all. I promise you, they're going to do very well.
This law also caps, and won't even go into effect, until 2025, it costs - out-of-pocket drug costs for seniors on Medicare at a maximum of $2,000 a year. You don't have to pay more than $2,000 a year, I mean, no matter how much your drug costs are.
Because you know why?
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: You all know why.
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Many of you, like many in my family, have cancer. You know, the drugs can range from $10,000, $11,000, $14,000, $15,000, for the cancer drugs.
And if drug prices rise faster than inflation, drug companies are going to have to pay Medicare back the difference.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: And we're finally--
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: We're finally giving Medicare the power to negotiate drug prices.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Bringing down--
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Bringing down prescription drug costs doesn't just save seniors money.
It cuts the federal deficit, by billions of dollars.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: By hundreds of billions of dollars.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Because these prescription drugs are drugs purchased by Medicare, to make - keep their commitment to the seniors. Well, guess what? Instead of paying $400 or $500 bucks a month, you're paying $15. That's a lot of savings for the federal government.
And, by the way, why wouldn't we want to do that?
Now, some members here are threatening - and I know it's not official party position, so I'm not going to exaggerate. But threatening to repeal the Inflation Reduction Act.
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: As my coach--
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: That's OK. That's fair. (APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: As my football coach used to say, lot's of luck in your senior year.
(LAUGHTER)
BIDEN: Make no mistake.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: If you try anything to raise the cost of prescription drugs, I will veto it.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Look?
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: I'm pleased to say that more Americans have health insurance now than ever in history.
A record 16 million people are enrolled under the Affordable Care Act.
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: And thanks--
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Thanks to the law I signed last year, saving millions or saving $800 a year on their premiums.
And by the way, that law was written, and the benefit expires, in 2025.
So my plea to some of you at least in this audience: Let's finish the job, and make these savings permanent.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Expand coverage on Medicaid.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Look, the Inflation Reduction Act is also the most significant investment ever, in climate change.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Ever.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Lowering utility bills, creating American jobs, leading the world to a clean energy future.
I've visited the devastating aftermaths of record floods, droughts, storms and wildfires, from Arizona and Mexico to all the way up to the Canadian border. More timber has been burned and I've observed from helicopters than the entire State of Missouri. And we don't have global warming, not a problem.
[21:35:00]
In addition to emergency recovery, from Puerto Rico, to Florida, to Idaho, we are rebuilding for the long-term.
New electric grids that are able to weather major storms and not prevent those forest fires.
Roads and water systems to withstand the next big flood.
Clean energy to cut pollution and create jobs in communities often left behind.
We're going to build 500,000 electric vehicle charging stations installed across the country by tens of thousands of IBEW workers.
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: And we're helping families save more than $1,000 a year with tax credits--
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: --to purchase electric vehicles and efficient appliances - energy-efficient appliances.
Historic conservation efforts to be responsible stewards of our land.
Let's face reality.
The climate crisis doesn't care if you're in a Red or Blue state. It's an existential threat.
We have an obligation, not to ourselves, but to our children and grandchildren, to confront it. I'm proud of how America, at last, is stepping up to the challenge.
We're still going to need oil and gas for a while. But guess what?
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: No, we do.
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: But there's so much more to do.
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: We got to finish the job.
And we pay for these investments in our future by finally making the wealthiest and biggest corporations begin to pay their fair share.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Just begin.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Look, I'm a capitalist. I'm a capitalist. But pay your fair share.
I think a lot of you at home, a lot of you at home, agree with me, and many people that you know, the tax system is not fair. It is not fair.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Look?
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: The idea that in 2020, 55 of the largest corporations in America, the Fortune 500, made $40 billion, in profits, and paid zero in federal taxes? Zero?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No (ph)!
BIDEN: Folks, it's simply not fair.
But now, because of the law I signed, billion-dollar companies have to pay a minimum of 15 percent. God love them!
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: 15 percent!
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: That's less than a nurse pays.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Let me be crystal clear. I said at the very beginning, under my plans, as long as I'm President, nobody earning less than $400,000 will pay an additional penny in taxes.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Nobody. Not one penny.
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: But let's finish the job. There's more to do.
(APPLAUSE) BIDEN: We have to reward work, not just wealth. Pass my proposal for the billionaire minimum tax.
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: You know? There's a thousand billionaires, in America. It's up from about 600, in the beginning of the term. But no billionaire should be paying a lower tax rate than a school teacher or firefighter.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: No, I mean it. Think about it.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: I mean, look?
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: I know you aren't enthusiastic about that. But think about it. Think about it.
Have you noticed? Big Oil just reported its profits, record profits.
Last year, they made $200 billion in the midst of a global energy crisis.
I think it's outrageous.
Why? They invested too little of that profit to increase domestic production.
And when I talked to a couple of them, they said "We were afraid you're going to shut down all of the oil wells and all the oil refineries anyway. So why should we invest in them?"
I said "We're going to need oil for at least another decade. And that's going to exceed and beyond that."
(LAUGHTER)
BIDEN: We're going to need it.
Production, if they had in fact invested in the production, and to keep gas prices down. Instead, they used the record profits to buy back their own stock, rewarding their CEOs and shareholders.
Corporations ought to do the right thing.
That's why I propose we quadruple the tax on corporate stock buybacks and encourage long-term investments.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: They'll still make a considerable profit. (CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Let's finish the job and close the loopholes that allow the very wealthy to avoid paying their taxes.
[21:40:00]
Instead of cutting the number of audits for wealthy tax payers, I just signed a law to reduce the deficit by $114 billion by cracking down on wealthy tax cheats.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: That's being fiscally responsible.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: In the last two years, my administration has cut the deficit by more than $1.7 trillion.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: The largest deficit reduction in American history.
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Under the previous administration, the American deficit went up four years in a row.
Because of those record deficits, no president added more to the national debt in any four years than my predecessor.
Nearly 25 percent of the entire national debt, that took over 200 years to accumulate, was added by just one administration alone, the last one.
(REPUBLICAN MEMBERS DISAGREE)
BIDEN: They're the facts. Check it out.
(REPUBLICAN MEMBERS DISAGREE)
BIDEN: Check it out.
(REPUBLICAN MEMBERS DISAGREE)
BIDEN: How did Congress respond to that debt?
They did the right thing. They lifted the debt ceiling three times without preconditions or crisis.
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: They paid American bills to prevent an economic disaster of the country.
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: So tonight, I'm asking the Congress to follow suit.
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Let us commit here tonight that the full faith and credit of the United States of America will never, ever be questioned.
Some of my Republican friends want to take the economy hostage, I get it, unless I agree to their economic plans.
All of you at home should know what those plans are.
Instead of making the wealthy pay their fair share, some Republicans - some Republicans want Medicare and Social Security to sunset.
(REPUBLICAN MEMBERS DISAGREE WITH "NO!")
BIDEN: I'm not saying it's a majority.
(REPUBLICAN MEMBERS DISAGREE WITH "NO!")
BIDEN: Let me give you--
(REPUBLICAN MEMBERS DISAGREE WITH "NO!")
BIDEN: Anybody who doubts it?
(REPUBLICAN MEMBERS DISAGREE WITH "NO!")
BIDEN: Contact my office.
(REPUBLICAN MEMBERS DISAGREE WITH "NO!")
BIDEN: I'll give you a copy.
(REPUBLICAN MEMBERS DISAGREE)
BIDEN: I'll give you a copy, of the proposal.
(REPUBLICAN MEMBERS DISAGREE)
BIDEN: That means if Congress doesn't vote--
(REPUBLICAN MEMBERS DISAGREE)
BIDEN: Well, I'm glad you see. And I'll tell you, I enjoy conversion.
(LAUGHTER)
BIDEN: You know, it means if Congress doesn't keep the programs, the way they are, they'd go away. Other Republicans say - I'm not saying it's a majority of you, I don't even think it's even a significant.
(REPUBLICAN MEMBERS DISAGREE)
BIDEN: But it's been proposed by individuals.
I'm not - politely not naming them. But it's being proposed by some of you.
(REPUBLICAN MEMBERS DISAGREE)
BIDEN: Look, folks?
REP. MARJORIE TAYLOR GREENE (R-GA): Liar!
BIDEN: The idea is that we're not going to be - we're not going to be moved into being threatened to default on the debt if we don't respond.
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Folks?
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: So folks, as we all apparently agree, Social Security and Medicare, is off the books now, right?
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: They're not to default (ph)?
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: All right.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: We got unanimity!
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Social Security and Medicare are a lifeline for millions of seniors.
Americans have to pay into them from the very first paycheck they start.
So tonight, let's all agree, and we apparently are, let's stand up for seniors.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Stand up and show them you will not cut Social Security. We will not cut Medicare.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Those benefits belong to the American people. They earned it. And if anyone tries to cut Social Security, which apparently no one's going to do? And if anyone tries to cut Medicare? I'll stop them. I'll veto it.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: And above, I'm not going to allow them to take away, be taken away. Not today. Not tomorrow, not ever.
But apparently, it's not going to be a problem!
(LAUGHTER & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Next month, when I offer my fiscal plan, I ask my Republican friends, to lay down their plan as well. I really mean it. Let's sit down together and discuss our mutual plans together.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Let's do that.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: I can tell you, the plan I'm going to show is going to cut the deficit by another $2 trillion. And it won't cut a single bit of Medicare or Social Security.
In fact, we're going to extend the Medicare Trust Fund at least two decades, because that's going to be the next argument. How do we make keep it solvent, right? Well, we'll not raise tax on anyone making under $400,000. But we'll pay for it the way we talked about it tonight, by making sure that the wealthy and big corporations pay their fair share.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Look? Look? Look? Here's the deal.
(APPLAUSE)
[21:45:00]
BIDEN: They aren't just taking advantage of the tax code. They're taking advantage of you, the American consumer.
Here's my message to all of you out there: I have your back. We're already preventing Americans from receiving surprise medical bills, stopping $1 billion (ph) surprise bills per month, so far.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: We're protecting seniors' life savings by cracking down on nursing homes that commit fraud, endanger patient safety, prescribe drugs that are not needed.
Millions of Americans can now save thousands of dollars because they can finally get a hearing aid over-the-counter without a prescription.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE) BIDEN: Look?
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Capitalism without competition is not capitalism. It's extortion. It's exploitation.
Last year, I cracked down, with help from many of you, on foreign shipping companies that were making you pay higher prices, for every good, coming into the country.
I signed a bipartisan bill that cut shipping costs by 90 percent, helping American farmers, businessmen, and consumers.
Let's finish the job.
Pass the bipartisan legislation to strengthen antitrust enforcement and prevent big online platforms from giving their own products an unfair advantage.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: My administration is also taking on "junk" fees, those hidden surcharges too many companies use to make you pay more.
For example, we're making airlines show you the full ticket price upfront, refund your money if your flight is cancelled or delayed.
We've reduced exorbitant bank overdrafts, by saving consumers more than $1 billion a year.
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: We're cutting credit card late fees by 75 percent, from $30 to $8.
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Look?
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Junk fees may not matter to the very wealthy, but they matter to most other folks, in homes like the one I grew up in, like many of you did. They add up to hundreds of dollars a month. They make it harder for you to pay your bills or afford that family trip.
I know how unfair it feels when a company overcharges you and gets away with it.
Not anymore.
We've written a bill to stop it all. It's called the Junk Fee Prevention Act.
We're going to ban surprise "resort fees" that hotels charge on to your bill. Those fees can cost you up to $90 a night at hotels that aren't even resorts!
(LAUGHTER)
BIDEN: The idea that cable internet and cellphone companies can charge you $200 or more, if you decide to switch to another provider? Give me a break!
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: We can stop service fees on tickets to concerts and sporting events and make companies disclose all the fees upfront.
And we'll prohibit airlines from charging $50 roundtrip for families just to be able to sit together.
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Baggage fees are bad enough, airlines can't treat your child like a piece of baggage.
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Americans are tired of being--
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: --we're tired of being played for suckers.
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: So, pass. Pass the Junk Fee Prevention Act so companies stop ripping us off.
For too long, workers have been getting stiffed.
But not anymore.
We're beginning to restore the dignity of work.
For example? I should have known this, but I didn't until two years ago. 30 million workers had to sign non-compete agreements for the jobs they take. 30 million! So a cashier at a burger place can't walk across town, and take the same job at another burger place to make a few bucks more.
It just changed.
(REPUBLICAN MEMBERS DISAGREE)
BIDEN: But they just changed it, because we exposed it.
That was part of the deal, guys. Look it up!
But not anymore.
We're banning those agreements, so companies have to compete for workers, and pay them what they're worth.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: And I must tell you.
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: This is bound to get a response, from my friends, on my left, with the right.
I'm so sick and tired of companies breaking the law by preventing workers from organizing.
Pass the PRO Act!
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Because business have a right - workers have a right to form a union.
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: And let's guarantee all workers have a living wage.
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Let's make sure working parents can afford to raise a family with sick days, paid family, medical leave.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Affordable child care.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
[21:50:00]
BIDEN: That's going to enable millions of more people to go and stay at work.
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: And let's restore the full Child Tax Credit.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Which, gave tens of millions, of parents, some breathing room, and cut child poverty in half, to the lowest level in history.
And, by the way, when we do all of these things, we increase productivity. We increase economic growth.
So, let's also finish the job, and get more families access to affordable, quality housing.
Let's get seniors, who want to stay in their homes, the care they need to do so.
Let's give more breathing room to millions of family caregivers looking after their loved ones.
Pass my plan, so we get seniors and people with disabilities the home care services, they need.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: And support the workers who are doing God's work.
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: These plans are fully paid for and we can afford to do them.
Restoring the dignity of work means making education an affordable ticket to the middle-class.
When we made public education, 12 years of it, universal, in the last century, we made the best-educated, best-paid - we became the best- educated, best-paid nation in the world.
But the rest of world has caught up. It's caught up.
Jill, my wife, who teaches full-time, has an expression.
I hope I get it right, kid!
"Any nation that out-educates us is going to out-compete us." Any nation that out-educates us is going to out-compete us.
Folks, we all know 12 years of education is not enough to win the economic competition of the 21st Century.
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: We want to have the best-educated workforce, let's finish the job--
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: --by providing access to pre-school for 3- and 4-year-olds.
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Studies show that children who go to pre-school are nearly 50 percent more likely to finish high school and go on to earn a two- or four-year degree, no matter their background they came from.
Let's give public school teachers a raise.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: We're making progress by reducing student debt, increasing Pell Grants for working- and middle-class families. Let's finish the job, and connect students to career opportunities, starting in high school, provide access to two years of community college, the best career training in America, in addition to being a pathway to a four-year degree.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Let's offer every American a path to a good career whether they go to college or not.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: And folks?
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Folks, in the midst of the COVID crisis, when schools were closed, and we were shutting down everything, let's also recognize how far we came, in the fight against the pandemic itself.
While the virus is not gone, thanks to the resilience of the American people, and the ingenuity of medicine, we have broken the COVID grip on us.
COVID deaths are down by 90 percent. We've saved millions of lives and opened up our country - we opened our country back up. And soon, we'll end the public health emergency.
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: But?
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: That's called a public health emergency.
But we will remember the toll and pain that's never going to go away. More than 1 million Americans lost their lives to COVID. A million. Families grieving. Children orphaned. Empty chairs at the dining room table, constantly reminding you that she used to sit there. Remembering them, we remain vigilant.
We still need to monitor dozens of variants and support new vaccines and treatments.
So Congress needs to fund these efforts and keep America safe.
And as we emerge from this crisis, stronger, we're also got to double down on prosecuting criminals, who stole relief money, meant to keep workers and small businesses afloat.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Before I came to office, you remember, during that campaign, the big issue was about inspector generals, who would protect taxpayers' dollars, that were sidelined. They were fired. Many people said "We don't need them." And fraud became rampant.
Last year, I told you the watchdogs are back. Since then, since then, we've recovered billions of taxpayers' dollars.
[21:55:00]
Now, let's triple the anti-fraud strike forces going after these criminals, double the statute of limitations on these crimes, and crack down on identity fraud by criminal syndicates stealing billions of dollars--
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: --billions of dollars, from the American people.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: And the data shows, that for every dollar we put into fighting fraud, the taxpayers get back at least 10 times as much. It matters. It matters.
Look, COVID left scars, like the spike in violent crime in 2020, the first year of the pandemic.
We have an obligation to make sure all people are safe.
Public safety depends on public trust, as all of us know.
But too often that trust is violated.
Joining us tonight are the parents of Tyre Nichols.
Welcome!
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Who had to bury Tyre, last week.
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: As many of you personally know, there's no words to describe the heartache, of grief of losing a child.
But imagine, imagine if you lost that child at the hands of the law. Imagine having to worry whether your son or daughter came home from walking down the street, playing in the park, or just driving a car.
Most of us in here have never had to have "The talk," the talk that Brown and Black parents have had to have with their children.
Beau, Hunter, Ashley, my children, I never had to have the talk with them. I never had to tell them, "If a police officer pulls you over, turn your interior lights on right away. Don't reach for your license. Keep your hands on the steering wheel."
Imagine having to worry like that every single time, your kid got in a car.
Here's what Tyre's mother shared with me, when I spoke to her. When I asked her how she finds the courage to carry on and speak out. With the faith in God, she said her son was, quote, "A beautiful soul and something good will come from this."
Imagine how much courage and character that takes.
It's up to us, to all of us.
We all want the same thing.
Neighborhoods free of violence.
Law enforcement who earn the community's trust.
Just as every cop, when they pin on that badge, in the morning, has a right to be able to go home at night? So does everybody else out there.
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Our children have a right to come home safely.
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Equal protection under the law is a covenant we have with each other in America.
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: We know police officers put their lives on the line every single night and day. And we know we ask them, in many cases, to do too much, to be counselors, social workers, psychologists; responding to drug overdoses, mental health crises, and so much more. In one sense, we ask too much of them.
I know most cops, and their families, are good, decent honorable people, the vast majority.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: But they risk--
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: And they risk their lives, every time they put that shield on.
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: But what happened to Tyre in Memphis happens too often.
We have to do better.
Give law enforcement the real training they need, hold them to higher standards, help them succeed in keeping us safe. We also need more first responders and professionals to address growing mental health, substance abuse challenges.
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: More resources to reduce violent crime and gun crime.
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: More community intervention programs.
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: More investments in housing, education, and job training.
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: All this can help prevent violence in the first place.
And when police officers or police departments violate the public trust, they must be held accountable.
(CHEERS & APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: With the support--
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: --with the support of the families of victims, civil rights groups, and law enforcement, I signed an executive order, for all federal officers, banning chokeholds, restricting no-knock warrants, and other key elements of the George Floyd Act.
Let's commit ourselves to make the words of Tyre's mom true: Something good must come from this.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Yes!
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: Something good.
(APPLAUSE)
BIDEN: And all of us--
(APPLAUSE)
