Pennsylvania. He discusses the economy, unions, health care, and the federal governments response to the coronavirus pandemic. [applause] please welcome a local soybean farmer, rick telez. [applause] rick good afternoon. My name is rick, and i am a thirdgeneration farmer right here in western pennsylvania. Back in 2016, i voted for donald trump. On the campaign trail for years ago, he madeyears tons of promises, the working man to the middle class. As he traveled around the country, he promised to bring back jobs and promote the economy. Promote the use of ethanol for farmers. It did not take long for me to realize that President Trump is nothing more than a con man. He sold me and others on the idea that he would change things in washington. You heard it, drain the swamp. Make America Great for the working man. People like myself, who felt ignored and underappreciated by our national leaders. One of the first things that he did that had an impact on thousands of farmers like myself, was the start of the trade war with china. It was a double whammy. The added cost of the inputs due to the tariffs compounded with the effects of what china put on. Ommodity prices soybeans was the most talked about in the press. This added up to a 40 effect on the economy on my farm. Trump referred to farmers being true patriots. He bought us off with huge subsidies, but his policies have caused tremendous harm to farming communities and farms across america. I am a patriot that im loudly speaking out against trump and his administration. When people ask me why i no longer support him, i tell them that the list is too long. The unnecessary trade issues were just the start and just the tip of the iceberg. The trade war affected every person in america, whether they knew it or not. His threats to the Affordable Care act will impact millions. His push to eliminate payroll taxes, that is funding for Social Security. People need that safety net the most. Dont even get me started on his total disregard for the constitution, the values that have held this country together for centuries. Some of you may have seen an ad in which i held President Trump federally accountable and negligent to how he misinformed the people about the pandemic. That ad was made three weeks prior to being aired. When it was aired, it was aired on the same day as paul woodruffs book was released. In the voice recordings of trump saying he knew how serious the virus was in february and choosing not to tell the american people. I felt so vindicated by making that ad when i heard that recording. This guy claims to be prolife. But his negligence has helped to lead more than 210,000 people to an early death due to the coronavirus. He has put hundreds of thousands of lives at risk for nothing more than the pure profit of wall street. Donald trump is not prolife, he is proprofit. Our lives and wellness have been nothing more than a game to him. We deserve so much more out of a commanderinchief. Why am i supporting and speaking out in favor of Vice President joe biden . It is pretty simple. When i listen to joe, i think of my kids and grandkids. I think of the future that i want for them. The america that i want them to inherit. I know that when joe biden becomes president , he will work hard to build a country that works for everybody. He will make sure that communities have an opportunity to succeed and set the next generation up with the tools and resources that they need to thrive. He will be a leader that we can trust and believe. One who will fight for our children as if they were his own. That is why i am honored and proud to introduce the next president of the United States, joe biden. [applause] [no audio] [applause] mr. Biden hello, hello, hello. Thank you, thank you, thank you. It is good to back here in erie. I would to say hello to all of erie. But mainly to mr. Mayor, city elected leaders who are joining us here. And to your next senator, we need to turn on and support democrats down the line. We need to win back the Pennsylvania State senate. Folks, look. I want to thank you for coming out. You have been a good friend a long time. For everyone at the ua for hosting this incredible training facility. I am so grateful to have earned uas endorsement. Have vowed plumbers and proud plumbers and pipefitters, more behind me than i could possibly be thankful for. I want to thank rick for sharing his story and being a part of a conversation this year, as he shared his story with america. Rick, delaware is thought of as being a great corporate entity and chemical facilities and all of those things. But we have a 4 billion Agricultural Industry there. It is a big deal and a lot of farmers are being hurt really badly. Really badly. Farmers all across the country have been gutted by the president s promises. Our farmers and Union Members and anyone who does an honest days work sees him and his promises for what they are. Rick, i think you put it best in the oped you wrote last year. A bunch of hot air and cold wind. Folks, this is it. The election is here. The choice could not be more stark, and the stakes could not be higher. So many pennsylvanians are facing hard times right now. After my debate in cleveland last week, i took a train. I have ridden it a lot. An amtrak train from northeastern ohio into pittsburgh and greensburg,. Atrobe, johnstown i hear the same story everywhere around the country. You are trying your best, but it never feels like enough. You are not looking for a handout, you are just looking for a fair shot. That is how my dad felt when we had to leave scranton. Coal died. He was in sales, he was not in the coal mines. They tell me that my great grandfather was the first Irish Catholic state senator elected in pennsylvania and was a mining engineer. I remember him saying that he made that walk that a lot of you know here in erie. I call it the longest walk every parent any parent has to make, to tell his kids that we cannot play in that Little League ball game anymore. We have to leave, dad does not have a job. I remember him taking us home, my mom and the three children at the time, home to my grand pops. How much pride it must have cost him to ask my grandfather, will you take care of them and i will be back . He started commuting every weekend, 157 miles down in delaware, where he had grown up. We ended up in a steel town delaware, and, went to wilmington where my dad got a sales job. It took about four years to build a decent middleclass life to be able to build a home. It was not easy for him. He had an expression. He said, joey, i do not expect the government to solve my problems, but i expect them to at least understand my problems. America deserves a president who understands what people are going through. You are facing real challenges right now and the last thing you is a president that exacerbates them. More than 210,000 are dead. We lose anywhere from 700 to 1000 people a day. The president was told a little while ago, that 100,000 People Per Day were dying, he said it is what it is. It is what it is because he is who he is. 7. 5 million americans have been cases right,000 here pennsylvania. My heart goes out to all of the like many of us, has lost a child, you look at the empty chair at the dining room table at night. My heart goes out to everyone struggling in this economic crisis. Simple neglect on the part at this administration. 11 million jobs lost is the beginning of the crisis still have not come back. Temporary layoffs have turned into permanent layoffs. Down 674,000 manufacturing jobs nationwide since the crisis started. More than 40,000 manufacturing jobs here in pennsylvania. The Trump Presidency will be the first presidency since hoover that is going to end up leaving office with fewer jobs than when he came into office. Since hoover. President trump talks about a vshaped recovery. This is called a kshaped recovery. The folks at the top of the k are doing very well, everything is going up for them. Everybody in the middle and below, it is going down. Things are getting worse. That means essential workers who have sacrificed to keep us going through this pandemic are being left behind by the most wealthy by the most unequal recovery in american history. This is a fact that is startling to me. The top 100 billionaires in the made 300 the pandemic billion additional dollars. Hear me now . 100 individuals made 300 billion this year. The bottom half got the k, the slide down because the president can only see the world from park avenue. I see it from scranton and claymont for real. ,you know what i am talking about. You all see it from erie. That is why my program to build back Better Program is focused on working people. Think about all of the people you know who got up this morning and had the following conversation. Honey, i know that we need four new tires, but we cannot do it now. Weve got to wait. You know what, i know we just lost our insurance, but we are going to be ok. We are going to hang in there. Or, having to make a choice, literally a choice between getting a prescription or putting food on the table. If i said that 10 years ago, you would look at me like i was writing a fiction story. But that is the truth. Those are the decisions that people are making today and right now. Independent analysis put out by a highly respected wall street firm, of all things, moodys, projects that my build back better plan is going to create 18. 6 million jobs in four years. That is not a liberal think tank, that is moodys. It is going to create 7 million more jobs than the president s economic plan. 1 trillion more in Economic Growth than the president s plan. Here is how it works. I am not going to raise taxes on anybody making less than 400,000. But you will not pay a penny more but those making more than that, i will ask them to finally pay their fair share. I will ask the big corporations and wealthy to begin to pay. 91 of the fortune 500 companies zero tax. Unami . You hear me . How many of you pay zero tax . Billionaires are paying taxfree as investment money, a lower tax rate than if you have a job as a plumber. How can that be . I am going to raise, the money that i am going to raise is going to allow us to invest in working people and grow the middle class back and make sure everyone comes along this time. My plan is about making the kind of investments to stimulate Economic Growth, to get it back to full employment fast and help us build back better than before. We are going to create millions of good paying union jobs. I have the honor of being the guy in charge of the recovery act when the late recherche and late recession occurred. The president turns to me, in a state of union address, and he said that sheriff joe is going to take care of the 800 billion. We got it done, left into tents 2 10 of 1 lost to fraud and we got back to the longest expansion in american history. Manufacturing technology, making sure that we are going to make a future made in america. Infrastructure, air words, schools, Affordable Housing, upgrading the water and pipes, making sure that it is sustainable and resilient. Built and laid down by Union Plumbers and pipefitters here in pennsylvania. Clean energy we are going to upgrade 4 million buildings with weatherization of 2 million homes. It is estimated that will create one million good paying union jobs. By menobs to be filled and women like in this local here. Look folks, we are in a situation where if you take a look at build back better we were talking about it earlier. The president promised an infrastructure plan and he did not do one single bit. He promised to relieve main street slammed by the recession. Guess where that money went that the Congress Passed . It went to the maralago crowd, the wealthy i am not joking. It did not go to small businesses. My plan to revitalize americas manufacturing infrastructure is to buy in america. I am going to invest 2 trillion in infrastructure in clean energy and we are going to raise over 3. 7 trillion by eliminating the tax cut for the super wealthy. And folks, we will fix water pipelines and up rate treatment plants. We are going to construct 1. 5 million new Affordable Housing units. We are going to invest 100 billion for our schools. Retrofit 4 million buildings. Including advanced heating and cooling systems. There will be such a race to job creation for unions, you will not believe it. I really mean this. By the way, when i did the recovery act, 800 billion, we have the largest Infrastructure Project short of eisenhowers interstate highway program. Not one single, solitary dollar went to anything other than a prevailing wage. It had to be prevailing wage. [applause] look, i am also going to make sure that Corporate America being so kind, wanting to take over resident apprenticeships. You know what that is about. You spent a quarter billion dollars of your making sure you have the best trained people in the world. Pro also going to pass the act. They are trying to prevent you from being organized around the country. That is a promise. And also strengthen labor standards, especially osha rules. There is a lot that we can do, but it is not enough to praise workers. We have to make sure that they get the benefit. My dad had another expression. After he lost his job and we moved to delaware, he would set he would say, joey, a job is about a lot more than a paycheck. It is about dignity, respect, and your place in the community. It is about being able to look your kid in the eye and say, honey, it is going to be ok. The fact is that every time the word Climate Change comes up donald trump says hoax. ,every time it comes up, i think jobs. No matter how many lies he tells, im not banning fracking. Period. [applause] we will also increase income. We will see the burden and the make sure i also said inside, there is only one way to deal with the abuse of power, and that is with power. The only power that we have is union power. You are the guys they keep the barbarians on the other side of the gate from taking everything. That is a fact. [applause] look, i am trying to move along quickly the fact is that we want to ease the burden on the major costs in your life. What is the average middleclass person fearing the most . That they are trying to tear down the Affordable Care act. We are going to build on it. Adding a new Health Insurance often option notforprofit , a public insurance option. We will increase subsidies so premiums will be lower. We will be able to afford and lands with lower deductibles and lower outofpockect cost expenses. We will be able to do that with the money that we take back from the super wealthy. We will take on the pharmaceutical companies, with a plan that slashes the cost of prescription drugs by 50 . We will work with states to ensure that every 3, 4 and fiveyearold has access to free, high quality preschool. Not daycare, but preschool. You send them to preschool, 58 , no matter their background or where they come from, if you start them at age three, they have a 50 better chance of graduating through high school and beyond. Were going to make sure low and middle income families will never have to spend more than 7 of their income caring for their young. Talk to the women around here. I was a single dad for five years. I could not afford help. Thank god i had my mom and sister and brother to help with my kids, when my wife and daughter were killed. We are going to make fouryear Public College and universities tuition free for families making less than 102 5,000 a year. 125,000 a year. [applause] when erie gets its First Community college opened, we are going to make sure that it is free for anyone who qualifies to get in. That is a fact. [applause] that costs 6 billion a year. That is about as much as we give a Tax Deduction for racehorses. Weve got to have priorities. If you are buying your first home what that all of the people who have gotten out of school since the 9 11 generation. They got out of high school or college, no graduations. They thought they had jobs waiting for them but they all got shut down in the Great Recession and now. What are they doing . They are unable to make that first home down payment. They are out there busting their neck and a lot of them are college graduates, some of them graduate disease graduate degrees, and there are no jobs, no access. I have to make sure that you will get a tax credit for your firsttime home buying, providing a down payment. We will protect Social Security and increase benefits for millions of seniors, so you can retire with dignity and respect. Folks, look if we are going to get anything done, we have to come together. We will have to vote like we have never voted before. Early voting is open here in pennsylvania. Go vote if you can. Go to iwillvote. Com pa to find out when and where you can vote early. If you requested a mailin ballot, return it as soon as possible. Make sure you seal it in the secrecy envelope and sign the declaration on the outside of the envelope before you return it. As i said earlier this week, on the sacred grounds of the gettysburg atul field, battlefield, i am running as a proud democrat, but i am going to govern as an american president. Im going to work as hard for those who do not support me as those who do. I am so proud in this campaign to earn the support of so many proud, patriotic republicans, including pennsylvanias former governor secretary of homeland security, tom ridge. I want to thank him publicly for his endorsement. We may not agree on everything but we agree on this. This is a moment for country above party. After all that this country has been through, and after all that america has accomplished, after all of the years we stood as a beacon for the rest of the world, it cannot be that here, in the year 2020, that we will allow the government of the people, by the people, and for the people, to parish on this earth, as lincoln said. We can do better than what we have seen. We can be what we are at our best, the United States of america. All of this division being pushed by this president. All of this stuff about encouraging did you hear in the debate we had, i asked him to condemn the proud boys . He said to stand down and stand ready. This is not who we are. This is not who we are as a country, for real. We can argue like hell, but at the end of the day, we come together. I am more optimistic today about americas chances than ive ever been. Why . The blinders have been taken off. People are realizing what is truly at stake. I think that we can pull this together. I am optimistic. I genuinely am. Here is the deal, you have to make sure that you go out and vote. The only way that we lose this is by the chicanery going on relative to the polling places. This whole idea not a single, solitary reasonable person said that mailin ballots are corrupt. No evidence but he is trying to make it sound like that. Trying to put people in polling places, the same guys that you saw blocking peoples way in virginia with banners and racial slurs across their shoulders. That is not who we are. We are so much better than this. So i say to you all, god bless you all. Lets go out and vote, and may god protect our troops. Thank you, thank you, thank you. [applause] where am i going . Am i going this way . Thanks everybody. See you, pal. Thanks a million. Thank you [applause] u. S. Army. The competition is on. Be a part of this years competition. Deo be the start of a National Conversation by making a 56 minute documentary exploring the issues you want the president and congress to address. Be bold with your documentary. Show supporting and opposing points of view and include cspan video. To be a winner. There is 500,000 in total cash prizes, including a grand prize of 5,000. The deadline to submit videos is january 20, 2021. For more information on how to get started, on our website at studentcam. Org. Cspans washington journal. Everyday we are taking your calls on the news of the day and discussing policy issues that impact you. Morning, ahis preview of the Supreme Court confirmation hearings for judge Amy Coney Barrett with a wall street journal congressional reporter. And we look at the history of the president ial Campaign Commercials with Louisiana State of University School of Communications Professor robert mann. Watch live at 7 00 eastern this morning. 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