Administration of Joseph R. Biden, Jr., 2022

September 6, 2022

The President. Everybody in?

White House aide. Yes, sir.

The President. Okay, well, it's good for all of us to be together. We're meeting today at an incredibly important time in the country, to state the obvious. And, over the past 10 months, we've won passage of some, I think, extraordinary parts of our economic agenda: the bipartisan infrastructure law, the biggest infrastructure package since the Eisenhower administration, with the help of some of our friends on the other side of the aisle.

The CHIPS Act, a law that will spur investments and microchipsâwhich I might point out were invented here in the United States of America and refined. But the CHIPS Act is a gigantic investment, and it's going to create a number of jobs and technologies for the future.

The Inflation Reduction Act. The law brings down the cost of prescription drugs, health premiumsâhealth care premiums, and invests in a "Made in America" and a clean energy future.

And the three things, along with other steps we've taken like the American Rescue Plan, student debt relief, andâis proof that democracy can deliver for the people.

And there's a foundation of the kind of strong, forward-looking economy that we want to continue to build: the economy with lower prices, more breathing room for middle class families; an economy with good-paying jobs you can raise a family on and just have, as I said, just a little bit of breathing room, whether you went to college or not; an economy that leads the world in technology and clean energy; and an economy that ends our dependence on foreign sources across the entire supply chain.

And so this economy that works for the country from the bottom up and the middle outâas I said from the beginning, I'm not a big fan of trickle-down economics; I find it'sâthe trickle stops fairly quickly coming down. [*Laughter*] But when theâwhen working folks are doing well and the middle class is doing well, the wealthy do very well. Everybody does well.

And so today I've assembled the Cabinet to lay out in detail how we're going to implement each of these laws that you worked so hard to get passed and we've gotten passed, and because passing these historic bills is only the first step in delivering for the American people. But it's just thatâit's a first step.

And I've asked each relevant Cabinet agency to come forward today with a plan to help get the American people and our economy on the right side as fast as possible and to spend taxpayers' money wisely.

I might add, with all these legislations we've passed, Madam Vice President, that we've still reduced the deficit substantially in our first year, over $300 billion. And this year, it's estimated to be somewhere in excess of a trillion five hundred billion and maybe as much as a trillion seven hundred billion.

Soâand you know, we're going to spend the money wisely to buy American.

For example, we're going to lower the cost of prescription drugs by letting Medicare negotiate prices with the drug companies. I've beenâwe've been proposing that for a long time. Andâbut Pharma is a tough opponent on these issues, and we finally got that legislation through.

We're going to reduce the cost of health insurance under the Affordable Care Act because of actions we've taken in the pastâabout $800 a premium this yearâa person this year. And we're going to hire more teachers.

We're going to create millions of good-paying jobs, union jobs in manufacturing. I know it's not always the caseânot everyone, even my own team, necessarily agrees with meâbut I don't know where it's written that we can't be a manufacturing center for the world. We've created over 600,000 manufacturing jobs, and I think we're going to continue.

Just last week, major companies announced billions in new investments to make new solar panels here in the United States; fiber optic cables in the United States; electric cars, computer chips here in the United States. And we're going to be employing American workers and using American products.

On Friday, I'm going to be going to the groundbreaking of a new state-of-the-art semiconductor facility in Ohioâthe biggest investment of its kind ever in our Nation. And we're finally bringing home jobs that have been overseas for a while. I notice some of the Cabinet members are smiling, but we're doing it, right? [*Laughter*] And we're making things here in America. We're making our supply chains more secure. And I believe we're winning the race to the future.

Details matter though. Execution matters. And I look forward to everyone here today giving me an update on your departments. And I'm incredibly optimistic about the future that we're building here in this country, but it requires solid work making these laws work. The devil is in the details.

Mitch Landrieu, who can't be here today because his dad, who I knew well, passed away. His dad was a hell of a guy. His dad, way back early in the sixties, took aâwas way ahead of everyone in terms of dealing with racial equity in the South, particularly in Louisiana and New Orleans. Andâbut anyway, he passed away yesterday.

Mitch is doing a great job leading our team in implementing the infrastructure law. And earlier today Secretary Raimondo announced the plan we're putting in place to get the CHIPS Act off the ground, and that's just the beginning.

And separately, we're also hearingâwe'll be hearing the latest from the Vice President and the Attorney General on everything our administration is doing to protect women and the right to choose in the wake of the *Dobbs *decision.

And finally, I want to welcome John Podesta. Where's John sitting?

Senior Adviser for Clean Energy Innovation and Implementation John D. Podesta. In the back. [Laughter]

The President. There you go, John. [Laughter] You're directly under Roosevelt's portrait, so you're okay. John is a good friend. He's on hisâthis is his first day on his new job. John, thanks for agreeing to come aboard. John has graciously accepted the task of helping to implement the historic clean energy investments in the Inflation Reduction Act.

And his experience in the highest levels of Government and the work being done by Gina McCarthy and Ali Zaidi are getting us to the point where it means we're going to hit the ground running. And that's the whole point here.

With this Cabinetâexperienced, dedicated, and devoted to working familiesâwe're going to keep building a strong economy and good-paying jobs and products made in America and lead the world in innovation and success.

And I'm going to stop there and thank the press for being here. And be careful leaving.

Q. Mr. President, do you plan to meet Xi at the Gâ20?

Q. Do you have a message for Liz Truss?

Q. What are you going to tell her, Mr. President, about Northern Ireland, sir?

Prime Minister M. Elizabeth Truss of the United Kingdom

Q. Are you going to meet the British Prime Minister?

The President. I'm going to be speaking with the new Prime Minister at 3:30. I'm looking forward to it.

Q. Are you going to be talking about Northern Ireland, sir?

The President. I'm going to talk to her about a lot of things. Thank you. [Several reporters began speaking at once.]

Be careful. Don't get hurt.

President Xi Jinping of China/Group of Twenty (Gâ20) Nations Summit in Bali, Indonesia

Q. Any plans to meet Xi at the Gâ20?

The President. If he's there, I'm sure I'll see him.

NOTE: The President spoke at 1:19 p.m. in the Cabinet Room at the White House. In his remarks, he referred to Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act Coordinator Mitchell J. Landrieu and his late father, former Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Edwin "Moon" Landrieu; and outgoing National Climate Adviser Gina McCarthy and her former Deputy, incoming National Climate Adviser Ali Zaidi. A portion of these remarks could not be verified because the audio was incomplete.

Categories: Addresses and Remarks : Cabinet meeting; Interviews With the News Media : Exchanges with reporters :: White House.

Locations: Washington, DC.

Names: Garland, Merrick B.; Harris, Kamala D.; Landrieu, Mitchell J.; McCarthy, Regina; Podesta, John D.; Raimondo, Gina M.; Truss, M. Elizabeth; Xi Jinping; Zaidi, Ali.

Subjects: Budget, Federal : Deficit and national debt; Business and industry : Domestic investment, promotion efforts; Business and industry : Manufacturing industry :: Advanced manufacturing, promotion efforts; Cabinet, meeting with President; China : President; Commerce, Department of : Secretary ; Commerce, international : Group of Twenty (Gâ20) nations; Congress : Bipartisanship; Economy, national : Household income and wages; Economy, national : Strengthening efforts; Education : Postsecondary education :: Federal student loans, partial forgiveness; Employment and unemployment : Job creation and growth; Energy : Alternative and renewable sources and technologies :: U.S. production; Energy : Electric and hybrid vehicles, promotion efforts; Health and medical care : Abortion; Health and medical care : Cost control reforms; Health and medical care : Medicare and Medicaid; Health and medical care

: Prescription drugs, affordability and costs; Infrastructure, national improvement efforts; Judiciary : Supreme Court :: U.S. Supreme Court opinion overturning 1973 decision in Roe v. Wade; Justice, Department of : Attorney General; United Kingdom : Prime Minister; White House Office : Assistants to the President :: Infrastructure Coordinator; White House Office :

Assistants to the President :: National Climate Adviser; White House Office : Clean Energy Innovation and Implementation, Senior Adviser for; White House Office : Vice President.

DCPD Number: DCPD202200761.