Joe Biden on Monday appeared to copy former President Trump’s “America First” agenda during a news conference, standing in front of a sign which read “Made in America”. He also signed an executive order intended to strengthen and arrange existing “Buy American” requirements in the federal procurement process.
President Trump had issued an Executive Order in 2017, entitled “Buy American and Hire American“, and established “the policy of the executive branch to maximize, consistent with the law . . . the use of goods, products and materials produced in the United States.”
On Monday, Biden said, “Today, we’re getting to work rebuilding the backbone of America: manufacturing, unions, and the middle class. … And the key plank of ensuring this country will be made in America”.
“Today, we’re getting to work rebuilding the backbone of America: manufacturing, unions, and the middle class,” Pres. Biden says.
"It's based on a simple premise: that we'll reward work, not wealth, in this country."https://t.co/2KuRkqvMEN pic.twitter.com/DbgSSA68Up
— ABC News (@ABC) January 25, 2021
Biden, however, said that he plans to use “taxpayers” money to rebuild America, saying, “I don’t buy for one second that the vitality of American manufacturing is a thing of the past”, though he did not mention the thousands of jobs lost after his executive order to halt construction of the Keystone Pipeline.
His comments contradict his former colleague, Barack Hussein Obama, who had claimed in 2016 that you would need a “magic wand” to bring back jobs to the United States– when talking about manufacturing. Continued Below
Pres. Biden says he plans to use "taxpayers' money to rebuild America," specifying "we'll buy American products and support American jobs, union jobs."
"I don't buy for one second that the vitality of American manufacturing is a thing of the past."https://t.co/2KuRkqvMEN pic.twitter.com/3hiTPZbpJ6
— ABC News (@ABC) January 25, 2021
Biden also claimed that he is “creating a director of ‘Made in America'” at the Office of Management and Budget.
“If an agency wants to issue a waiver to say we’re not going to buy an American product as part of this project… they have to come to the White House and explain it,” he asserted.
NEW: Pres. Biden days he's "creating a director of 'Made in America'" at the OMB.
"If an agency wants to issue a waiver to say we're not going to buy an American product as part of this project…they have to come to the White House and explain it." https://t.co/fHANfExRmL pic.twitter.com/2OvzlnWzNY
— ABC News (@ABC) January 25, 2021
(Related: Joe Biden Campaigns On The ‘Buy American’ Slogan, Instantly Gets Roasted)
