Earlier today President Trump traveled to Dana Incorporated, a manufacturing facility for axel housings and machined products in Warren, Michigan, to celebrate the signing of the USMCA trade agreement with American workers.  [Video and Transcript Below]

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[Transcript] – THE PRESIDENT: Okay, let’s get back to work. Come on. (Applause.) I love that song, but every once in a while, we have to get back to work. (Laughter.)

So I am very honored to be at Dana Incorporated, a tremendous company, a plant in Warren, Michigan. We’re very proud of Michigan. (Applause.) Dana has been around — I also like it because we happened to win here, so I was very happy with that. (Applause.) Very happy with that.

But you’ve been around — 116 years of brilliant American craftsmanship. And that’s what it is. I just took a tour with some of your leadership, some of your great people, some of the workers that do such an incredible job. And it’s unbelievable to see what you do.

I will say that we just ended a nightmare known as NAFTA. (Applause.) They took our — they took our jobs for a long time. They took it for a long time. And we now have a brand-new U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement. It’s a whole different ballgame, and it’s going to be great for this plant. It’s going to be incredible for Michigan and for every place else in our country.

The USMCA is the fairest, most balanced, and beneficial trade agreement we have ever signed into law. It’s the best agreement we’ve ever made, and we have others coming. And, by the way, the China deal, two weeks ago, was just signed. And that’s going to bring $250 billion into our country. (Applause.) One after another.

But we’re bringing your jobs back to America. Jobs are coming back, and they’re coming back fast, and they’re coming right here to Michigan. They are coming rapidly. You see what’s going on. (Applause.)

We’re very grateful to be joined with — some special people came today: Ambassador Robert Lighthizer. Where’s Bob? What a job you’ve done. (Applause.) What a job. He did this deal. He did China. He did Japan. They all worked together. But fantastic job. He worked night and day to complete this outstanding agreement.

And, Bob, I just want to tell you, on behalf of our country, we thank you very much. Thank you very much. (Applause.)

And with us also, we have some of our people that have been just incredible. They’re warriors. I call them warriors. We won 196 to nothing on a little vote a couple of weeks ago. (Applause.) You know, you do all these great deals. Everybody says, “Thank you, sir. This has never happened.” Everybody said, “It’s impossible to do. It’ll never, never take place,” trade deals like this. And then we’ve built our military, we’ve cut taxes. We’ve taken care of regulations, cut more than any other President in the history of our country. And we did that in three years instead of eight years, or in one case, more. (Applause.) And we protect our Second Amendment. We protect our Second Amendment. (Applause.)

So we’ve done all these things. And, remember, the tax cut was the biggest tax cut in the history of our country. And what do they do? They impeach you.

AUDIENCE: Booo —

THE PRESIDENT: Explain. Explain that one.

But we have great Republicans out there, and they don’t like it any better than you do. Very partisan situation. A disgrace. It’s, frankly, a disgrace to our country.

But there has been — no administration has done what we’ve done in the first three years of an administration. No administration. (Applause.) And we’re very proud of it.

But I want to thank Tim Walberg. Where are you guys? Are you all around here someplace? Tim. Fantastic job. Bill Huizenga. John Moolenaar. John Moolenaar. Jack Bergman. Jack. Thank you, Jack. And Paul Mitchell. Thank you very much, Paul. (Applause.) These are your congressmen. They’ve been fantastic. You have a lot of your other leaders here, and leaders in Michigan. These are members of our incredible Representative House.

And I want to say that — you know, I used the term “warrior” — very, very not easily, but they are warriors. We’ve had a lot of warriors, wouldn’t you say? I’d say we had 196 warriors. (Applause.) And we had a zero. So, 196 to nothing. And we actually had three Democrats join them. That was pretty good, wasn’t it? Huh? And one actually left the party and joined the Republican Party. (Applause.) Jeff Van Drew.

But I said to them, “I know you have a wonderful Iraqi Christian community in Michigan.” Do you know about that? Yes? You know about that? I hear they’re wonderful.

And the congressmen were telling me on the plane how rough it’s been for them. It’s been a very tough time for a lot of Christians all over the world. All over the world, it’s been very tough. The Chaldeans — you know the Chaldeans, right? We have some Chaldeans that are working here. (Applause.) And we talked about it long and hard on the flight in, and we’re going to make sure that we do everything we can to keep people who have been good to this country out of harm’s way. And when I get back, we’re going to give those who need it an extension to stay in our country. And so we’re going to be extending them. (Applause.) And lot of people in Michigan have been asking for that. So we’ll work with that when we get back to your great congressmen. Thank you very much, fellas.

Michigan is a steward of one of our nation’s most treasured resources, the incredible Great Lakes. Anybody hear of the Great Lakes? Huh? (Applause.) Think so. And I told the members who are here with me that we are going to work together to protect the Great Lakes from Asian carp — who would have thought that was going to happen? — and other invasive species. And it really is; it’s become a big problem. And we’re working on it very strongly. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers already has a plan, and we are going to get this done and ready to go. It’s going to be very quick. We’re going to do very quick. It’s not easy. But we have all of the top technology, and we’re going to take care of it, just like I made the promise — and that promise where so much has already been done.

I also made a promise to you, not so long ago, right here in Michigan — and it had to with Soo Locks. Soo Locks. (Applause.) So I came here, I heard about the problem. They had been working on the problem since 1980. 1980. Nothing was done. It was getting — it was rotting away. The locks were rotting away. It was all talk and no action. And I was being told, “It’s never going to happen, sir. Too much money. It’s just not going to happen.” And they all said, “Leave it to the next President to do.” But I said, “But I am the next President.” And that’s — (applause). It’s a big deal.

And now, as your congressmen can tell you — and they worked so hard on it — all of the funding has been fully — fully approved. Right? Fully. (Applause.) Done. I signed. You think it’s easy getting $922 million out of Congress? Not easy. (Laughter.) But this had to be done.

You know, we’re talking about 11 million jobs, indirectly, all over. Those locks serve 11 million jobs. Some people think as many as 18 million jobs.

So, Soo Locks, we’re going to be starting that in a matter of a couple of months. And we’re going to have it all set. We got our maximum funding, and we have the maximum design. And it’s going to be good for another hundred years, they say. So we’re going to get it done. Okay? (Applause.)

Also, I know everybody here in Michigan supports our great armed forces as much as any place — Michigan. And that’s why we’re giving strong consideration to deploying some of our mighty F-35s to Selfridge Air National Guard Base. (Applause.) And you know what that means, right? You know what that means. That’s a big deal.

So, Selfridge, you’re going to see a lot of very fast planes. Actually, they’re totally stealth, so maybe you won’t see them come in. (Laughter.) Okay? You won’t see them come in, but they’re coming in.

These members and your congressmen — I mean, your congressmen, as members, have worked so hard for this state. They support all of the great jobs here at Dana. Dana Incorporated employs more than 1,500 people. And it’s having one of the best years they’ve ever had.

And the hardworking men and women right here in Warren make the axles, drive shafts, and assemblies of some of the world’s toughest vehicles. And, proudly, they bear that glorious phrase — and I like that when they put it on. You know, a few years ago, they weren’t using that phrase very much anymore. It’s called: “Made in the USA.” “Made in the USA.” (Applause.)

So to the workers of Dana who helped invent the iconic U.S. Army Jeep — still doing incredibly well; actually having a record year. Jeep is having a record year, and you have so much to do with it. That’s pretty good. You helped invent it. I like that. I hope you’re being properly compensated for that. (Laughter.) Because that sucker is doing well. But I just want to congratulate you. 1941, it came about. 1941. That’s something really special.

For many years, Washington betrayed workers like you with trade deals that were rigged to benefit foreign countries and the lobbyists.

Since NAFTA was signed, the United States lost one in four manufacturing jobs. The state of Michigan alone lost nearly 200,000 — think of that — manufacturing jobs and nearly half of its vehicle manufacturing jobs. They left. They went to Mexico, they went to Canada, they went to many other places.

In the last 16 years before my election, 60,000 plants and factories closed throughout the United States. Can you imagine that? Sixty thousand. It’s not even possible. And I know it’s true because all of the fake news back there — see all those cameras? (Laughter.)

AUDIENCE: Booo —

THE PRESIDENT: If I say something that’s even slightly off, it’s a headline.

So I’ve been saying it for two years: Sixty thousand plants and factories closed. NAFTA was the worst trade deal probably ever made by any country. Couldn’t have gotten any worse. You saw it in Michigan as much as any place. You lost your car companies. In fact, I was honored, believe it or not. About 10 years ago, I came to Michigan. I was honored by a wonderful group. I was the “Man of the Year.” And I made a speech and it was a little bit controversial.

And I didn’t know too much about the car industry, but I did know that you were losing all your jobs. They were leaving; they were going to other countries. And I said, “How the hell do you let that happen?” But we stopped it. And this deal really stops it. And now they’re all coming back because they want to be where the action is. And the action is in our country and in this state. (Applause.)

So, for decades, politicians campaigned across Michigan, promising to do something about NAFTA. You heard it. You folks heard it all the time, right? “Well, we’re going to do something about it.” They never did anything about it. I did. Probably the biggest reason that I ran for office. How did I do, by the way? Okay? Because I never did it before. (Applause.) I never did it before. But I do as well as you do. Look, I’m your spokesman, I’m your — I’m somebody that represents you.

And we had a turnout in 2016, the likes of which nobody has ever seen before. This has never happened. You know, some politicians became really famous because they came in first or second or third in one state. Like, they did well in New Hampshire, or they did well in Iowa, or they did well here. But we did well in 32 states. We did actually well in almost all of the states.

But we had a tremendous landslide, Electoral College victory, like people haven’t seen in a long time. And it’s a great honor. And when this state came out and — you know, they said, “Don’t bother with Michigan. You’re never going to win. As a Republican, you’re not going to win.” I said, “Why wouldn’t I win when they’re losing all their jobs, when all their companies are moving out? Why wouldn’t I win?”

And then I came — my last speech was in Grand Rapids. And I made — anybody there? (Applause.) Yeah? Right? Remember that? And the reason — it wasn’t scheduled, remember? It wasn’t scheduled. And they say, “Sir, I came from New Hampshire…” And I thought I was finished. They say, “Sir, your opponent is heading to Michigan.” And that wasn’t scheduled either. But what did that mean to me? That meant that she had problems. And she was heading there with Bill Clinton, with Barack Hussein Obama, and with a couple of other people, all of her staff, and for some reason they were going to Michigan. And I said, “That means they must be in trouble in Michigan.” They said, “Sir, will you go and make one final speech in Grand Rapids?”

And so, on no notice, we had 32,000 people show up. (Applause.) Right? You remember. We had 32,000 people show up and —

AUDIENCE MEMBER: Four more years!

THE PRESIDENT: (Laughs.)

AUDIENCE: Four more years! Four more years! Four more years!

THE PRESIDENT: No, we had — so we gave no notice. And we just showed up with 32,000 people. And Hillary — Crooked Hillary, as I call her — she had a small gathering of about 400 people. (Laughter.) I said, “So…” — in a location that was an easier location. So I said, “Explain to me, why are we going to lose?” And we didn’t. We won. (Applause.)

And we’re going to win it — and this should be better. This time should be easier because we’ve really produced. And I hear we’re doing very well in the polls or whatever. But we should do better because we produced far greater than I said we were going to produce. I mean, you all see the car companies coming in. So it’s been really incredible.

But, for decades, politicians, they campaigned all across Michigan, promising to do something about NAFTA — and I call it the “NAFTA disaster” — only to get elected and do absolutely nothing. They’d take your vote and then they’d go to Washington. And whether it was two years or four years, they’d go to Washington and they’d look at the beautiful columns, and they’d become intimidated by the marble and the beauty and the power. And they wouldn’t even want to come back. And I came back — because we have a lot to do. We’re going to get a lot more car companies moving in. We have a lot more companies moving in. We’re producing jobs like you have never seen before in this country. We’re producing jobs like you have never seen before.

So I just want to say that I’ve kept my promise — and not only my promise in loving the people of Michigan and all over the country, but my promise of taking care of it so that other countries aren’t ripping us off. They were ripping us off. You wouldn’t believe what was happening. (Applause.) I guess you would.

And I think that a lot of our leaders and our politicians from past should be ashamed of themselves for what they allowed to happen. If you look, Mexico took 32 percent of our car business — think of it — in a fairly short period of time. Thirty-two percent of our car business. But now we have a deal with Mexico, we have a deal with Canada. That’s a whole different ballgame. So it’s good. (Applause.)

The USMCA will substantially boost exports for American dairy farmers — also very, very big. (Applause.)

AUDIENCE MEMBER: Hey, hey!

THE PRESIDENT: (Laughs.) You’ve got a dairy farmer in this plant. (Laughter.)

All of the ranchers, the manufacturers, textile makers, energy workers. For those in small business or with farms, small farms, no estate tax. So now you can leave your business, your farms; you can leave them to your heirs, if you like them. If you don’t like them, you don’t have to bother. Then there’s not a big saving. (Laughter.) But they won’t have to go and mortgage it to the hilt so they can pay the taxes because mom and dad loved me. “Mom and dad left me that farm” or “Mom and dad left me that small business,” right? (Applause.)

So if you love your children, it’s great. If you don’t love your children, eh, we did a lot of other things for you too, right? (Laughter.) Right, Matt?

The USMCA is an especially big win for American auto workers. And we will create up to 80,000 — minimum — 80,000 — probably about 120,000 — new jobs. And that’s something that you haven’t seen. But over the last couple of years, you’ve been seeing what’s happening. It’s coming back. It’s all coming back.

Under NAFTA, foreign companies manufactured many parts overseas, sent them to Mexico and Canada for assembly, and then shipped them. And, you know, they were foreign-made cars. And all across our borders, they were tax-free. So they’d make the part and they’d send them across our borders tax-free. And they’d make them with their labor, not your labor. I want them made with your labor. And that’s been the biggest part of our agreement. (Applause.)

So not anymore. And that’s not happening anymore.

The USMCA closes these terrible, unfair loopholes by requiring at least 75 percent of every car under the deal — which is all — to be made in North America. It has to be made in North America. And most importantly, we have strong new provisions to ensure American workers are being hired to do the job. We want to hire American workers to do the job. (Applause.)

Over the next five years, the USMCA is projected to increase purchases of American auto parts by $23 billion a year, and automotive investment by at least $34 billion. And it’s the very first trade agreement in decades endorsed by American labor. We even had — the unions endorsed this, the labor endorsed it. We had tremendous support all down the line: farmers, manufacturers, labor unions. This is a great deal and a brilliantly drawn-out deal.

And, Jared, thank you very much. And, Peter Navarro, thank you. (Applause.) And, Joe and everybody, thank you all. Thank you all. Thank you. (Applause.) What a group of people we had.

Fiat Chrysler is already investing $4.5 billion. Anybody here with Fiat Chrysler? Thank them very much. $4.5 billion. (Applause.) It’s peanuts. It’s peanuts. And creating 6,500 new jobs in Michigan, very quickly, and opening up the first new Detroit plant in over 30 years. That’s a big difference. (Applause.)

And Ford is putting up $1.5 billion and creating 3,000 new jobs. So that’s Ford. Thank you, Ford. Anybody from Ford here? (Applause.) Good. Three thousand new jobs. While General Motors is investing $2.2 billion and creating 2,200 new jobs in Michigan. Two thousand two-hundred. Anybody from General Motors? (Applause.) Okay? Thank you. We’re going to get that up. (Applause.) That’s good. Thank you very much.

General Motors — 2,200. So, you’re talking about 6,500, 3,000, 2,200 — and that’s just what they’re doing right now. They’re going to be doing a lot more. In addition to that, we have many foreign companies coming in because we’re insisting that they build their cars in the United States, not in some faraway land. (Applause.)

Dana Incorporated is the perfect place to honor the immortal legacy of the American worker. And that’s what it is — it’s an incredible legacy.

When the United States battled the forces of tyranny in the Second World War, the assembly line here was round-the-clock production, building more than one-quarter of all tanks made in America. And now we have a very special place that builds tanks. You know about that, right? Does anybody know where I’m talking about?

AUDIENCE MEMBER: Ohio!

THE PRESIDENT: It’s called “Lima.” Do you know one of the first things I did? I was President-elect, and they told me they were closing a plant in Lima, Ohio. I said, “What’s the plant?” “It makes tanks.” I said, “Really? Where else do we make them?” “That’s it.” I said, “So if I want to build our military and we want tanks, what are we going to do? Send over to China for them or something?” (Laughter.) They said no.

And I went to Lima, Ohio. I went there. And I looked at this incredible plant and the incredible workers and the detail. I mean, these plants are — these tanks are really complex machines now. I mean, they were more complicated than any dashboard of any plane you’ve ever seen. I couldn’t believe it. And the precision of the mechanics and the turrets and the — they’re perfect; they have to get it within one one-hundredth of an inch. Everything has to be perfect.

I said, “You’ll never be able to restart something like this.” So I turned down the closing of that plant, just by instinct. And now we’re making hundreds of tanks there a year. We were making none. We’re making hundreds of tanks a year. (Applause.) And I don’t think they ever could have started it up like here. You can’t start these places very easily.

But we produced a new fearsome and famous weapon, the mighty M-4 Sherman tank. You know that. Right here, we produced. Right here, we produced that. (Applause.) For some reason, we don’t make the tanks here anymore. We’re going to have to speak to Dana. How about a little competition for Lima? (Laughter.)

I better not say that. Lima is going to get angry at me if I say that.

PARTICIPANT: We have a plant in Lima.

THE PRESIDENT: You have a plant in Lima? Oh, you have it covered all the way. (Laughter.) They’ve got a Dana plant in Lima.

But Dana employs some amazing veterans, including production supervisor Devin Mallory. Where’s Devin? Where’s Devin? (Applause.) Get up here, Devin. Come on. Say a few words. He served the U.S. Army — two tours in Afghanistan.

Devin, come on up here.

MR. MALLORY: Thank you, Mr. President. Good afternoon. My name is Devin Mallory from Owosso, Michigan. (Applause.)

I decided to join the United States Army as an officer in 2010. At that time, it was difficult to find a job in Michigan. After serving two tours in Afghanistan, transitioning to civilian life was my top priority. As our family grew, my wife and I decided we wanted to be closer to family.

I started looking for a job to make the move back to Michigan last year and was quickly able to find a position with Dana as a production supervisor. (Applause.)

My wife and I are proud parents of two beautiful daughters. I actually just returned to work yesterday after spending time with my wife and newborn daughter. (Applause.)

I want to thank you, Mr. President. I am glad that we have a growing economy in Michigan and a job where I can provide for my family. I’m looking forward to the future possibilities with Dana. Thank you. (Applause.)

THE PRESIDENT: Thank you, Devin. Congratulations.

MR. MALLORY: Thank you.

THE PRESIDENT: Thank you, Devin. Thank you, Devin.

AUDIENCE: USA! USA! USA!

THE PRESIDENT: There is — there’s a tremendous pride in our country that I see again. And it was not going in the right direction. I’ve never seen more spirit.

I was in New Jersey the other night to make a speech, and the crowds were records. People — I’ve never seen anything like it. I’m now going to Iowa. It’s all over the news. The crowds are like they’ve never seen before.

So there are things happening. People are proud of our country again, and that’s a great thing. That’s a great thing. (Applause.)

Well, this surge in new investment means new opportunities for everyone. Few people know that better than launch specialist Courtney French. And, Courtney — I’m going to ask her to come up and say a few words. Incredible job. Incredible job.

Thank you. Courtney, come on up, please. (Applause.)

MS. FRENCH: My name is Courtney French, and I was born and raised in St. Clair County. At age 19, I started at Dana as a temporary worker, unknowingly pregnant with my second set of twins.

My husband and I now have eight children. So knowing that we have solid jobs to provide for our kids is really important.

Today, I’m a project launch specialist for Dana’s St. Clair facility. And over the last 15 years, I’ve been fortunate to have access to tuition reimbursement and many opportunities to further my career.

So now, more than ever, I’m excited that the USMCA will help even the playing field for American manufacturing while continuing to grow job opportunities here in Michigan, giving me confidence and steady work for the future.

Thank you. (Applause.)

THE PRESIDENT: Great job. Great. Thank you, Courtney, very much.

My administration is very pro-worker, to put it mildly. Pro-American policies have reduced unemployment to its lowest level in more than 50 years, and we’ve created over 7 million new jobs, including over 100,000 brand-new jobs in Michigan. (Applause.)

African American unemployment, Asian American unemployment, Hispanic American unemployment, is the lowest it’s ever been in the history of our country. (Applause.)

Real median household income is now at the highest level ever recorded. That’s a good one for you. (Applause.)

You know, President Bush, in eight years, it was $450. President Obama, in eight years, it was $975. And President Trump, in less than three years — because when the stats were taken, it was two and a half — and including the tax cuts and regulation cuts, it’s $10,000. Think of that. (Applause.) That’s tough to beat. That’s tough to beat, right?

Earnings for the bottom 10 percent are rising faster than earnings for the top 10 percent. First time. And we’ve lifted 2.5 million Americans out of poverty. More Americans are working than ever before.

In everything we do, we’re restoring Washington’s allegiance to hardworking citizens, the people that I love. I love — I love the worker. I love the worker. Somehow we have this relationship. They talk about it all the time. “Why the hell do they like Trump?” But they like me. What can I tell you?

AUDIENCE MEMBER: We love you! (Laughter.)

THE PRESIDENT: They like me. (Applause.)

I guess some of those stats have something to do with it, right? Because you’ve never seen — but, you know, in the upcoming election, the last time, I talked about what we were going to do, but I didn’t do it. I talked about what we were going to do, but I hadn’t done it because the election.

Then I get elected. And as they will tell you — the fake news; they will tell you — even they will admit I did more than I even said I was going to do, by a lot. So when we go into this next election, we’ve created all of these jobs. All of these companies have come in. We’ve created Space Force for the military. I never said I was going to do Space Force. (Applause.)

And we’re reclaiming a very proud heritage as a manufacturing nation again. Do you remember when the previous administration — the head of the previous administration — I won’t mention names; I’m sure you’ll never guess the name. But said that you’d need a magic wand to create manufacturing jobs. Well, we found the magic wand, because we’re going to be hitting 750,000 manufacturing jobs in the not-too-distant future. (Applause.)

Never made sense to me. When they said, “No increase in manufacturing jobs, no manufacturing jobs. Manufacturing jobs are disappearing” — I used to say those are the best jobs. Those are great people. Those are unbelievably talented people. You’re very talented people. (Applause.) You’re very talented people.

I said, “There’s no way that’s going to happen.” And that’s why all of those companies are coming back. We’re taking them from other countries. We’re doing incredibly well.

We’ve taken in billions and billions of dollars from China. Billions and billions of dollars from China. And then they agreed to sign the agreement. Now we’re working very strongly with China on the coronavirus — that’s a new thing that a lot of people are talking about. Hopefully it won’t be as bad as some people think it could be. But we’re working very closely with them and with a lot of other people and a lot of other countries. And we think we have it very well under control.

We have very little problem in this country at this moment — five. And those people are all recuperating successfully. But we’re working very closely with China and other countries, and we think it’s going to have a very good ending for it. So that I can assure you.

In the meantime, I just want to congratulate all of the people of Dana. You have been just outstanding. I followed your company. As a person in the business world for a long time, I followed Dana and lots of other companies. You’ve really done an outstanding job. And it really is the great people. Right now, the great people that work here — those people that can do such precision brilliant work, you’re the ones that are doing it, and you’re the ones that our country and the people of our country has great respect for.

So I want to thank the state of Michigan. I want to thank our great congressmen. And I want to thank all of the workers and all of those people that are making all of that extra money that I’ve helped you with. Making a hell of a lot of money. If you want, you can give it back to the country or give it back to Dana. (Applause.) But I have a feeling you’ll just keep it. I say: Spend it wisely.

But I want to thank all of you because this has been really a special moment for me. You know, coming back to Michigan after all Michigan has been through, after all that I talked about — I talked about Michigan so much. I talked about it. “How can you let it happen?” as I said. “How can you let it happen?” And we’ve stopped it from happening. They’re all coming back to us. (Applause.)

So, thank you very much. Congratulations, Michigan, and congratulations to Dana. Thank you very much. (Applause.) Thank you all.

Thank you, fellas. Thank you.

END 4:45 P.M. EST

Tonight President Donald Trump is traveling to Des Moines, Iowa, to hold a Keep America Great rally at the The Knapp Center at Drake University.

President Trump is expected to speak at 7:00pm CST / 8:00pm EST

RSBN Livestream Link – Donald J Trump Livestream Link – Alternate Livestream

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In response to potential health risks; and anticipating multiple agency aspects of the U.S. government would need a unified approach; President Trump has assembled a unified task force to coordinate all response efforts across the totality of government.

[White House] – President Donald J. Trump announced the formation of the President’s Coronavirus Task Force. Members of the Task Force have been meeting on a daily basis since Monday. At today’s meeting, which the President chaired, he charged the Task Force with leading the United States Government response to the novel 2019 coronavirus and with keeping him apprised of developments.

The Task Force is led by Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar, and is coordinated through the National Security Council. It is composed of subject matter experts from the White House and several United States Government agencies, and it includes some of the Nation’s foremost experts on infectious diseases.

The Task Force will lead the Administration’s efforts to monitor, contain, and mitigate the spread of the virus, while ensuring that the American people have the most accurate and up-to-date health and travel information.

The President’s top priority is the health and welfare of the American people. That is why, in 2018, President Trump signed the National Biodefense Strategy (https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2018/09/National-Biodefense-Strategy.pdf) , which improves speed of action in situations such as this. The Administration, led by the President’s Task Force, will continue to work to prevent the spread of the new coronavirus.

The risk of infection for Americans remains low, and all agencies are working aggressively to monitor this continuously evolving situation and to keep the public informed. For more information, please visit CDC.gov ( https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/index.html ) .

Members of the President’s Coronavirus Task Force:

• Secretary Alex Azar, Department of Health and Human Services
• Robert O’Brien, Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs
• Dr. Robert Redfield, Director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
• Dr. Anthony Fauci, Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases at the National Institutes of Health
• Deputy Secretary Stephen Biegun, Department of State
• Ken Cuccinelli, Acting Deputy Secretary, Department of Homeland Security
• Joel Szabat, Acting Under Secretary for Policy, Department of Transportation
• Matthew Pottinger, Assistant to the President and Deputy National Security Advisor
• Rob Blair, Assistant to the President and Senior Advisor to the Chief of Staff
• Joseph Grogan, Assistant to the President and Director of the Domestic Policy Council
• Christopher Liddell, Assistant to the President and Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy Coordination
• Derek Kan, Executive Associate Director, Office of Management and Budget

[WH Link]

Earlier today President Trump signed the historic USMCA trade agreement, making good on his 2016 campaign promise to replace the NAFTA trade agreement with a more balanced and reciprocal trade deal for the American people.  USMCA replaces the NAFTA agreement that resulted in the loss of millions of American jobs impacting hundreds of manufacturing communities across our county.

Amid the key changes is a closing of a loophole allowing Mexico and Canada to assemble components imported from Asia. The new agreement bolsters American workers and American manufacturers with content rules requiring origination of material in North America. [Video and Transcript Below]

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[Transcript] – THE PRESIDENT: Well, thank you very much. That’s beautiful music. Such talented musicians, and we appreciate it very much.

We have a tremendous — (applause) — we have a tremendous list of people here today. In fact, so long that if I announced every name, we’d be here for about three hours. (Laughter.) And we have to get back to business. Everybody does.

Please sit down. Please.

But I want to thank everybody for coming — coming to the White House on this very momentous, historic, and joyous occasion. It’s been a long time. Everybody said this was a deal that could not be done. “Too complicated, too big. It couldn’t be done.” We got it done.

And today, we’re finally ending the NAFTA nightmare and signing into law the brand-new U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement. (Applause.) Very special. Very, very special.

The USMCA is the largest, fairest, most balanced, and modern trade agreement ever achieved. There’s never been anything like it. Other countries are now looking at it, but there can’t be a border like that because, believe it or not, that is by far the biggest border anywhere in the world, in terms of economy, in terms of people. There’s nothing even close.

This is a colossal victory for our farmers, ranchers, energy workers, factory workers, and American workers in all 50 states and, you could almost say, beyond — because it’s all beyond. This is all over the world even though it’s at one beautiful border — where, by the way, a very major powerful wall is, right now, being built. (Laughter.) Okay? I don’t know if I should say that at this particular reading. I know last night it got a very big hand. (Laughter.) Today, they’re a little bit like, “Are we supposed to clap now?” (Laughter.)

The USMCA is estimated to add another 1.2 percent to our GDP and create countless new American jobs. It will make our blue-collar boom — which is beyond anybody’s expectation — even bigger, stronger, and more extraordinary, delivering massive gains for the loyal citizens of our nation.

For the first time in American history, we have replaced a disastrous trade deal that rewarded outsourcing with a truly fair and reciprocal trade deal that will keep jobs, wealth, and growth right here in America. (Applause.) And, in a true sense, it’s also a partnership with Mexico and Canada and ourselves against the world. It’s really a trade partnership, if you look at it that way. And it’s a day of great celebration in all three countries.

I want to thank our amazing Vice President, Mike Pence, who helped us so much with the deal. (Applause.)

And our sincerest appreciation to Ambassador Robert Lighthizer and Jared Kushner and Steve Mnuchin — (applause) — and all of these incredible people for the job you’ve done. (Applause.) Like I said, they said it couldn’t be done.

Welcome also to many members of Congress who were key to getting the deal done, including Senator Grassley. Where is Chuck? Where is Chuck? Oh. Oh, he was brutal. (Applause.) He would call me; he would say, “How is it going? How is it going?” And with Chuck, you just don’t mess around. You said, “We’ll get it done. Don’t worry.” Thank you, Senator, very much.

And Pat Roberts, Martha McSally.

And I want to just, if I could, mention — because we do have some incredible people that worked so hard, and — senators. And maybe I’m being just nice to them because I want their vote. Does that make sense? (Laughter.) I don’t want to leave anybody out. Hey, congressmen, I already got your vote — 196 to nothing. The hell with you. (Laughter.) I think I have to mention some senators that are here.

But Marsha Blackburn, who’s been so — where’s Marsha Blackburn? Marsha, great. Marsha Blackburn. (Applause.) Great state of Tennessee.

Roy Blunt. Thank you, Roy. Thank you, Roy.

John Boozman. Thank you, John. Thank you very much. Great job.

Mike Braun. He’s become a big fixture on television and doing a great job.

Shelley Moore Capito. Thank you. West Virginia. (Applause.) Great place.

Senator Bill Cassidy. Senator, thank you very much. (Applause.)

John Cornyn. Thank you, John. (Applause.) Your poll numbers are looking good, John. (Laughter.) Very, very good. You don’t have to worry about Beto either, do you, John? (Laughter.)

A great young gentleman, and he’s been with us right from the beginning: Senator Tom Cotton. Where is Tom? (Applause.) Thank you, Tom. Thank you, Tom.

Kevin Cramer. (Applause.) Thank you, Kevin.

Ted Cruz. Boy, has he been — where is Ted? Boy, oh, boy. (Applause.) And he’s dying to get back there and ask those questions. I know. (Laughter.) He said, “Let me out of here, President. I want to ask those questions.” He’s got some beauties, I’ll bet. Thank you, Ted, for everything. You’ve been incredible.

Steve Daines. My friend from the beginning. Thank you, Steve. (Applause.)

Joni Ernst. Joni Ernst. That was a team — the tag team, with Chuck Grassley and Joni Ernst. It was impossible. I just say, “Just tell them I’m not in, please.” (Laughter.)

Senator Deb Fischer. Terrific person. (Applause.) Terrific person.

Lindsey Graham. Where is Lindsey? He may be having a news conference right now. He’s working on something. He said, “I’m going over to a news conference!” I said, “You know what? I’d rather have you at the news conference. Don’t worry, we’ll take care of it.”

A young, brilliant guy who’s done incredibly well and respected by everybody: Senator Josh Hawley. Josh, tremendous. (Applause.) I think he’s another one. He doesn’t want to come over here right now.

Where’s John Hoeven? John? You have been so great. Thank you, John.
(Applause.) John Hoeven.

Senator James Lankford. (Applause.) He is a terrific person. We’re just together on a very special day. Right, James?

Kelly Loeffler. Kelly? Congratulations, Kelly. (Applause.) Really great. They already like you a lot. That’s what the word is. Thank you, Kelly.

Martha McSally. (Applause.) Good, Martha. Great.

Jerry Moran. Jerry? Thank you, Jerry. (Applause.) Did a great job in a lot of different ways.

And another one is James Risch. James? Fantastic job you do. (Applause.)

And Mike Rounds. Where is Mike? Mike, thank you. (Applause.) He’s always there — Mike. He’s fantastic.

Tim Scott. Mr. Opportunity Zone. And I think he’s over there fighting. He’s saying, “Just read the transcripts.” That’s what he’s saying. He’s great.

Thom Tillis, who’s doing pretty well, is what I’m understanding. Thom Tillis. (Applause.) Where is Thom? Yep.

And Roger Wicker. By the way, is there anybody — thank you, Roger. Roger.

Is there anybody I didn’t introduce? I would like to apologize immediately.

THE VICE PRESIDENT: Rick Scott.

THE PRESIDENT: Where’s Rick? Where’s Rick? He’s been one of the greats. Oh, I figured he was over there. Rick, why are you not over there, Rick? (Laughter.) Rick Scott has been so incredible. Great Governor of Florida. A great, great governor, and now he’s a great senator. (Applause.) Thank you very much.

The rest of you I don’t have to bother with. (Laughter.) I’m sorry. You know the way it works in life, right? Right, Ivanka? That’s the way it works in life. I’m trying to teach here, but she could actually teach me.

Well, I want to really thank all of those people. And also with us is Kevin McCarthy and Kevin Brady and Mike Conaway and Vern Buchanan and Steve Scalise. They’ve been incredible from day one. (Applause.) And, literally, a hundred other wonderful congressmen and women. We appreciate you being here. And, Kevin, congratulations on your big victory yesterday. That was incredible. And he’s also a tremendous fundraiser — not that that matters. We don’t even think about that. But that was a big — a big victory you had yesterday. Thank you very much.

Also here are many of the state and local leaders, including a really good friend of mine, somebody that is going to get that pipeline through and approved and finished: Pete Ricketts of Nebraska. Where is Pete? (Applause.) Pete, thank you very much.

And a special man and a very popular governor and a very capable governor who’s done an incredible job, and he’s been a tremendous supporter of all of us: Greg Abbott of Texas. (Applause.) Thank you, Greg. Great job. Great job you did.

We’re very grateful for the close partnership and cooperation with Prime Minister Trudeau and for our incredible friendship and the relationship that we’ve developed with President López Obrador.

We’re honored to be joined by Acting Ambassador Hillman from Canada, Ambassador Bárcena of Mexico, Mexican Undersecretary Seade, Mexican Minister of Economy Márquez, and Mexican Foreign Minister Ebrard. They were really great people. We got to know them very well. This was a long negotiation, complex. Spent a lot of time with them. Thank you very much for being here. (Applause.)

And I want to say that I have our great Cabinet right up here. But I’m not sure. I don’t know — Ted, should I introduce the Cabinet? You want to get back, right? Let’s forget it. (Laughter.) My Cabinet is great — every one of them. Every one of them, they’re fantastic. (Applause.) They are fantastic and we appreciate it very much. You’ve done a great job. Getting good credits for what you’re doing, and we really appreciate it. Really fantastic.

After NAFTA’s adoption more than 25 years ago, the United States lost nearly one-fourth of all of its manufacturing jobs, including more than one in five vehicle manufacturing jobs. Think of that: one in five jobs lost so needlessly.

Thousands of factories were shuttered, millions of manufacturing jobs were destroyed, and entire communities were devastated, from Ohio to Pennsylvania, Michigan to Maine, and California to North Carolina. Devastated.

Two decades of politicians ran for office vowing to replace the NAFTA — and this was a catastrophe: the NAFTA catastrophe. Yet once elected, they never even tried. They never even gave it a shot. They sold out. But I’m not like those other politicians, I guess, in many ways. I keep my promises, and I’m fighting for the American worker. And we’re all fighting for the American worker. Everybody here is fighting for the American worker.

This agreement is a tremendous breakthrough for American agriculture. Canada will finally provide greater access for American dairy. Canada is opening up. It will grow annual exports to our neighbors by an estimated $315 million. Poultry exports to Canada are expected to rise by at least 50 percent, and egg export could increase by 500 percent. Where is the Canadian folks? Where are they? (Applause.) You guys did a good job on us before this deal, I’ll tell you.
(Laughter.) That’s — Canada was very tough. But they’re good. They’re our friends, so we appreciate it.

Very importantly, Canada will finally give fair treatment to American-grown wheat.

The USMCA is also a massive win for American manufacturers and autoworkers. Under NAFTA, companies were given huge incentives to produce cars in foreign countries and ship them to America tax-free. No tax, no nothing. We lost our jobs, we closed our factories, and other countries built our cars. But we’ve changed that. And we’re now setting records.

The USMCA closes these terrible loopholes and includes strong provisions to ensure that new cars are fashioned by American hands — that’s a fancy word of saying “built” — and manufactured with American labor. We have some of the great labor leaders here, right now. I think James Hoffa. Where is James Hoffa? James? Thank you very much, James. (Applause.) It’s great. Thank you, James, very much. It’s great.

Fiat Chrysler is already investing $4.5 billion and creating 6,500 new jobs in Michigan, and opening up the first new Detroit plant in more than 30 years. (Applause.) And we have a lot of them happening. (Applause.)

Ford is putting in $1.5 billion and creating 3,000 new jobs, while GM is investing $2.2 billion and creating 2,200 new jobs in Michigan to build vehicles of the future. And I believe we have the Chairman and President and the bosses of those two companies. Please, Mary. Where is Mary? Mary Barra, thank you very much. (Applause.)

And, Ford, thank you very much. We appreciate it. What a great job. Please stand. Come on. For that kind of money — anything over $2 billion, you’re allowed to stand. (Laughter.) Anything over $2 billion; otherwise, we don’t have you stand. (Laughter.) Thank you. Thank you both very much.

Steel Dynamics is building a 1.9 billion-dollar flat roll steel mill near Corpus Christi. And international automakers are pouring $25 billion into the United States, creating 50,000 new American jobs at a minimum. They are all investing in a future where we buy, hire, and drive American cars again. I like that. It’s a very important part of the deal. (Applause.)

Mexico and Canada have agreed to new labor protections that my administration negotiated. The USMCA is the first trade deal in nearly two decades, endorsed by the AF of L-CIO. Thank you very much. Great. That was great. Thank you. (Applause.)

The USMCA contains critical protections for intellectual property, including trade secrets, digital services, and financial services. It establishes new standards and safeguards protecting the environment. And currency stability — something that has been on my mind for a lot of years, long before I got here. What they’ve done to us with currency is crazy.

It includes protections for American-made fibers, yarns, and fabrics, boosting the U.S. textile industry by numbers that you won’t even believe. You’ll see them soon.

This is a cutting-edge, state-of-the-art agreement that protects, defends, and serves the great people of our country.

Thanks to our pro-worker, pro-American economic policies, unemployment is at the lowest level in more than 50 years. It’s great. (Applause.)

And we’ve created, in a very short period of time, a number that nobody would’ve believed. If I ever said it during the campaign, they wouldn’t have believed. The estimate was 2 million. The most you could do was 2 million. We’ve created over 7 million new jobs up until this point. (Applause.) Over 7 million new jobs.
Nobody would’ve believed that.

Real median household income is now the highest level ever recorded — history of our country, ever recorded. More Americans are working today than have ever worked in the history of our country. We’re up to almost 160 million people working. We’ve never even come close to a number like that.

We have the hottest economy on Earth. Other countries come to see me in the Oval Office, and the first thing they say is, “What are you doing with your economy?” They try to copy us. Many have copied us, and it hasn’t worked so well for them, to put it mildly. We’re — we are doing better than any country anywhere in the world, and it’s not even close.

Millions of extraordinary men and women strengthen our country every day in factories and warehouses, fields and farms, mills and stockyards, all across this magnificent land. Their work and devotion and drive inspires our people and powers our nation.

Together, we’re building a glorious future that is raised, grown, built, and made right here in the glorious USA.

I would now like to invite Vice President Pence and Ambassador Lighthizer to say a few words. They worked very hard on the agreement.

And I’m just going to finish off saying that this is something we really put our heart into. It’s probably the number-one reason that I decided to lead this crazy life that I’m leading right now, as opposed to that beautiful, simple life of luxury that I led before this happened. (Laughter.)

But I love doing it. And the reason I love doing it is that nobody, in a period of three years, has done so much as all of us have. Nobody. There’s never been an administration that has done what we’ve done in the first three years.
(Applause.) That means we’re doing great things for the people of our country and beyond the people of our country. And it’s a real honor to be involved and to have helped so many people. A real honor.

And it’s an honor to have all of you with us. Thank you very much.

Mike, please say a few words. (Applause.)

THE VICE PRESIDENT: Thank you, Mr. President. (Applause.) Thank you, Mr. President. Mr. President, members of Cabinet, and especially Ambassador Bob Lighthizer, governors, members of the Senate, members of the House of Representatives, leaders from businesses large and small across America, and all the hardworking Americans that are here and are looking on: This is a great day for American workers and American farmers because, Mr. President, thanks to your leadership, NAFTA ends today and a new era of jobs and growth begins under the USMCA. (Applause.)

Mr. President, as a candidate and as our President, you said we could get this economy moving again. And with the support of the members of Congress gathered here, we cut taxes for working families and businesses large and small. We rolled back regulation. You unleashed American energy.

But, Mr. President, you also challenged our party and the American people to think in new ways about international trade. And the American economy is booming. As you just said, more than 7 million jobs created; unemployment at a 50-year low. And I know what means most to you is that wages are rising across the board but they’re rising most rapidly for hardworking, blue-collar Americans. (Applause.)

Mr. President, today you’ll sign the largest trade deal in American history. And today, thanks to your leadership, we’ll leave behind the failed policies of the past and have a new trade deal that will benefit every American.

As a son of the Heartland, let me say: I couldn’t be more grateful for your leadership. I saw firsthand how NAFTA hollowed out communities, caused thousands of factories to close, shuttered businesses in communities across my state and across the Heartland. We saw thousands of jobs go south of the border. Over a million Americans lost their jobs. But thanks to your leadership, Mr. President, those days are over. (Applause.)

Now, there are so many to thank here — members of the House and Senate who stood with us every step of the way that you’ve acknowledged. You’ve done a great service to the American people. Let me also thank the governors here and governors around the country, and mayors around the country, who stood with this President believing that we could do better as well.

And, Mr. President, you directed me to travel across this country over the past year. I’ve traveled to nearly 20 states. I’ve met with farmers, and workers, and owners of businesses large and small. And today, I want to give credit to them as well. To Americans like Jay and Sue Blanchard of Safety Signs in Lakeville, Minnesota; to Don Walker of Magna International in Lancaster, Ohio; and Doug Freitas of Freitas Farms in California: It was Americans like them who let their voice be heard and supported your leadership. And Congress acted to approve the USMCA. (Applause.) This day is theirs as well.

But finally, Mr. President, on their behalf, I want to say thank you to you for having the vision long ago that America could do better than NAFTA. I want to thank you, Mr. President, on behalf of all of the American people for simply keeping your word, for fighting for the forgotten men and women of this country every day as you do, for driving a hard bargain, for never letting up until we got a deal that put American jobs and American workers first.

So we’re here today because of great allies in Congress and statehouses and city halls. We’re here today because the American people stepped forward and demanded better. But I want to say with a grateful heart that we’re here mostly because we have a President who will always put America first. Thank you, Mr. President, and congratulations. (Applause.)

THE PRESIDENT: Thank you.

AMBASSADOR LIGHTHIZER: Mr. President, Mr. Vice President: The President was elected in large part on his promise to change the direction of U.S. trade policy, a policy that for too long had led to exploding trade deficits, the outsourcing of U.S. jobs, and the brazen theft of American intellectual property. For many, NAFTA came to symbolize everything that was wrong with that policy. The agreement was highly controversial from the start, and passed with a narrow majority in the House of Representatives.

Many of those who cast votes in favor came to regret their decision. They did so because many of the promises that were made in order to procure their votes came to nothing. NAFTA’s weak, unenforceable labor side agreement did not raise wages in Mexico. The outsourcing fears that prominent NAFTA voices — anti-NAFTA voices came to nothing. And the situation got worse later in the decade when China joined the WTO.

This experience colored every subsequent debate over trade policy. And nearly every trade agreement after NAFTA passed with an increasingly narrow majority, and often along party lines.

President Trump set out to chart a new course. The Trump trade policy is designed to create more manufacturing jobs, protect America’s competitive advantage in technology and innovation, secure greater market access for American businesses, farmers, ranchers, and, critically, to change the stale politics of trade by creating bipartisan consensus around a new model that works better for all Americans.

The USMCA achieves each of these goals. This great historic agreement is truly the result of extraordinary effort by many, many people. It is multinational, whole of administration, and bipartisan. It affects every sector, thousands of businesses, and millions of workers in our economy.

Of course, the President was our leader and inspiration. And the Vice President was intimately involved in this process, in every single step, and devoted an enormous amount of his first term to making sure that we succeeded. For that, I’m very grateful.

The complexity of this effort is perhaps best shown by the fact that, in the early rounds, as many as a thousand negotiators from the three countries would be involved. We needed experts on agriculture, manufacturing, automobiles, banking, telecommunications, labor, environment. And I can go and on.

I would like to thank my negotiating partners from Mexico: Secretary Ildefonso Guajardo, Ambassador Jesús Seade, as well as the absolutely essential Luis Videgaray, Secretary Marcelo Ebrard, as well as Secretary Graciela Márquez, and past and present Ambassadors Gutiérrez and Bárcena from Mexico.

On the Canadian side, I would like to thank Deputy Prime Minister and good friend Chrystia Freeland, Gerry Butts, Katie Telford, and Steve Verheul. And, again, the Ambassadors there, past and present, MacNaughton and Heymen.
All were critical. Mexico and Canada are fortunate to have such impressive public servants.

I would also personally like to thank the members of Congress, Republicans and Democrats, who worked so hard on this agreement — not just last year, but during the course of the negotiations. They also were involved every step of the way. They made this a bipartisan success.

I have been in town long enough to know that listing members at a time like this makes more enemies than friends. (Laughter.) So I’ll only mention that I’m grateful to the leadership of the House, the Chairman and Ranking Member of the Ways and Means Committee and the Finance Committee, and, of course, Leader McConnell. Many others made immense contributions.

Thank you also to congressional staff. You were magnificent for two years.

Finally — and I apologize for the length of my remarks — I want to show my appreciation to the inspiring men and women of USTR, as well as the Departments of Commerce, Agriculture — (applause) — Treasury, Labor, Transportation, EPA, and other agencies that worked so hard. These people worked tens of thousands of hours for two-plus years, many going home at two and three o’clock in the morning, or not at all.

Chief among the leaders of this effort is my deputy, Ambassador C.J. Mahoney. (Applause.) Since his confirmation two years ago, he has worked continuously on this effort, day and night, and seven days a week.

Thank you also, Ambassador Doud, our agriculture negotiating, and the long-suffering Jamieson Greer, who has the unenviable task of being my chief of staff. (Laughter.)

As I said 16 months ago, thank you also, Jared Kushner, my friend and partner, for all your work and guidance and support. (Applause.) I said before, from the heart, and I mean it again now: Thank you to the Cabinet members who devoted a substantial part of their terms to this effort, particularly the Secretaries of Treasury, Commerce, Agriculture, Labor. And thank you, of course, Larry Kudlow and Peter Navarro.

The chief negotiator of the USMCA was Assistant USTR John Melle. (Applause.) He was, throughout, the one who is responsible for the 350 or so people on our team. John is the best example of a career public servant. He retires this week, and he will be missed. (Applause.)

In closing, let me just say that I mostly want to thank the President of the United States for allowing me to lead this special team, for his constant steady leadership, and for always being supportive during very difficult times, and to congratulate him on his magnificent achievement. To do this, and to do it under these circumstances, is a monumental part of your legacy, and I’m happy to be part of it. (Applause.)

I’ll end where I began. The President ran and was elected on replacing NAFTA with an agreement that puts American workers first, American farmers, ranchers, and businesses first; that will bring manufacturing back; help service industry workers; and raise wages. All I can say, if you’ll pardon the appropriation: Promise made, and three years later, promise kept. (Applause.)

THE PRESIDENT: Thank you very much. Great job. Well, great job.

Well, with all of the power and wealth and status in front of me, I think we would all agree that the people that are, by far, the most important with us today happen to be standing right behind me. (Applause.) Thank you all. Thank you all. Great.

They’re the ones. They’re the workers. They’re the workers, and they’re the ones that are going to benefit most by what we’re doing. So thank you very much for being here. Thank you.

PARTICIPANT: Thank you, Mr. President.

THE PRESIDENT: Thank you. Thank you.

And I would like you to remember that, two weeks ago, we signed another little deal: our trade deal with China. And we expect to be taking in $250 billion a year in purchases. They will be purchasing so much from our farmers. I’ve been saying they have to go out and buy, immediately, larger tractors and more land. (Laughter.) I hope they can do it.

But they — the number is — the largest number they’ve ever produced was $16 billion a year. I think, Chuck, we could say that. Joni, you would say sixteen was the number.

I called up our great Secretary of Agriculture, Sonny — who is probably around here someplace — and I said, “Sonny, what’s the biggest number?” Sonny Perdue. And he said, “Sir, $16 billion is the biggest number.” I said, “All right, but we’re going to make it up, because they were targeted” — perhaps correctly. You know, China is negotiating. That’s why nobody wanted to take it on. They said, “We’re going to target your farmers.” And every other leader of our country said, “Oh, we’re going to pass.”

Our farmers were incredible because they said, “The President is doing the right thing.” But I said, “What’s the number we’re talking about?” And it was $16 billion, and it was $12 billion from the previous year. So it was $12 billion and $16 billion, and that was it. That was the maximum they’ve ever done.

So I said, “You know what we have to do? We’re going to reimburse them and help them with $12 billion for the first year; $16 billion, same thing, for the second year.” And the farmers got through. And they didn’t want that. Nobody wanted to call it a subsidy. And it wasn’t a subsidy; it was really a “targeting fee,” you could call it.

But our farmers — I’ll never forget — we had them over at the White House in the Cabinet Room. Thirty-five farmers. And they said, “Sir, we don’t want any money. We just want a level playing field. We don’t want money.” And I said, “You know what? I’ve been President now” — at that time — “for two and a half years.” I said, “That’s the first time anybody has ever said that.” Everybody wants money and they don’t care how they get it. (Laughter.) This is the first time. They said, “We don’t want” — “we just want a level playing field.” They are the most incredible people.

And when some of the people from the media — I’m going to be very nice today — the people from the media went out to the farms, and they went out to Iowa, and they went to Nebraska, they went to all of the different — many of the different states — and they said, “What do you think about what the President is doing?” They all — I don’t think I heard one negative — no matter who it was, no matter which network. The farmers would say, “The President is doing the right thing. This should’ve been done a long time ago.” I’ll never forget it. (Applause.) And now the farmers are going to be tremendous beneficiaries.

In fact, when Bob was getting ready to sign the agreement, very close — we were a few days off — and I said, “What are we getting for the farmers?” “Sir, we have it up to $20 billion purchased.” I said, “Make it 50.” They said, “What do you mean, ‘Make it 50’?” Remember that one, Bob? I said, “Make it 50.”

THE VICE PRESIDENT: (Laughs.) It’s true.

THE PRESIDENT: He said, “Sir, they can’t produce that much.” I said, “They’ll find a way to do it.” I think they’ll find a way. Chuck, if they don’t find a way, I’m going to be very angry at you, okay? They’ll find a way. But it’s true. We had it down to 20; that’s more than they had ever done before. I said, “Make it 50.” And they’re going to.

I think China is going to really be terrific. I think our relationship has never been better. We’re very much involved with them, right now, on the virus that’s going around. We’re working very closely. I spoke to President Xi. We’re working very closely with China.

And, honestly, I think, as tough as this negotiation was, I think our relationship with China now might be the best it’s been in a long, long time. And now it’s reciprocal. Before, we were being ripped off badly. Now we have a reciprocal relationship, maybe even better than reciprocal for us. Because we have a long way to go before we get back some of the $500 billion a year that we were losing for year after year to China.

So we’re very honored by that deal and we’re very honored by the USMCA. And I just want to thank everybody in the audience because almost every one of you, indirectly or directly, was involved. And history is going to show — you’re going to be very, very proud of what’s happening and very proud of what’s happening to our country.

Thank you all for being here very much. And I’m going to have the honor of signing the USMCA. Thank you very much. (Applause.)
Why don’t we have some of our great leaders come up? Cabinet members, come up. Why don’t we have everybody come up? Mick, everybody. Cabinet. Jared, Ivanka. Come on up.

This will be very historic. So if you don’t — senators, come on up. Come on, senators. Come on, senators. Please, come up. Please. Please, come up.
Oh, we’re going to take care of the senators. The workers understand. They get it better than anybody. Hi, fellas. Good. This is great.

And, Bob, if we could have some of the folks that worked so hard on the agreement come up, from your department. Come on up. Come on up. Some of them are — they just didn’t stop. They worked long hours. Thank you very much.

Okay. Thank you very much. Thank you, Kevin. Thank you, Roger. Okay. Thank you very much.

(The U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement is signed.) (Applause.)

Thank you all for coming. It’s a great honor.

END 11:48 A.M. EST