Live updates: President Biden visits Greensboro to talk about inflation, manufacturing
President Joe Biden is visiting North Carolina A&T State University in Greensboro on Thursday to talk about his administration’s efforts to create manufacturing jobs and alleviate the impacts of inflation.
Biden is scheduled to speak at 2:15 p.m. He’ll be joined by Gov. Roy Cooper, who will also deliver remarks, and U.S. Rep. Deborah Ross, who represents much of Wake County in Congress.
The News & Observer and Charlotte Observer are publishing live updates from Biden’s trip below. Refresh this page throughout the day for the latest information.
And check out our other coverage:
In NC visit, President Biden to deliver inflation address at nation’s largest HBCU
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White House confirms Biden will visit NC A&T on trip to Greensboro. What we know.
With President Biden coming to NC A&T, here’s what you need to know about the HBCU
How to watch President Biden’s remarks during trip to Greensboro online or on TV
Crowd outside NC A&T gets a wave, and Biden departs NC
Update 6 p.m.: N.C. A&T students waiting to catch a glimpse of President Biden outside the building where he spoke took out their cameras and cheered loudly when the president walked out and greeted them before leaving for the airport.
Biden waved to the crowd and gave students a thumbs-up, and students cheered loudly for him and broke out into a brief A&T chant of “Aggie Pride.”
Biden’s motorcade then departed for Piedmont Triad International Airport, where he boarded the plane to return to Washington just after 4:50 p.m.
NC A&T students say they’re thrilled with Biden’s visit
Update 3:55 p.m.: Taylor Gray, a 21-year-old junior at N.C. A&T, smiled as she walked into the lobby after Biden’s speech. “It’s amazing,” she said.
Gray is in Army ROTC and plans to graduate as a second lieutenant. She said she appreciated Biden’s focus on future economic growth and on HBCUs.
“We might just be college students now, but we’re going to graduate and be employees,” she said.
She said she doesn’t fault the Biden administration for economic problems like inflation, which Biden said he hoped to combat during his remarks on Thursday. “His administration is doing his best,” she said.
Jayden Seay, an elementary education freshman, said students were thrilled that Biden made the visit. On Biden’s pitch about the economy, Seay said he believes Biden is including Black Americans in a bigger way than many previous administrations.
“It’s people like me who get left behind,” he said.
Nothing US can’t do if it is united, Biden says
Update 3:40 p.m.: At one point in his remarks, President Biden talked about the importance of increasing access to high-speed internet across the country.
“We’re going to deliver affordable, high-speed internet everywhere,” Biden said. He evoked imagery of students performing their school work from McDonald’s parking lots because they didn’t have internet at home. “What the hell’s going on here?” he said.
More than 250 people were in attendance at the Alumni-Foundation Event Center at N.C. A&T, a small auditorium on the southern part of campus. About half the space was reserved for media. The rest was populated by legislators, university donors and a small group of students.
At the end of his roughly 40-minute speech, Biden said, “There’s not a single thing America can’t do when we do it together, as the United States of America.”
After speaking, Biden shook hands with some of the students on stage then left.
Biden urges Congress to pass innovation, competition bill
Update 3:25 p.m.: As was expected, President Biden promoted legislation being considered by Congress that the Biden administration says will boost technological innovation and U.S. competitiveness against China and other major players in the global economy.
Biden urged Congress to pass the legislation, separate versions of which have passed the U.S. House and Senate, and are being resolved by a congressional conference committee.
Officials have said the legislation will help the U.S. overcome the global shortage of microchips, which are used to manufacture cars, computers, smartphones and other electronics.
Biden said U.S. economic strength and national security are both on the line. He said large companies are ready to invest in American workers, but need to see that the U.S. government is willing to invest in its future. As an example, Biden said that the tech giant Intel was willing to invest an additional $100 billion, if Congress passes the proposed technology and competition legislation.
“Let’s meet this moment together,” Biden said.
Biden addresses inflation, says economy is ‘on the move’
Update 3:15 p.m.: Talking about the current state of the economy, President Biden said his administration’s initiatives have meant that the economy has gone from being “on the mend to on the move.”
Biden said he realizes that people are hurting under higher inflation in recent months, but appeared to attribute the bulk of the rise in prices to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February.
“Putin’s invasion of Ukraine has driven up gas prices all over the world,” Biden said, adding that 70% of the increase in inflation was due to increases in oil prices that shook up the global economy in light of the Russian invasion.
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Biden says ‘Made in America’ is his operating principle
Update 3 p.m.: President Biden took the stage after being introduced by Malkam Hawkins, a senior at N.C. A&T State University studying electrical engineering.
Biden began his remarks by recognizing U.S. Reps. G.K. Butterfield and Alma Adams, and praising Gov. Cooper for his leadership in North Carolina.
Biden poked a little fun at N.C. A&T, and other historically Black colleges and universities represented in his cabinet, including Howard University and Morehouse College, when he said the best HBCU was one from his home state: Delaware State University.
After talking about his administration’s efforts to support HBCUs, Biden affirmed his dedication to “easing the financial burdens of millions of American families.” To do that, Biden said he wants to foster more American manufacturing.
“From day one,” Biden said, he’s operated from a principle: “Made in America.” Other presidents have made similar promises, Biden said, but it’s only been “lip service.”
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Cooper touts NC’s recent economic wins
Update 2:45 p.m.: Gov. Roy Cooper said he was excited to welcome President Biden to North Carolina and highlight the economic and technological developments the state has made in recent months.
Cooper said North Carolina is on pace to break another record this year for jobs and capital investment brought to the state, and said North Carolina has succeeded in returning to strong levels of economic activity after the difficult impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Cooper also congratulated EPA Administrator Michael Regan for turning the agency around. Regan’s 7-year-old son, Matthew, enthusiastically joined his dad and Biden for a ride in the presidential limo from the airport. “That is leadership!” Cooper said.
Regan, speaking before Cooper, hailed N.C. A&T, his alma mater, for its excellence in “energy research and technology development.” He said the university was preparing the “next generation of leaders to confront the most pressing challenges we face.”
He said he wouldn’t be where he is today if not “for the time I spent here at North Carolina A&T University,” and told students that they have the education and tools “not just to excel but to be extraordinary.”
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Elected officials and business leaders in the room
Update 2:10 p.m.: President Biden is expected to deliver his remarks at N.C. A&T State University in a short while.
Among the crowd waiting for him are local and state elected officials and other dignitaries, including Guilford County state Sens. Gladys Robinson and Michael Garrett; state Sen. Paul Lowe of Forsyth County; and state Sen. Valerie Foushee of Chatham and Orange counties, all of whom are Democrats.
Foushee is also running in the Democratic primary to represent North Carolina’s 4th Congressional District in Congress.
Also in attendance is Sean Suggs, the group vice president and chief social innovation officer for Toyota Motor North America. Biden is expected to talk about recent economic expansions that have been announced in the Triad region, including a $1.29 billion battery plant near Greensboro that is estimated to bring about 1,750 jobs. North Carolina and Randolph County approved a $438.7 million incentive package for the company.
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Biden lands in Greensboro
Update 1:35 p.m.: President Biden landed at Greensboro’s Piedmont Triad International Airport shortly after 1 p.m.
Greeting him on the tarmac were Gov. Roy Cooper and EPA Administrator Michael Regan, a North Carolina native who previously led the Department of Environmental Quality in the Cooper administration and received his bachelor’s degree from N.C. A&T.
Regan’s 7-year-old son, Matthew, got to join his dad in welcoming Biden, and according to a White House reporter accompanying Biden, Matthew was also allowed to ride in the presidential limousine, nicknamed “The Beast,” on the way to N.C. A&T.
Also present was U.S. Rep. Kathy Manning, Greensboro Mayor Nancy Vaughan, and Guilford County Commissioners Chair Melvin “Skip” Alston.
Biden is scheduled to head directly to the Harold L. Martin Sr. Engineering Research & Innovation Complex on the campus of N.C. A&T State University, where he’ll receive a tour of the engineering center and meet with faculty and students.
The president’s aircraft, typically a highly customized Boeing 747-200B, but on Thursday’s trip, a smaller Boeing C-32, is no stranger to the Greensboro airport.
The aircraft regularly uses PTI airport for what is referred to as “touch and go” training, a procedure in which the plane lands on the runway for a few seconds and quickly takes off again, according to TV station WFMY. The practice can be repeated 10 to 20 times, and according to Kevin Baker, executive director of the Piedmont Triad Airport Authority, PTI airport is a good fit for the training due to its long runways and airspace that is less congested than busier airports.
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NC Republicans say Biden is trying to sell ‘snake oil’
Update 12 p.m.: N.C. House Speaker Tim Moore, a Republican from Cleveland County, sharply criticized the Biden administration for its economic agenda during a call with reporters on Thursday morning, ahead of President Biden’s visit to Greensboro.
“I worry that what he’s trying to sell the people in this state is snake oil,” Moore said. “If you look at the policies that President Biden is pushing right now, it’s essentially going to result in simply more and more spending, more and more debt that our children and grandchildren are going to have to deal with.”
Moore said the economic policies being pursued by the White House could be contrasted with the Republican-controlled state legislature’s approach of cutting taxes and regulations, which he said have helped attract more economic investment to North Carolina.
“I hope that when President Biden is in North Carolina, he’ll actually look and see how government should be run and maybe be willing to take some cues on how things ought to be done as opposed to the way they’re doing them at the moment,” Moore said.
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NC Dems: Biden is ‘laser-focused’ on lowering costs
Update 11:45 a.m.: Ahead of President Biden’s arrival in North Carolina, the state Democratic Party is praising the president for being “laser-focused” on lowering costs for North Carolinians.
“While the Biden-Harris administration knows that North Carolina families are still recovering from economic woes brought on by the pandemic and are working day and night to ensure that billionaires pay their fair share in taxes and lower gas prices, groceries and household essentials, Republicans are running on a plan to raise taxes on half of Americans,” N.C. Democratic Party Chair Bobbie Richardson said in a statement.
The U.S. Department of Labor said this week that the annual rate of inflation reached 8.5% last month, a 41-year high, according to the New York Times.
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What we know about Biden’s visit to Greensboro today
Update 11:30 a.m.: In his third visit to North Carolina since taking office, President Joe Biden will visit N.C. A&T State University in Greensboro.
Biden is scheduled to arrive at Piedmont Triad International Airport at 12:20 p.m., and will first meet with N.C. A&T faculty and students studying robotics and cybersecurity before giving a speech about his administration’s economic agenda at around 2:15 p.m. Biden will be joined at the university by Gov. Roy Cooper, who will also deliver remarks, and U.S. Rep. Deborah Ross, who represents Raleigh and other parts of Wake County in Congress.
The White House has said that Biden’s remarks will focus on touting the impact of the $1 trillion infrastructure bill he signed into law in November, and promoting legislation currently being considered in Congress to boost U.S. technological innovation and competitiveness in the global economy. According to the Biden administration, the proposed legislation will help create manufacturing jobs, strengthen domestic supply chains, and lower costs for middle class Americans.
Biden’s trip to Greensboro comes as the surrounding Triad region and other parts of central North Carolina have secured the promise of thousands of new jobs and billions of dollars in investment announced in recent months by major companies like Toyota and startups like Boom Supersonic and VinFast.
Toyota said in December it plans to build a new $1.29 billion battery plant about 30 minutes outside of Greensboro that is slated to employ at least 1,750 people.
PTI airport, meanwhile, will become home to a $500 million “flagship” factory operated by Boom Supersonic, a fledgling company that wants to revive supersonic passenger travel with its Overture jet, a 205-foot plane that is supposed to travel at more than 1,300 mph. The company plans to employ at least 1,761 workers at the Greensboro facility to build the jets.
VinFast, a Vietnamese automaker, announced that it would build its electric SUVs at a factory it plans to build in Chatham Company. The company said it would invest more than $4 billion and create about 7,500 jobs.
This story was originally published April 14, 2022 at 12:45 PM.
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