President Joe Biden Visits Pittsburgh Area To Unveil American Jobs Plan To Upgrade America's Infrastructure
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- President Joe Biden came to Pittsburgh on Wednesday to share details of his $2 trillion infrastructure proposal.
It's a plan he calls the American Jobs Plan.
Air Force One landed in Pittsburgh shortly after 3:00 pm. After a short meeting and photo-taking with local officials — including Governor Tom Wolf, Senator Bob Casey, and U.S. Reps. Mike Doyle and Conor Lamb — the president's motorcade advanced to the Carpenters Pittsburgh Training Center in Collier.
"Two years ago, I began my campaign here in Pittsburgh," the president told the very small crowd, dictated by coronavirus rules. "I said I was running to rebuild the backbone of America. Today, I return as your president to lay out the vision of how I believe we do that, to rebuild the backbone of America."
The president outlined his $2 trillion plan to build back better.
"It's time to rebuild," Biden said.
The proposed spending plan includes $180 billion for research and development, which could benefit local universities; $115 billion for roads and bridges; $111 billion for water infrastructures like sewers and dams; $100 billion to upgrade the electrical power grid; $100 billion for high-speed broadband service in all regions; $85 billion for public transit; and $42 billion for ports and airports.
Sen. Casey Reaction:
Biden says his plan will put Americans to work with union pay and benefits.
"I am proposing a plan that rewards work, not just rewards wealth," Biden said.
"It builds a fair economy that gives everyone a chance to succeed. It's going to create the strongest, resilient, most innovative economy in the world," the president added.
While Biden expressed hope that some Republicans would join him in restoring America's infrastructure -- now ranked 13th in the world after once being the leader -- some initial reaction was cool to the cost and the scope.
U.S. Senator Pat Toomey noted, "We can and should do more to rebuild our nation's physical infrastructure. I am happy to work with anyone who wants to make responsible progress. That means funding these improvements through a negotiated combination of user fees and reductions in wasteful, outdated, and duplicative government spending."
Former Gov. Ed Rendell Reaction:
But the Republican senator added, "Rather than offsetting this enormous spending binge responsibly, the Biden administration is pushing a massive tax increase by undoing large portions of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act. That 2017 tax reform helped create the best American economy of my lifetime. We should be trying to get back to that economy, not making American workers and businesses less competitive globally."
Former U.S. Rep. Keith Rothfus added, "I think there would be a Republican vote that dealt with infrastructure as opposed to reengineering the American society and reengineering the American economy, which is what this bill is all about."
