It’s Thursday…
I’m still “hungover” with mid-term election fatigue setting-in.
The President has a public schedule for Thursday, November 10th, 2022:
| 9:30 AM | The President receives the Presidential Daily Briefing The White House Closed Press |
| 12:45 PM | In-Town Pool Call Time The White HouseIn-Town Pool |
| 12:45 PM | Press Briefing by Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre and National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan James S. Brady Press Briefing Room Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre will gaggle aboard Air Force One en route Bali, Indonesia |
| 2:40 PM | The President departs the White House South GroundsIn-Town Travel Pool |
| 3:00 PM | The President and The Vice President deliver remarks at a political event; The First Lady and The Second Gentleman attend Howard Theatre, Washington In-Town Travel Pool |
| 4:00 PM | The President and The First Lady arrive at the White House South Grounds In-Town Travel Pool |
| 7:45 PM | Out-of-Town Pool Call Time Joint Base Andrews Overhang Out-of-Town Pool |
| 9:25 PM | The President departs the White House en route Joint Base Andrews South Lawn Open Press |
| 9:45 PM | The President departs Joint Base Andrews en route Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt Joint Base Andrews Out-of-Town Pool |
On Tuesday, the White House posted the background press call offering a preview of President Biden’s trip to North Africa and Asia:
SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL 1:
Thank you. So, the President will head to Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, on Friday, where the U.N. Climate Conference — COP27 — is underway.
White House.gov. 11/08/2022.
While he’s on the ground, he’ll give a special address about our efforts to build on the unprecedented work by the U.S. to reduce emissions and advance the global climate fight, and help the most vulnerable build resilience to climate impacts.
And the President will also have a bilateral meeting with President El-Sisi of Egypt, who, of course, is hosting the COP.
The Biden administration is proud to be heading into this COP with historic momentum. We’ve seen the United States go from a global laggard to a global leader in less than 18 months.
And last year, President Biden set an ambitious goal of reducing emissions by about — by at least, rather, 50 percent in 2030. And that’s from a 2005 baseline. And this year, we’re on track to do that.
Thanks to the Inflation Reduction Act, the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, and more, we’re really well-positioned to meet the goals that we’ve set in a way that we’ve never been in the past.
We also just saw the Senate vote on a bipartisan basis to ratify the Kigali Amendment to the Montreal Protocol, which in itself could help prevent a half-degree Celsius of warming this century.
The President will arrive in Sharm at the end of what they call “high-level week.” And his speech will be an opportunity to set the tone for the following week, where the negotiations really get underway in earnest.
He’ll have the opportunity to showcase U.S. leadership in tackling the climate crisis at home and abroad and to demonstrate how we’re mobilizing unprecedented levels of public and private finance to partner with developing countries in reducing their emissions and, in particular, in adapting to climate impacts, as well as the efforts that we’re leading to decarbonize the so-called “hard to abate” sectors like shipping, and to drive multilateral progress through a number of targeted efforts such as the Global Methane Pledge, which the President announced last year.
And the President will also speak to the need for the 196 parties to the Paris Agreement to really keep their eyes on the ball when it comes to accelerating ambitious action to reduce emissions, to keep within reach the goal of limiting warming to 1.5 degrees. We need to remain focused.
So, a lot to cover, but it’ll be an important visit at a really critical time. So I’ll turn it over to you, [senior administration official]. Thanks.
SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL 2:
Thank you very much for that laydown. I am here. Sorry, I forgot to unmute myself.
So, after Sharm, the President will travel to Pnom Penh, Cambodia, from November 12th to 13th to participate in the annual U.S.-ASEAN Summit on November 12th and then the East Asia Summit on November 13th.
The President will also have a bilateral meeting with Prime Minister Hun Sen of Cambodia, which is the 2022 chair of ASEAN.
And I think that, you know, this reflects a following through on an institutionalization of the very stepped-up engagement with ASEAN and with Southeast Asia that we have seen so far in the administration.
And I would just remind everyone that in May — so, last year, at the end of October, the President spoke at the virtual U.S.-ASEAN Summit and virtual East Asia Summit meetings that took place at the end of October, chaired by Brunei, which did not have in-person attendance. And then, in May, the President hosted the U.S.-ASEAN Special Summit, which was held for the first time in Washington, D.C., and included dinner at the White House.
I think those two engagements — so last October, the President announced over $100 million in investments in things that are significant for U.S.-ASEAN relations, significantly expanding our cooperation on health, climate, science and innovation, trade facilitation, education, and more.
And then, in May, the President announced $150 million in additional funding in many of these same areas, including trying to step up our engagement in the maritime domain.
I think that we see this as following through on the administration’s commitment to the Indo-Pacific, which I’m sure you saw was highlighted as a top priority in the National Security Strategy. And — but it also reflects the very strong and longstanding U.S. commitment to the Indo-Pacific region that goes back centuries and was really stepped up, obviously, at the end of World War Two.I think that in Cambodia you can see the President lay out our vision for keeping up a pace of enhanced engagement and trying to also address concerns of importance to ASEAN in ways that they — that they are looking for.
And so we’ll also focus on efforts to promote respect for human rights, rule of law, and good governance, the rules-based international order, and also to address the ongoing crisis in Burma.
I would just note that this follows as part of a broader level of engagements in the region that include the President traveling to Korea and Japan in May — the host — the in-person Quad leaders meeting that took place in Tokyo in May — the launch of the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework; the engagements with the Pacific Islands, including the Vice President’s virtual address to the Pacific Islands Summit; as well as the hosting of the U.S.-Pacific Islands Summit in the — at the end of September.
Also, the Vice President’s travel to Korea — to Japan and Korea. And then, as I’m sure you saw, the Vice President will also be going to Thailand for APEC as well, so the Philippines.
So in our — and this is just in addition to a whole host of engagements and visits in both directions at the Cabinet and sub-Cabinet levels.
So I think that we also want to highlight the enduring commitment to the rules-based international order, including in the South China Sea, as well as talk about the importance of peace and stability throughout the region, including, of course, across the Taiwan Strait.
So, with all these things, we feel like this is a good way to continue to advance and to really show that we’re serious about institutionalizing the stepped-up levels of engagement.
Thank you.
White House.gov. 11/08/2022.
SENIOR ADMINISTRATION OFFICIAL 3:
Thanks, [moderator]. So, I’m going to talk about the President’s time in Bali and, in particular, around the G20.
Since coming into office, President Biden has been focused on delivering for American families and building a resilient global economy.
Thanks to the President’s economic plans, we have driven a historically strong economic recovery and given families at home breathing room while also serving as the engine of (inaudible).
You all know the history of the G20: Fourteen years ago, as we faced a global financial crisis, the G20 came together as a result of U.S. leadership and allowed the world’s major economies to not only enable us to recover together, but also to create a more resilient global financial system.
Today, we face challenges as well: a global economy that faces serious headwinds as a result of Russia’s war against Ukraine, with rising food and energy prices impacting low- and middle-income countries the most.
The President will head to Bali to work with G20 partners to lay the foundations for a more sustainable and inclusive global economy that will support American families and vulnerable countries and economies alike.
He will begin his time in Bali with a bilateral meeting with our G20 host, President Widodo of Indonesia. He will thank President Widodo and Indonesia for the incredible work that they are doing to host a successful G20 and to underscore the importance of the U.S.-Indonesia Strategic Partnership.
I can just say, in terms of my own travels to Indonesia as part of the G20 process, that focus, that energy, that leadership from Indonesia has been on full display. And I know that the President looks forwards to visiting and seeing that firsthand.G20 leaders will focus on a broad, in-depth agenda over the course of their few days together. And I can guarantee you that the United States will show up and be at the table. We will be unapologetic in our defense of Ukraine. We will be unapologetic in calling out Russia for its brutal war. And we will also work closely with our partners to address the impacts of the war.
As we think about the President’s affirmative agenda with the G20, I’d highlight three broad categories.
One is, you know, working to address the immediate impacts of Russia’s war on the global economy. And, obviously, here, food security and energy security are the top of that list and will continue to be.
Secondly, I think you’ll hear the President talk about investing in the inclusive economies of the future, around delivering game-changing projects to leverage private financing and close the infrastructure gap between the advanced economies and the rest of the world.
In fact, President Biden will co-host an event at the G20 Summit in which the United States and partners will be advancing the Partnership for Global Infrastructure and Investment, PGII.
This is an effort, as many of you know, that was launched this summer in Elmau, alongside the G7, to mobilize $600 billion in financing over five years in low- and middle-income countries.
The President will announce new projects to deliver quality, sustainable infrastructure that makes a difference in people’s lives around the world, strengthens and diversifies our supply chains, creates new opportunities for American workers and businesses, and advances our national security, in addition to lifting up and providing opportunity to economies around the world as well.
White House.gov. 11/08/2022.
And then, lastly, you know, you’ll hear the President talking about steps we can take to build a new economic ecosystem where every nation gets a fair shot. This includes important issues like debt relief for vulnerable countries. Obviously, we’ve seen significant headwinds gathering, especially for vulnerable lower- and middle-income countries. Debt is an important part of that equation. I expect the President will speak to that.
This agenda includes leveraging the multilateral development banks to fund global challenges. And it also includes issues like global health, including the U.S. and our $450 million pledge to the pandemic fund to close the global gap in financing for pandemic preparedness.
So, countries representing more than 80 percent of the world’s GDP will be in one place for the G20 Summit. President Biden has demonstrated again and again that we’ll focus not just on building prosperity for our people, but people everywhere around the world.
We believe, the President believes it’s critical for the G20 to act in this critical moment and that there’s a plan to do just that when the President arrives in Bali next week.
I’ll go ahead and pause and hand this back to [moderator].
White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre issued the following statement this morning:
President Biden will meet with President Xi Jinping of the People’s Republic of China (PRC) in Bali, Indonesia on November 14, 2022. The Leaders will discuss efforts to maintain and deepen lines of communication between the United States and the PRC, responsibly manage competition, and work together where our interests align, especially on transnational challenges that affect the international community. The two Leaders will also discuss a range of regional and global issues.
White House.gov. 11/10/2022.
The White House press briefing with National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan is scheduled for 12:45 p.m. D.C., time.
President Biden has tweeted 3 times so far for Thursday…
The 3 tweets focus on the CPI Summary that BLS.gov released this morning:
The Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) rose 0.4 percent in October on a seasonally adjusted basis, the same increase as in September, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Over the last 12 months, the all items index increased 7.7 percent before seasonal adjustment.
He has a few more explainers on the charted data that I did not include here.
His full statement:
Today’s report shows that we are making progress on bringing inflation down, without giving up all of the progress we have made on economic growth and job creation. My economic plan is showing results, and the American people can see that we are facing global economic challenges from a position of strength.
White House.gov. 11/10/2022.
It will take time to get inflation back to normal levels – and we could see setbacks along the way – but we will keep at it and help families with the cost of living. Americans are already paying around $1.20 less per gallon of gas than this summer. Today’s report shows a much-needed break in inflation at the grocery store as we head into the holidays. And millions of Americans shopping for health insurance plans are continuing to save $800 per year, thanks to legislation I’ve signed into law. In less than eight weeks, my plan to bring down prescription drug prices and energy costs goes into effect.
It has been a hard two years to recover from where things were in January 2021. But our economy has reopened, new jobs are being created, new businesses are growing, and now, we are seeing progress in getting inflation under control – with additional measures taking effect soon.
I will work with anyone – Democrat or Republican – on ideas to provide more breathing room to middle-class and working families. And I will oppose any effort to undo my agenda or to make inflation worse. We are on the right path – we need to keep moving forward to build an economy from the bottom up and the middle out.
When the post was posted for Wednesday, President Biden had tweeted 1 time. He added 6 tweets. Giving him a Wednesday Tweeting Total of 7 tweets and 0 retweets.
45 second clip of him on the phone saying congrats to those who won their mid-term election.
Tune in as I deliver remarks on the latest election results. https://t.co/oQKtCcE9b6
— President Biden (@POTUS) November 9, 2022
The YouTube is 53 minutes and 26 seconds long. The Q&A starts at the 11 minute and 52 second mark. His full remarks can be found here.
The above does not appear in his press conference remarks…
President Biden: While any seat lost is painful — some good Democrats didn’t win the — last night — Democrats had a strong night. And we lost fewer seats in the House of Representatives than any Democratic President’s first midterm election in the last 40 years. And we had the best midterms for governors since 1986.
President Biden: Our democracy has been tested in recent years. But with their votes, the American people have spoken and proven once again that democracy is who we are.
The 56 second video clip is taken from his exchange with April Ryan with TheGrio.
April Ryan: Last question on humanity. Sir, you can’t legislate and you can’t executive order out the issue of empathy or the lack thereof in the midst of this rhetoric — this heated political rhetoric. What’s next?
President Biden: Part of what I think leadership requires — and I hope I meet the standard — is letting people know you understand their problem. Again, my dad used to have an expression. He said, “I don’t expect the government to solve my problems, but I expect them to at least know what they are, understand them.”
President Biden: So there’s a lot we can do. And the empathy is not just talking about it, it’s communicating to people you genuinely understand. And I hope a lot of people don’t understand, because they — I don’t want people having to know the pain. But the second piece of that is: Let them know that you are there to help. You’re there to help.
That’s a wrap…
This is an Open Thread.
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