President Obama gave a twenty minute speech at General Motors’ Lordstown plant in Ohio today. It was the President’s second trip to Ohio in as many weeks. General Motors has been suffering in the economic shutdown in our country and the President gave a rousing speech to a crowd of blue collar workers who have carried a large portion of this stress. The town of Lordstown is located in Trumbull County, Ohio which is the second hardest hit area in the state. Below are five points of the President’s speech.
Reassure That The Government Is Aware Of The Plight Of Middle America.
The President started out the speech by welcoming the local, state, and national politicians that were present and then moved on to explain to the workers that he was aware of the situation in the Mahoning Valley and the significance of not letting the area die. “The battle for America’s future is not going to be made in just the big cities. It will not be won just on the coastlines”, the President stated, “The prevailing attitude has allowed greed over responsibility…this must change.”
Explain the Decisions That Have Been Made.
The explanation of why the government bailed out the automakers and why that decision was so difficult came up in the speech. The President stated, while the government wanted to see the auto industry grow, they could not keep chasing good money after bad when obvious bad choices were being made by the previous leadership. He was aware that the governments actions were not all together popular when it was done, but it was vital to keep the country – and the auto industry – moving forward. The same held true for the “Cash for Clunkers” initiative. General Motors ran out of the Chevy Cobalt, which is made in Lordstown, during this push.
Stress Why the Auto Industry is Going to be Important in the Future U.S. Economy.
“Green” vehicles are important to our economic growth. President Obama pointed out that we need to make the cars here in the U.S., the fuel cells need to be made here and the work needs to be done by American workers. General Motors just returned 150 workers to the line in Lordstown yesterday, with another thousand joining them three weeks later. Lordstown’s GM plant has been picked to produce the new Chevy Cruise which will come out in 2010.
What The Economic Stimulus Package Has Done In Ohio.
While there are many that are unsure of where the money from the stimulus package has gone (we’ve only used a little over 25% of it), Obama made sure to explain how it is helping the people of Ohio. He explained how the stimulus package directly influenced the people listening today. Unemployment benefits were extended for families hit with the economic crisis, local construction companies have been given contracts to work in the community, and goals have been made for our children to be better educated.
How A Healthcare Policy Will Help The Worker.
One of the most critical parts of this speech was on the new Healthcare proposal. It was said in a way to make sense to everyone listening and I think it was the best attempt put forth so far for people, in general, to understand. It was proposed this way: Everyone there has insurance through General Motors – a company that is trying to get back up on its feet and survive. While doing this, the union workers are trying to get the best health insurance they can for themselves and their families, but the insurance costs continue to rise because they are not restricted by anything. This costs the employer more money and the union is forced to confront them on insurance instead of on wages. If the insurance doesn’t cost the employer as much, then the company can grow, and the worker will benefit from this. As Obama was explaining this, the applause from the crowd was enormous.
People just need to understand what is going on and they need that guidance from our leadership, not the media – on either side of the fence. The news media spins opinion to the left and right and people do not have the time to listen to everyone. The President needs to inform people of what is going on with no mincing of words. The public is going to believe in what is being said and if no one in authority is talking, they will listen to what ever rubbish is being spewed. Hopefully, there will be more of this in the future.
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