Thursday, June 13, 2019

President Donald J. Trump Announces Intent to Nominate Personnel to Key Administration Posts

Office of the Press Secretary
President Donald J. Trump Announces Intent to Nominate Personnel to Key Administration Posts
 
Today, President Donald J. Trump announced his intent to nominate the following individuals to key positions in his Administration:

Katherine Andrea Lemos of California, to be a Member of the Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board for a five-year term.

Katherine A. Lemos, Ph.D., has previously served in the Federal Aviation Administration and on the National Transportation Safety Board.  Dr. Lemos is currently the Director of Programs for Northrop Grumman Corporation’s Aerospace Sector.  Dr. Lemos has a distinguished background in system safety, accident investigation, human factors, and advanced technology research and integration.  Dr. Lemos has broad experience across the product lifecycle in analyzing and promoting product, process, and operational performance.

Matthew Keenan of Kansas, to be a Member of the Board of Directors of the Legal Services Corporation for the remainder of a three-year term, expiring July 13, 2020.

Mr. Matthew Keenan is currently a partner at Shook, Hardy & Bacon, where he has practiced for 33 years.  As former chair of the firm’s Pro Bono committee, Mr. Keenan currently serves on the Legal Aid of Western Missouri Board of Trustees .  A Kansan native, Mr. Keenan  graduated with honors from the University of Kansas and the University of Kansas School of Law.  Upon graduation, Mr. Keenan clerked for the Honorable James K. Logan on the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit.
 
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REMARKS BY PRESIDENT TRUMP ON SECOND CHANCE HIRING

Office of the Press Secretary


REMARKS BY PRESIDENT TRUMP
ON SECOND CHANCE HIRING

East Room

 

4:21 P.M. EDT

     THE PRESIDENT:   Thank you very much.  Please, please.  Great occasion.

     I want to welcome everyone to the White House.  We're here today to announce a vital new action that we're taking to help former inmates find a job, live a crime-free life, and succeed beyond their wildest dreams.  (Applause.)

     And this afternoon, we're very grateful to have many distinguished guests, including Secretary Alex Acosta.  Alex, thank you very much.  (Applause.)  Governor Phil Bryant.  Thank you, Phil, very much, very much.  (Applause.)  Governor Bill Lee.  We just spent some time together.  Tennessee.  (Applause.)

And, I have to say, my administration is focused on lifting up all Americans.  And that’s exactly what we're doing with this.  

As part of our working families agenda, we've expanded apprenticeships and job training, we've delivered historic tax cuts -- the biggest ever in the history of our country -- and regulatory reform, and we've increased access to affordable healthcare and childcare.  So it's been really important.  (Applause.)  Thank you.

And as a result of the booming economy, we're bringing Americans who have been on the sidelines back into the workforce, including former inmates and those recovering from opioid addiction.  Very important.  And it's been incredible, the success we've had.

Since the election, we've created 6 million new jobs.  We've added more than a million new jobs in manufacturing, construction, and steel alone.  And everyone said that was going to be an impossibility to do -- manufacturing jobs.

African American, Hispanic American, and Asian American unemployment have reached the lowest levels and the lowest rates in history of our country.  It's been an incredible situation.

Our policies are rebuilding lives, rebuilding families, and rebuilding communities.

To realize America’s full potential, we must unlock the talents of every single citizen.  We want to lift every American family out of poverty and into a future of hope and opportunity.

In December of last year, I signed into law groundbreaking and historic reform to our criminal justice system: the FIRST STEP Act.  (Applause.)  That's terrific.  Great.  Great.  That's terrific.  Thank you.  Thank you very much.  I think you like it.  (Laughter.)

It is true though, since we've got it passed, nobody realized how tough it was.  They've been trying to do it for many years.  And -- many, many years.  And nobody thought they could do it.  And we got it done.  But we had tremendous conservative support and tremendous liberal support.  It was very bipartisan.  Some of the most conservative people -- I know Mike Lee was in favor of it and Chuck Grassley was in favor of it.  And then, on the other side, you had people that, frankly, I didn't think would be signing too many of the things that I wanted to do.  Phil Bryant, you know?  (Laughter.)

But they all wanted it.  And it's something that I'm very proud of.  And Jared and Ivanka were incredible.  And they really pushed it.  (Applause.)  It's true.  And I think they were being pushed a little bit also by Kim Kardashian.  She's right here.  (Applause.)  So, thank you, Kim.  And Kanye.  Thank you.

Since its passage, more than a dozen states have advanced similar reforms at the state level.  Now we must make sure that Americans returning from prison get a true second chance.  Right?

America wins when citizens with a criminal record can contribute to their communities as law-abiding members of our society.  When former inmates come home, the single-most important action we can take is to help them find a really, really good job, where they love the job, they want to go there, and they're making a lot money.  Right?  And that’s what's happening.  And that’s because of a lot of reasons, including the people in this room.  But it's also because we have a great economy.

And some people that wouldn’t have normally made that choice, they've made that choice and they are so happy.  I'm talking about employers.  They are so happy they can't even believe it.  They've got -- one man told me some of the best people that work for him now came out of prison.  And these are people that a few years ago, they -- he would not have given a chance.  And now he considers them among his best people.

Too often, former inmates are not considered for jobs even if they're qualified, rehabilitated, and ready to work.  And that's why we're taking crucial steps to encourage business to expand second chance hiring practices.  (Applause.)

So when we say “hire American,” we mean all Americans.  And that’s what's happening.  (Applause.)  First time, probably, ever.  (Applause.) 

And I think I can say, truly -- and a lot of the folks in the room are experts and you've been doing this for a long time -- but I think it's probably the first time we can truly say that in the history of our country that that's happening.  So it's really been fantastic.

The unemployment rate for former inmates is up to five times higher than the national average.  My administration has set an ambitious goal: We want to cut the unemployment rate for these individuals to single digits within five years.  And we think there's a really good chance of doing it.  (Applause.)  Thank you.  Thank you.

Second chance hiring is about safer communities, a stronger workforce, and a thriving economy.  We believe in the dignity of work and the pride of a paycheck.

Here with us today is Johnny Koufos.  And I worked on that name because it's spelled a little bit differently.  (Laughter.)  It's spelled a little bit differently than was supposed to, but I got it right, I think, Johnny.  I don’t know.  Close enough.  (Laughter.)  A lawyer who served time in prison for an alcohol-related accident and now runs a re-entry program.  He's done incredibly well.  He's highly respected in the community.  He's a tremendous guy.

And, John, maybe you could come up and say a few words, please.  Okay?  (Applause.)

MR. KOUFOS:  Thank you, Mr. President.  And thank you all for being here.  And don't worry about the name; it's Greek.  That’s the best pronunciation anyone has done in many years.  (Laughter.)

Again, my name is John Koufos.  And, Mr. President, you know, your courage in criminal justice reform has made America safer and it's made America better, and it's made America more prosperous.  So, first and foremost, I want to thank you for that.  (Applause.)

You know, we're in June 12th, I think, 2019 -- today -- and in June 12th, 2013, I was in prison.  I had hurt someone -- my alcoholism; I caused a car accident in my alcoholism, driving drunk.  And thank the Lord I didn’t kill that person, Mr. President.

And when I was in prison -- and here I was, this trial lawyer from New Jersey -- nobody asked me for money, which was really a surprise in prison.  But nearly everybody asked me for a job.  Everyone wanted a job to avoid crime, to reunify with their families, to pay child support.  And I never forgot that.

And as my journey towards sobriety took shape, I was blessed with people like the folks in this room who gave me that second chance to contribute.  And I would go on to build a very large reentry program in New Jersey.  From there, I would go on to be recruited to work down here in Washington, D.C. to help do this nationally.  I've worked with Governor Bryant.  So many good people in the room.

And without a second chance, I don’t know where I would've been.  I'm not sure if I could've stayed sober.  I certainly know I wouldn't have contributed the level I did.

Next month, I have my first child -- a baby daughter -- on the way.  I have --- (applause.)  Thank you.  I'm married, and I have the ability to be standing here with you, Mr. President.  Thank you for taking on criminal justice reform.

Folks, this is the public safety issue of our time.  This is a justice issue of our time.  This is a civil rights issue of our time.  And this is a prosperity issue of our time.  And, Mr. President, thanks to you, it's all of our time.  God bless you.  (Applause.)  

     THE PRESIDENT:  Thank you, John.  That's incredible.  That's an incredible story.  I can't tell you the job he's done.  So respected.     

Across the federal government, we're giving former inmates the resources they need to make the most of their new lease on life.

Today, the Federal Bureau of Prisons announced that it will work with employers to help those leaving prison to have a job lined up when they are released.  Something that pretty much has never happened before.

Also, earlier today, the Department of Labor -- Alex, that's good; he's done a great job.  (Laughter.)  He's done a good job.  Awarded $2 million to states to support “fidelity bonds,” which underwrite companies that hire former prisoners.

We are expanding our Second Chance Pell Grant Pilot Program to allow individuals to use their time in prison to take college-level classes.  (Applause.)  That's great.  That's great.  That's great.

The Department of Energy has begun a new initiative to inform American workers, including former inmates, about great jobs in the booming energy industry.  And that is a great industry.  (Applause.)

And just in case you didn’t hear me say this before: We've now become the number-one energy producer, by far, in the world.  (Applause.)  We're topping Saudi Arabia and we're topping Russia.

Our administration is also working to allow rehabilitated citizens with a criminal record to apply for both federal government jobs and affordable housing -- something that we were unable to do before.  (Applause.) 

Here with us today is Marcus Bullock, who went to prison as a minor in 1996 and now runs a technology company.  And he's doing a very good job.  Marcus, please come up and say hello.  You're here.  Thank you.  (Applause.)

MR. BULLOCK:  Thank you so much, Mr. President.  When I was in cell C-12, I'd never thought that I would be standing here on this podium, so I'm going to suck all of this moment up while I'm standing here.  (Applause.)  Thank you.  Thank you.  Thank you.  Thank you so much.

When I was 15 years old, I made one of the worst mistakes of my life, and it landed me in front of a judge, listening to him sentence me to eight years in adult maximum security prisons.  I grew up in a prison cell, and I'll tell you, that was one of -- some of the darkest times of my life.

The depression that I fought, the battles on the prison rec yards that I saw every day, they became a big part of me, and they were -- they built this dark spirit that my mom began to see.  And my mom made a commitment because she wanted to understand -- she wanted me to understand that there was life after prison.  There would be potential days that looked like this.

     And so my mom wrote me letters and she sent me pictures every day for the remaining six years of my prison sentence, until I came home, so that she could show me the window to the world.
   
     And this is why I'm so grateful for what happens around the country, and we're having conversations around the FIRST STEP Act and what we're doing now with these second chances.  Because even once I came home, it was still very challenging for me to get a job.

     After finally finding a job at a paint store, minimum wage job -- and I was very, very grateful just to be able to get a job -- and it was really only because of the way that they worded one of the questions on the application, it allowed me to be able to even eventually start my first business after prison, which was a painting businesses.  We ended up hiring over 18 employees.  And after the 19th one, we realized that the first 16 were all returning citizens, just like me.  (Applause.)  Thank you.

     And while we were building opportunities for other men and women to come home and have a great place to be able to work with the sustainable employment, we wanted to venture out a little bit further.  And, in 2012, we started our first tech company.  That tech company, Flikshop, is now a venture-backed company that connects families back to their incarcerated loved ones the same way that my mom wrote me letters and pictures when I was in prison.

     We've connected over 140,000 families around the country.  And I'm so grateful because the resources that are flowing back into these prison cells, using our tech, is building the next generation of entrepreneurs, leaders, business executives like me, and great employees at some of you all's incredible companies.

     I'm so grateful to be a small part of the solution because we do understand that this crisis is huge.  But with you guys' leadership, I feel very, very optimistic about the future of employment.  Thank you.  (Applause.)

THE PRESIDENT:  And, tomorrow, Marcus will be announcing a run for a major public office.  (Applause.)  You did a good job.  Huh?  You guys, great job.  Thank you both very much.  Really fantastic.

Today, we're also joined by many employers who are hiring former inmates and helping us build the strongest economy on Earth.  We have some very successful people in this room, and we appreciate it all very much.  Thank you very much.  Great job.  (Applause.)

Among the leaders who join us today is Steve Preston, the CEO of Goodwill.  Goodwill employs and provides training and other services for more than 100,000 former inmates each and every year.

Steve, I want to thank you for the devotion and all that you do for a second chance.  (Applause.)  Steve.  Steve.  Please, Steve.

MR. PRESTON:  All right.  Well, thank you very much, Mr. President, for your leadership and the FIRST STEP Act, and for working with Congress to pass this in a bipartisan fashion.  That just sounds great, doesn't it?

THE PRESIDENT:  It sounds great.

MR. PRESTON:  Yeah, it really does.  Because we know that it's not an issue of one side of the aisle or the other.  It's an issue for the entire country.  And now we all get to work together to ensure that we truly give people, who are coming back home, a real second chance.

You know, we all know about high recidivism rates, but it does not have to be that way.  I know, because as the President said, last year alone, Goodwill worked with over 100,000 second chance individuals.  And with the right kind of support, those recidivism rates plummet, and, in their place, come high-success rates.

So we need to provide support for people to get back on their feet, to stabilize their lives, and, so importantly, define meaningful employment -- because it's the promise of that job that often cements the path forward to a sustainable life.

And the small investment we make to do that has a return many times over, not only financially, which I think any of us could prove out, but certainly in the form of lives that are transformed both for the individuals and for their families.  And it's so important that we remember those families in this process.

So thank you again, Mr. President, for all that you are doing to be part of -- to advance this important effort.  Thank you guys for your stories.  These are -- like, there is no better testimony than to see what's happening here.  And there are other people around the country that have the same experience if they're given the right chance.  Thank you.  (Applause.)

     THE PRESIDENT:  Thank you.

     And I thought maybe I'd just a take moment.  So, at the White House -- and been with me now three and a half years, before I won, before the election -- is a person, a friend, a woman -- a great, great magnificent person, actually -- named Sarah Huckabee Sanders.  And she's very popular.  She's very popular.  (Applause.)

     And -- and she's done an incredible job.  We've been through a lot together, and she's tough but she's good.  You know, you also have tough and bad, right?  (Laughter.)  She's tough and she's good.  She's great.

     And she's going to be leaving the service of her country, and she is going to be going -- I guess you could say private sector, but I hope she's going to -- she comes from a great state, Arkansas.  That was a state I won by a lot, so I like it, right?  (Laughter.)  But we love Arkansas, and she's going to be going back to Arkansas with her great family -- her husband, who's a fantastic guy, and her family.

     And I don't know, Phil, and folks, if we can get her to run for the governor of Arkansas, I think she'll do very well.  And I'm trying to get her to do that.  (Applause.)      

But I just saw her in the room and I really wanted to call her up.  She's a special person, a very, very fine woman.  She has been so great.  She has such heart.  She's strong but with great, great heart.  And I want to thank you for an outstanding job.

     MS. SANDERS:  Thank you, sir.

     THE PRESIDENT:  And -- thank you.  Come.  Thank you, honey.  Say a couple words.  (Applause.)

     MS. SANDERS:  Thank you.  Thank you so much.  I'll try not to get emotional because I know that crying can make us look weak sometimes, right?  (Laughter.)

This has been the honor of a lifetime, the opportunity of a lifetime.  I couldn't be prouder to have had the opportunity to serve my country and particularly to work for this President.  He has accomplished so much in these two and a half years, and it's truly been something I will treasure forever.  It's one of the greatest jobs I could ever have.  I've loved every minute.  Even the hard minutes, I have loved it.

I love the President.  I love the team that I've had the opportunity to work for.  The President is surrounded by some of the most incredible and most talented people you could ever imagine.  And it's truly the most special experience.

The only one I can think of that might top it just a little bit is the fact that I'm a mom.  I have three amazing kids, and I'm going to spend a little more time with them.  (Applause.)

And, in the meantime, I'm going to continue to be one of the most outspoken and loyal supporters of the President and his agenda.  And I know he's going to have an incredible six more years and get a whole lot more done, like what we're here to celebrate today.

And I don't want to take away from that.  So I certainly want to get back to the tremendous thing that the people behind me have done.

And thank you so much, Mr. President.  It's truly an honor.  (Applause.)

     THE PRESIDENT:  Thank you, Sarah.  Thank you very much.  Great.  Great person.  Great person.  Thank you, Sarah.  Great.

She's a warrior.  You guys know what warriors are, right?  Yeah?  You're warriors.  Huh?  We're all warriors.  We have no choice.  (Laughter.)  We have to be warriors in this world.  But she is a warrior.  Thank you, Sarah, very much.           
 
We're also glad to have with us the President of the Society for Human Resource Management, Johnny Taylor.  And where's Johnny?  Where's Johnny?  Come here, Johnny.  (Laughter.)  Johnny.  This guy is some guy and some athlete, that I can tell you.

So maybe you could just talk a little bit about what we're doing and how well you're doing with it, right?  Thank you, Johnny.

MR. TAYLOR:  Thank you, Mr. President.

     THE PRESIDENT:  Thank you.  (Applause.) 
   
MR. TAYLOR:  So I vividly remember December 2018, waking up one morning and reading in the newspaper that Congress had signed -- had passed, and the President had signed, the FIRST STEP Act.  I literally did not believe that would ever happen.  (Laughter.)  And, I mean, so much so that I got up and said, "I can't believe it.  Like, he said he'd do it.  But I didn’t think it would happen."  And here we were.

And I realized there were so many people who had worked behind the scenes, people like Mark Holden, who's here in the room from Koch Industries.  So many of you had worked to make this a reality.

And the first thing I thought was: What can I do as an American to do my part in this?  I represent an organization called the Society for Human Resource Management, and we represent 300,000 HR people across the globe.  Our companies employ 115 million people every day.  And so we said, "There's some role that we must be able to play."

And, instantly, it hit me: What's the next step?  What we know is that once people get out, too often -- get out of incarceration -- too often they return because they can't find a job.  These aren’t bad people; they're people who are trying to survive.  And we can play a role in that if we can help remove some of the barriers -- those barriers that lead to high levels of recidivism.  Again, no one wants to go back.

And so what we needed to do is figure out how we could play a role -- the country's human resource professionals -- to remove the barrier of employment.  And so we're bringing back people back into the workplace.

So, I went back to my team; it was, of course, a week before Christmas, and they said, "Wait a minute.  What?  You want me to work over the weekend?"  I said, "Yes."  Mark Holden and his team, Jenny.  Jenny is in the room.  Thank you, Jenny.  We all said we'd work together on the weekend with my Chief of Staff and our team, and we came up with an idea.

Over literally a one-week period, we launched a website called "Getting Talent Back to Work."  And we got 1,500 employers across this country to immediately sign to join the movement because we needed employers to commit.  It wasn’t enough to get people out of incarceration; we needed to get them employed.  In a very short period of time, after announcing it with Charles Koch, Richard Branson, myself, we had people just signing up.

And so now, all of a sudden, Mr. President, your goal -- your goal of getting that five times the number down to single digits -- we're going to do it.  And the Society for Human Resource Management.  (Applause.)  SHRM and our 300,000 members are committed.  We're going to play our role.  We're going to be warriors to get these warriors back to work.  Thank you.  God bless you.  (Applause.)

THE PRESIDENT:  Thank you, Johnny.  He'll do it too.

This afternoon, we also have an exciting announcement to ensure former inmates can overcome some of the greatest barriers to employment, including limited access to transportation, which is needed for interviews and for jobs.

To make this announcement, I'd like to invite up a very special guest and a powerful advocate for not only justice reform, but just a good person.  And I hear she's starting to study law.  She's also one of the most successful people in the entertainment business.  Soon she'll be one of the most successful lawyers -- I hate to tell all my lawyers back there.  (Laughter.)  But I knew her father, and I'll tell you, she's got good genes -- that I can tell you.  Good genes for everything.  And she's been a real friend, and her husband has been a real friend of mine.  Kim Kardashian West.  (Applause.)

     MS. KARDASHIAN WEST:  Hi.  It really is such an honor to be here today, so thank you.  My whole journey with criminal justice reform started about a year ago when I came to see the President, after speaking to Ivanka and Jared -- who really fought for me to get here -- and I pled the case of Alice Johnson, who the President granted clemency to.

And after that, I really spent so much time going to different prisons because I really had no connection to anybody on the inside and really just felt like, for me, I am at the place in my life that I wanted to make a difference and just wanted to do the right thing, but I didn’t know how or what to do, or even really what was going on.

And so after going to visit so many different prisons and really sitting down with lifers, with every situation you can possibly imagine, my heart just completely opened up and I wanted to do more.  So I started to study the law, which is law school, basically, in California.

And my attorneys are here today, Erin and Jessica, from Cut50.  (Applause.)  Thank you.

So the best part of it is I learned so much that I don’t even know if -- I don’t want to speak for anybody in law school, but I learned so much just, basically, working on memos and being the assistant to them while the FIRST STEP Act was happening, and like learning how you get bills passed, and working on it from the ground up.  So to get the President's support and to see it come to fruition was magic.

And the one thing that I just realized that needed so much support, that I'm happy to help and be supportive where I can, was the reentry of people coming home and seeing the lack of support that really existed.  Whether it's housing or the amount of letters that I get with people just needing transportation to job interviews, to jobs -- these people want to work.  They want the best outcome.  And I'm so happy to be here today amongst people that want the same thing and that really believe in supporting their reentry.

So I'm so happy to announce today that we have a rideshare partnership where formerly incarcerated people will be gifted gift cards so that they can get rides to and from job interviews, to and from jobs, family members, and that is so important -- so needed.

And I just want to thank the President for really standing behind this issue.  And seeing the compassion that he's had for criminal justice has been really remarkable.

So I just want to thank all of the organizations that are partnering with everything that's going on and really being supportive, because it really does mean a lot to so many people that I've had the pleasure to speak to.

And I think the ultimate goal is everyone wants the community to be safe.  And the more opportunity that we have and that they have, and the support that we help give them, the safer everyone will be.  And the recidivism rate will be -- continue to just get lower.

And so, I'm just thankful to everyone here that’s in support, and so proud of this partnership with the rideshare organization.  So, thank you.  (Applause.)

     THE PRESIDENT:  Thank you, Kim.  Thank you.  Great.  I think she's pretty popular, huh?  What do you think?  (Laughter.)  I can tell you this:  If she is your assistant -- she's your assistant.  Two lawyers?  (Laughter).  She's your assistant?  She's the highest paid assistant in history.  (Laughter.)  There's never been anything like it.

Anyway, thank you, Kim.  That was beautiful.

     I want to also just, while I'm here -- a couple of friends and they've been rally incredible to me: Pastor Darrell Scott.  Just stand up.  He is something.  (Applause.)  He's a religious man, but I watched him on CNN so often and, you know, I wouldn’t say that's the friendliest.  And I watched you take apart people like they were nothing.  So thank you, Pastor.  He's a pastor.

     PASTOR SCOTT:  In 2020, we’ll do it again.

     THE PRESIDENT:  2020, we'll do it again.  We're going to do it again.

     And Pastor Paula White.  Thank you, Paula.  That support has been incredible.  Thank you, Paula.  Thank you very much.  (Applause.)  Great job.  Right from the beginning, both of them. 

In every action we take, we are revitalizing our cities, restoring hope to our communities, and uniting citizens all across our country.  We're helping families grow their incomes and attend the schools of their choice, earn a great living, and have a truly rewarding career.  We want to ensure that every American is prepared for the jobs of today and for the industries of tomorrow.

And together, we are expanding the blessings of America for every citizen, from every background, from every community, and every walk of life.

We are breaking down old barriers, tearing down yesterday’s obstacles, and replacing the failures of the past with the bright and limitless future.  That's what we have going.  It's a limitless future.

So many people in this room and so many people outside of this room -- they're given a second and, in some cases, a third chance, in all fairness.  And I will say, they are really, really producing.  It's a great thing to watch.  If you -- you know.  You know all about it.  And you know about it very well.  And thank you.

MR. KOUFOS:  Thank you, Mr. President.

     THE PRESIDENT:  We really appreciate your being here.  And we'll not stop until everyone in our national family can achieve their own beautiful American Dream.

     I want to thank everybody for being here.  God bless you.  God bless America.  I very much appreciate it.  Thank you all very much.  Thank you.  (Applause.)

                                            END                4:56 P.M. EDT
 


REMARKS BY PRESIDENT TRUMP IN WORKING LUNCH WITH GOVERNORS ON WORKFORCE FREEDOM AND MOBILITY

Office of the Press Secretary


REMARKS BY PRESIDENT TRUMP
IN WORKING LUNCH WITH GOVERNORS
ON WORKFORCE FREEDOM AND MOBILITY

Cabinet Room
 

 

12:49 P.M. EDT

     THE PRESIDENT:  Okay, thank you very much.  And today, I'm delighted to welcome the governors from both parties to discuss the best ways to reform occupational licensing laws, advance childcare policies, and provide quality job training to all Americans so we can easily have some really phenomenal jobs, access to the jobs market and really fulfilling careers, and fulfilling careers of a lot of people.

Tremendous progress has been made.  My daughter Ivanka has been working on this very, very hard for pretty much the last year and a half.  And we've created over 10 million -- she has -- and working with some of the great companies, created over 10 million jobs.  It's been an incredible job that she's done, and I appreciate it.

Where's Ivanka?  Hi.  Hello, darling.  I guess, when you're a father, you're very proud of that.  But I'm very proud of the job she did, so thank you very much.

MS. TRUMP:  Thank you.  And I've had the great fortune of visiting with almost every governor in their states to discuss all of the three issues that you mentioned, and appreciate everyone's tremendous work and advocacy on (inaudible) childcare, and workforce development.

THE PRESIDENT:  Right.  And with a lot of big companies.

MS. TRUMP:  Yeah, absolutely.

THE PRESIDENT:  Like Walmart and others that have really taken -- I mean, taken on half a million jobs; 250,000 jobs at a time.  It's really been great.  So we'll let you talk about that.

Would you like to mention that right now?  Go ahead.

MS. TRUMP:  Sure.  Well, actually, Governor Reynolds is on our workforce advisory board.  This is a working group that supports our National Council for the American Workforce to think about how we can explore education holistically, particularly looking at that mid- to late-career worker in a time of tremendous disruption and change due to new technologies.

So it's been amazing.  We've traveled across the country and seen the best in-class examples where the private sector is really stepping up.  We've secured commitments from them to do more.  Tim Cook, from Apple, who was here today, who's also on the advisory board.

THE PRESIDENT:  Who just left.  He just left our office.

MS. TRUMP:  He's been a real force on both the advisory board and in his commitment to lifelong learning, generally.  Walmart, as you mentioned.  I was just in Indiana with Marc Benioff from Salesforce, where he committed to training and upskilling one million American workers over the course of the next five years.

THE PRESIDENT:  Fantastic.

MS. TRUMP:  So there's been real excitement around this.  And the best examples are when the private sector shares the skills that they need with the community colleges, the technical schools, the high schools.  And the students and workers are trained accordingly.  So we want to highlight it, and push and reinforce that.

THE PRESIDENT:  Really great job.  Thank you very much.

MS. TRUMP:  Thank you.

THE PRESIDENT:  Appreciate it.  Very outstanding.

Thanks to Governors Doug Ducey.  Doug, thank you very much.  Terrific job you're doing.  Brian Kemp.  Brian.  Brian.  How's it going?  Pretty good?

GOVERNOR KEMP:  It's great.

THE PRESIDENT:  I think so.  Good numbers you have.  Good numbers.

GOVERNOR KEMP:  They're good.

THE PRESIDENT:  The state doing well?

GOVERNOR KEMP:  It's doing good.  We're very appreciative of you signing the disaster relief bill very quickly.  That was helpful for us.  We were with Senator Perdue and Secretary Perdue, and Congressman Bishop in South Georgia last week.  And our farmers and farm families appreciate it.

THE PRESIDENT:  Right.  Well, I appreciate the job you're doing.

David Ige -- thank you, David, very much.  How's everything going?

GOVERNOR IGE:  Terrific.  It's going very well.  And we also appreciate signing the disaster relief.  As you know, we've had a challenging year in 2018, and we definitely appreciate it.

THE PRESIDENT:  Well, we got it done.  It was a tough one, actually, but we got it done.

And Kim Reynolds, everybody knows.  Kim.

GOVERNOR REYNOLDS:  Thank you.  And I also want to say thank you for the disaster relief, as well as E15 year around.  We had you in Iowa celebrating that great news.  It's great news for our farmers and our economy and for consumers.  So thank you for continuing to really do what your administration has been able to do for our farmers and our economy.

THE PRESIDENT:  Well, we were there yesterday, and the ethanol has been incredible, what they've done.  So it's a big boost for the farmers.

GOVERNOR REYNOLDS:  Big boost.  We really appreciate that a lot.

THE PRESIDENT:  And Chris Sununu?  Chris.  Hi.

GOVERNOR SUNUNU:  Hello.

THE PRESIDENT:  How's everything going?

GOVERNOR SUNUNU:  Crushing it.  Loving it.  (Laughter.)

THE PRESIDENT:  You are doing well.  I agree with that, Chris.

GOVERNOR SUNUNU:  I think your tax cuts, SOR grants, regulatory reform -- it's helping families.  It's putting money in people's pockets.  It's awesome.

THE PRESIDENT:  That's great, Chris.  You're really doing a good job.  Appreciate it.

And Tom Wolf?  Tom?

GOVERNOR WOLF:  Yeah, Pennsylvania is doing well.  I really think this is the right topic, talking about how we can get more people into the workforce and get them the skills they need.  And we need to talk about this very intensely, and you're doing a good job of it.

THE PRESIDENT:  And we'll be talking about that.  We're going to make some pretty strong statements todays.  We're doing a lot about it.

Bill Lee, thank you very much.  Bill.

GOVERNOR LEE:  Mr. President, good to see you.

THE PRESIDENT:  Thank you very much, Bill.

GOVERNOR LEE:  Thank you.  And thank you, by the way, for encouraging the people of Tennessee to help us get education reform done.  You spoke out about that for us, and we have made some real progress there, and giving every kid in our state access to high-quality education.  So thanks for that.

THE PRESIDENT:  It's working well too, isn’t it?

GOVERNOR LEE:  It is.  We're going to implement that, and we're hopeful and certain that we're going to improve our public school systems in a meaningful way.

THE PRESIDENT:  I've heard amazing things that you're doing with education in Tennessee.

GOVERNOR LEE:  Thank you.

THE PRESIDENT:  So you're going to have to teach some other people, maybe.  (Laughter.)  Huh?

GOVERNOR LEE:  We like best practices, and sharing them and getting them.

THE PRESIDENT:  And Mark Gordon.  Thank you, Mark, very much.  Appreciate it.

GOVERNOR GORDON:  Mr. President, it's wonderful to be here.  Thank you for your support of energy, making sure Wyoming is part of that energy picture going forward -- coal, natural gas, oil, wind, solar.  All very important parts of our economy going forward.  Thank you for your support of our farmers, making sure that we have clear access to trade.  That's also another important feature of what your administration has done.  And we appreciate it very much.

THE PRESIDENT:  Well, we're doing very well on the trade.  And, as you know, the USMCA is coming along well.  I think that, hopefully, it's going to get approved quickly.  Everybody wants it.  It's in Congress right now.  It's in the House.  And they're reviewing it.

But everybody seems to want it.  I think that's very -- I think that'll be a very bipartisan bill.  It's very much needed for the farmers, manufacturers.  The unions like it.  Everybody likes it.  It's something that was very important, and it's -- as you know, Canada is totally in line, and Mexico is totally in line.

And now it's up to us to get it passed.  And it's going to have a tremendous impact, I think, on -- somebody was saying over $100 billion.  Very -- a lot of money and a lot of jobs, and, really, a lot of -- it's going to be -- it's going to make life a lot more transparent, in a certain way, which is a positive.  But everybody wants it, and hopefully they can act quickly, because we can have that done very, very fast if we can get support from, really, the Democrats in Congress -- Nancy Pelosi.  They have to put the bill forward.  People want it to happen.  Let's see what happens.

We’re also joined by Secretary Alex Acosta.  And, Alex, thank you for the great job you're doing.  You're really doing a terrific job --

SECRETARY ACOSTA:  Thank you.

THE PRESIDENT:  -- over at Labor.  Thank you very much.

Through our Pledge of America's Workers, and to America's workers, my administration has partnered with governors, many of whom are in the room.  And you folks have been among the most active there are, and I appreciate it very much.  And we all appreciate it very much, because it's been incredible.  And businesses to provide more than 9 million new jobs, and it's going to be over 10 million in a very short period of time.  These are workforce development opportunities for the American worker.

We've made historic increases to childcare, block grants that go to states to help families access quality childcare.  Due to our booming economy, a record number of Americans are rejoining the workforce, including former inmates and those recovering from opioid addiction.  And the inmates -- it's a very special situation.  It's never taken place like this.  Because the economy is doing so well, you're doing great in your states, but the country is doing so well.  It's not so easy to get people -- and good people.  And they're giving inmates and people just getting out of prison, they're giving them a chance.

     And I have to tell you, the receptivity has been incredible.  They're doing really well.  Never happened before.  They had that stigma.  And the stigma was making it very, very hard for them to get jobs.  And numerous employers have told me it's -- it's incredible.  They wish they did it a long time ago.  They're having tremendous success with the whole program.

     Call them prisoners, call them inmates, call them whatever you want to call them, they're really working out well.  And people are very happy.  Their employers are very happy.

     So due to our booming economy, that's happening.  And we're also helping a lot with the opioid addiction.  We had a meeting yesterday that some of the media was at.  And in some areas we're down 17, 18 percent with the opioid.  And in some areas, we're down even more than that.  It's been incredible.  We're putting a lot of pressure on doctors.  We're putting a lot of -- a lot of pressure on different groups.  And even education.  But we're down, in some cases, more than -- and substantially more than 17 percent in a period of one year.  So that was a tremendous meeting we had yesterday.

To open up even more jobs for our citizens, we're working with states to address the burdensome and excessive occupational licensing laws, which really are very burdensome.  Would you say, Alex?

SECRETARY ACOSTA:  Very burdensome.  It's hurting our economy.

THE PRESIDENT:  A big problem.

Yeah.  What are you doing about it?

SECRETARY ACOSTA:  So we're actually working with several of the governors around the table.  Governor Reynolds just recently passed reform for military spouses so that they will now receive provisional licenses while they're in her state.

Governor Ducey has passed aggressive legislation -- and you just signed it, what, two months ago?

GOVERNOR DUCEY:  Yes.

SECRETARY ACOSTA:  In essence, you know, almost taking -- rolling back licensing requirements so that individuals can come to Arizona.  Governor Wolf is working on this.  We're working with just about all the governors.

The Federal Reserve Bank studies show that this is costing us upwards of 1.5 million jobs a year.

THE PRESIDENT:  Incredible.  Okay.  But you're going to solve the problem?  Huh?  (Laughter.)

SECRETARY ACOSTA:  We're working with the governors.  This is the status.

THE PRESIDENT:  You make it easy for them, okay?

Over the past 50 years, occupational licensing regulations have nearly tripled, keeping workers out of really good-paying jobs.  And, for the most part, I guess, the states would be handling it.  But you do need reference to the federal government.  So you'll take care of it.  And anything we can do, we're going to make it very easy for you to go very quickly.

In many states, workers must pay thousands of dollars and complete months -- and years, even -- of training to enter fields such as real estate, tourism, and many others.

For example -- this surprised me -- nationally, the average training for cosmetologists is 11 times longer than the training for emergency medical technicians, and sometimes training costs $20,000 for a cosmetology license.  So it takes a tremendous amount of time.  And we have great respect for cosmetologists, but there's something probably a little bit wrong with that.

Burdensome licensing laws especially hurt military spouses, who may be required to become re-certified each time they move -- and they're constantly moving.  It's amazing when I meet with military families; it's one of the big things.  They move.  They're incredible, they're incredible workers, but they're there for two years, or three years, or less.  And it's a bit of a problem. 

These regulations also harm low-income families who can’t afford the time and money needed to get into these fields.

Earlier this year, a gentleman named Governor Doug Ducey, my friend, signed a law into existence -- “universal licensing recognition,” which accepts occupational licenses granted in many states.  I applaud Governor Ducey, and I always have.  He's doing a fantastic job --

GOVERNOR DUCEY:  Thank you.

THE PRESIDENT:  -- in a fabulous state.

GOVERNOR DUCEY:  Thank you.

THE PRESIDENT:  Arizona is doing -- you're doing good -- for pioneering the change, and we hope that other states are going to follow Arizona’s lead.  And you really have been at the forefront.  And we appreciate -- really appreciate that.  Especially there.

GOVERNOR DUCEY:  Thank you.

THE PRESIDENT:  Say a couple of words about that, Doug

     GOVERNOR DUCEY:  Sure.  Well, first of all, I want to say thank you, Mr. President, for your focus on licensing laws and the regulations that get in the way of this.  We've really been focused on licensing reform in the state of Arizona.  We want to make the state a place of opportunity for all.

     We began with military spouses -- training.  Military spouses would often be in a position where they couldn't enter the workforce because their license wasn't recognized.

     We had great success with that and we wanted to expand it.  So we moved on to what we call "universal recognition" of occupational licensing.

     Not only is our economy booming right now, but our state is growing.  We've got people coming from all over the country.  And they don't lose their skills when they pack up a U-Haul truck and come to Arizona.

So we're going to recognize that license inside of the state.  And this is really for the little guy, the working man, the person that comes to town or to our state; they want to earn a living and they want to get to work.  And we believe it's a good reform.

We think it blows quite a hole in the mega-regulatory state that is there, while continuing to protect public health and public safety.  And just like I learn from many of the ladies and gentlemen around the table here, governors take good ideas and reapply them.  Everyone here is welcome to take this idea and reapply it in your state.

THE PRESIDENT:  That's been great.  Yeah.  We appreciate it.  Thank you very much.

And I think your border is looking a lot better.  They're saying, over the last four or five days, there's been a real diminution, a real lowering of people running across, coming across, needing to be apprehended.  What Border Security has been doing has been incredible.  They're apprehending.

GOVERNOR DUCEY:  There is a --

THE PRESIDENT:  You're seeing a difference.

GOVERNOR DUCEY:  There is a difference.  There is a real crisis there.  And I think it's still contingent on Congress to act --

THE PRESIDENT:  Absolutely.

GOVERNOR DUCEY:  -- not only on the USMCA, but on adjusting the laws and making sure that the resources are there to deal with both the humanitarian crisis and the security crisis.

THE PRESIDENT:  It's true.  It would be so easy to do.  We could sit down with the Democrats in a very short period of time.  We need the votes; don't have the votes.  We have to have the votes.  And we could sit down -- and you know we could sit down -- in a very, very few number of minutes and get rid of --

GOVERNOR DUCEY:  Yes.  Yes, we could.

THE PRESIDENT:  We could solve the asylum problem quickly and we could solve the few loopholes; they have a few loopholes that are just horrible.  No other country in the world has them.  And if the Democrats would agree, we could sit down and solve that problem.

In the meantime, Mexico has really stepped up to the plate.  I hope it continues.  But there has been a lot fewer people running up.  And they have 6,000 people on their southern border.  As of today, it's pretty much -- their force is fully intact.  And we'll be there and -- there's a big difference.

But with all of that being said -- as Doug has said, it would be, really, to everybody's advantage if we could sit down with the Democrats and make a very fast deal.  We've been trying; they don't want to give us the votes, they don't want to give us the effort.  And that's a shame.  Because you have people dying on the border.  You have people dying, you have children dying, you have women dying.  You have the human trafficking.  You have drugs coming across.  It would have a tremendous impact, Doug, on the drugs.

And you have people coming across that shouldn't be coming across.  You have gang members; you have a lot of other things.  And we're apprehending them and we're getting them out.  We have people all over the country.  You'll see it's starting in a much bigger way over the next week and a half.  But we have people all over the country.

ICE -- they're going out and taking out MS-13.  We're taking out MS-13.  We're going over the bad ones and getting the bad ones out.  They've been here for a long time.  And we're taking them out by the thousands.  Thousands of people being taken out -- MS-13 and other gangs.  They seem to be the worst, but I hear they have some others that are pretty bad too.  But we're getting them out.

So, with all of that, if anybody would like to say anything while you have these wonderful people from the media here, please feel free.  Would you like to go?  Anything?  Mark, would you like to say something?

GOVERNOR GORDON:  Well, thank you, Mr. President.  I'm the governor of the great state of Wyoming.  Yellowstone, the first park in the nation.  And I'm honored to be here.  I appreciate your leadership in convening this bipartisan group of governors.  And I look forward to having a productive discussion.  And I thank you for bringing together the governors to seek and listen to our perspectives.

As President Trump has recognized before, coal is important to our nation's future prosperity.  Wyoming is a leading coal producer and has among the largest coal reserves in the world and certainly the cleanest.

The President has been a strong supporter of coal and advancing new technologies that support carbon capture and sequestration that is critical in addressing climate change and to provide a bridge to a cleaner and healthier future and really good jobs.  Progress on these fronts is imperative for Wyoming, and I look forward to working with you on that.

And, you know, and a changing economy requires an evolving workforce.  In Wyoming, we have sought to expand educational opportunities, including vocational education, to develop the nimble workforce that our economy will need, allowing Wyoming to gain the skills that Wyoming workers (inaudible) the skills needed to improve the quality of their work, their take-home pay, and ultimately better lives for them and their families.

The President’s apprenticeship program and expansion -- and, Ivanka, your work on that -- is an avenue for Wyoming to pursue the financial support for building our own workforce.  We have applied for a grant and are appreciating the program in Wyoming, which, if awarded, will increase the number of registered apprenticeship programs in Wyoming.

And I will say, Governor Ducey, I’m glad that you’re following our lead.  We are the lowest -- (laughter) -- licensed state -- licensure state in the nation.

THE PRESIDENT:  I was waiting for that.  (Laughter.)

GOVERNOR REYNOLDS:  But that's what makes the country strong, right?  Is the competitiveness of the governors.

GOVERNOR GORDON:  Thank you, again, Mr. President.

THE PRESIDENT:  Really good job, Mark.  Thank you very much.  Appreciate it.

Chris, you’re doing fantastically up in New Hampshire.  Do you want to say something?

GOVERNOR SUNUNU:  We’re doing well, Mr. President.  There’s no doubt about it.  You know, when you talk about workforce, I mean, there’s two issues that really come up.  One is, obviously, we’re at the tip of the spear on the opioid crisis.  And Secretary Acosta has been great.

We created a program that came out of -- when I ran a resort, in my previous life, we created something called Recovery Friendly Workplaces, where, again, if you want someone to be in recovery, there’s a big picture.  There isn’t just a 28-day treatment, "goodbye and good luck.”  You need employment, you need family, you need community, and allowing and training the private sector to be, quote, “recovery friendly.”

And through Secretary Acosta’s grant, we’ve been growing that program.  We have tens of thousands of people in New Hampshire now working for a recovery-friendly workplace, which dovetails right into what we’re also talking about, which is justice reform, right?  Giving people a second chance.  Allowing folks, when they come up, to have a job waiting for them.  It’s the same type of concept, making sure that -- we have 2.4 percent unemployment.  I got more jobs than I know what to do with.  We need the workers.  They’re there.  And they really need -- we need to be allowing them the opportunity to get into the workforce.

And I also want to say, you know, what Ivanka and her team has done on paid family leave.  This is a concept that a lot of states have taken on.  I know they’re discussing it in Congress.  Again, we’ve tried to find an innovative way where there’s no burden on the taxpayer.  Right?  We’ve found that we -- joining with Vermont, I think -- I don’t know if Vermont is going to forward with it.  I got to call Governor Scott and see if they’re on board.

But a way to get the private sector involved, and, really, to be able to provide a benefit without an income tax.  And you do that through public-private partnerships, which, Mr. President, you have done more on the public-private partnerships in this country than a lot of folks could have even imagined.

So by putting some of these pieces in place, it really drives forward.

The last thing, if I may -- I do want to mention -- when you talk about second chances, when you talk about -- where they’re talking about the opioid crisis, where you’re talking about justice reform and prison reform: mental health.  I have all the jobs in the world, but we need to be working behind the wall -- something your SOR grant did very, very well -- providing recovery programs behind the wall in the prisons so when they came out, they’re healthy, they’re ready to engage in the workforce.

You have to make sure we appreciate the horrible fact that many of our prisons in this country are essentially mental health institutions.  And that’s a crying shame.

So you need to have the programs there to make sure that, when they come out, they’re ready to be part of that workforce in a productive manner.  You create an economy with so many jobs out there, it’s unbelievable.  The opportunity is there, but we’ve got to make sure we’re appreciating the individuals as individuals and getting them the services they need so they hit the ground running.

THE PRESIDENT:  That’s great.  Great job.  What are you at -- 2.4 percent?

GOVERNOR SUNUNU:  2.4 percent.  I’m competing with Kim over there.

THE PRESIDENT:  Wow.  2.4.  (Inaudible.)

GOVERNOR REYNOLDS:  Yeah, 2.4 in Iowa, too.  (Laughter.)  So, yeah.  There's jobs.

MS. TRUMP:  I think (inaudible) amazing follow-ons to what you just said -- and I think is so important -- is it’s because of the booming economy, because of the policies that have been put in place around tax reform.  And actually, as part of tax reform, the first national paid family leave program was passed to incentivize employers who have workers making under $75,000, to offer paid leave benefits.  So we’re seeking to do more.  But that’s a very important program that -- whether it’s deregulation or tax reform, the market is booming and unemployment is at record lows.

But one of the most rewarding things is to see people coming off the sidelines and back into the workforce, and workforce participation rates, across the country, rising.

So just in the last quarter of 2018, 73 percent of all new jobs were from people who were on the sidelines of the economy -- not even people on unemployment.  So it’s really -- whether it’s criminal justice reform, second-chance hiring, all the work we’re doing around skills training, employers are getting creative and they’re reaching out and they’re creating better and more opportunities, better and more jobs for American workers.  So it’s very exciting.  And thank you for your leadership on this.

THE PRESIDENT:  Great.  Thank you very much.  Thanks, Chris.  Say hello to your father.  Everything good?  He’s some guy.

GOVERNOR SUNUNU:  I got to put with him every day, Mr. President.  (Laughter.)

THE PRESIDENT:  He’s some guy.  There was nobody tougher than him on me, and now there’s nobody that’s better.  He’s a great guy, actually.

GOVERNOR SUNUNU:  He’s doing well.  Thank you, sir.

THE PRESIDENT:  Give him my regards, okay?

GOVERNOR SUNUNU:  You bet.

THE PRESIDENT:  Tom?  Please.

GOVERNOR WOLF:  Tom Wolf.  Thank you, Mr. President.  As Governor of Pennsylvania, before I was -- I’ve been in politics now for four and a half years.  And before that, I was a business owner.  And I understood that it was really important to be able to get access to good people.

In my business, the best people were people who grew up on dairy farms and people who were in prison, who were looking for a second chance.

THE PRESIDENT:  Wow.

GOVERNOR WOLF:  (Inaudible.)  And you made that point just a moment ago.  If you wonder why we didn’t do it earlier than that -- these are people who really want to -- want to work and want to succeed.

So we have done a lot of things with clean slate legislation, criminal justice reform -- what you were talking about -- bringing people from the sidelines and get them into the job market.

In fact, we called our clean slate bill the "jobs bill."  The first in the nation; I think it’s still the only one in the nation.  But we are really working hard to get people back into the workforce.

We’re focusing on licensing reform, getting workforce development.  Brought the chairman of the -- president of the Pennsylvania State Chamber Business and Industry with the president of the Pennsylvania AFL-CIO together to co-chair an effort to actually bring people back into the workforce.  And they’re working marvelously.  They’ve got a command center.  They’re doing great work.

We passed a unique GI bill to deal with problems of licensing, so that when a military family moves from state to state, they don’t have to give up their teacher’s certification; they don’t have to give up their -- whatever license they have from the other state.  We had a good idea, calling it "universal recognition," but it really helps military families, the people who are mobile.

We’re also on our way to implementing our first significant licensing reform that has 13 points to it, including limiting some licenses altogether, but making it a lot easier in reducing the barriers to entry to a lot of professions.

I’m really looking forward to this session because I think we can learn a lot in Pennsylvania as what we can do, what more we can do, and how we can partner with each other and the federal government and with the private sector to actually make things better for the people of Pennsylvania.  That’s what we’re about.

So thank you for having this meeting.

THE PRESIDENT:  Well, you made a great statement.  I’ve never heard it before.  The best people: people in prison and people that work on farms.  (Laughter.)  That one I’ve never heard before.  But that's okay with me.  You’re making tremendous program, so that’s great.  Thank you very much, Tom.

Brian Kemp, Georgia.

GOVERNOR KEMP:  Mr. President, as you know, we’re doing a lot on workforce in our state.  Like a lot of other governors, this is one of our top issues.  Just had the lowest unemployment we’ve had in 18 years.  Had a great visit with Ivanka at UPS to see, really, what David Abney there -- to see state-of-the-art training.

Obviously, our colleges, universities, our technical college system is very engaged in supplying the workforce.  But we got a unique program.  Our QuickStart program, which has been ranked the number-one job training program in many regards, in the country, which we’re proud of.

But it will train qualified, existing businesses and new businesses coming into the state, and those that want to expand.  So it makes us very mobile to be able to do job training.

And then we also have specialized training centers for certain industries that we’re targeting in Georgia that our companies need workers in.  And we're doing that in manufacturing, aviation, bioscience, cybersecurity, film -- the film industry is very big in Georgia right now -- and also in (inaudible) tech.  And that's one reason we continue to have an A-plus rating when it comes to our workforce.  So we're doing a lot.

We know that's a huge issue on the occupational licensing front.  A couple of years ago, we passed a compact for nurses so they can join a compact so you don't have the multi-state licensing issue.  Those licenses will reciprocate.  We did that this year with medical doctors.  That's very important, especially when you think of telemedicine and rural healthcare.

     And then something that's probably not on many people's radar: We did some legislation this year that our community bankers -- our smaller banks -- are very excited about.  We're letting them have better access to capital, which is going to help our areas outside that are struggling in rural Georgia to be able to lend more money to the businesspeople there to expand and hire in parts of our state that we don't have as much going on.

     So, you know, those are the things that we're focused on.  But also, the disaster relief money going into the south and southwest Georgia is going to be big for our economy in the next year or two --

     THE PRESIDENT:  Right.
   
     GOVERNOR KEMP: -- as we continue to recover.  So, thank you.

     THE PRESIDENT:  That was a big deal.

     GOVERNOR KEMP:  Well, it was.  I know you were frustrated, like I was, that it took so long.  But we're very grateful you've signed it quick.

And been meeting today, talking about -- hopefully there's going to be flexibility with the money in the form of block grants or other thigs so we could -- our agriculture commissioner --

     THE PRESIDENT:  There is going to be action.  Yeah.

     GOVERNOR KEMP:  We can get that money out very quickly with transparency and put it to work.  And they need it.

     THE PRESIDENT:  Sonny is going to do a job on it, but it's going to go very quickly.  And I think nobody else but this group would have been able to get it.  That was a tough thing to get, and we got it for our farmers and for a lot of people.

     GOVERNOR KEMP:  Well, we appreciate the administration's steadfast support through all of that.  And all the folks -- the Secretary-level folks and budget folks that have worked with us.  And we look forward to working you in the future to get that money out.

     THE PRESIDENT:  Thank you, Brian.  Thank you very much.

     Kim?

     GOVERNOR REYNOLDS:  Well, thank you, Mr. President.  In Iowa, we have a diverse and growing economy, even with some significant challenges with agriculture and the flooding.  But we have the lowest unemployment rate -- 2.4 percent.  We have more Iowans working than any other time in our state history.

     And here's the other part of the narrative, I think, that nobody has mentioned yet: We've had seven straight quarters of wage growth in the state of Iowa --

     THE PRESIDENT:  Yeah.

     GOVERNOR REYNOLDS:  -- and a lot of blue-collar workers are experiencing that.  So, Ivanka, not only are we bringing people off the sidelines, but we're seeing wages increase too, and that is just a win-win.

     So as I travel the state, here's the other good news: Because of the politics that you've put in place, every job creator that I talk to, they are projecting significant growth moving forward.  They're very optimistic about the future.  And what an opportunity for Iowans.

     So, workforce, housing, and childcare are three big barriers that we're addressing every single day.  We've got a Future Ready Iowa program that has a goal of having 70 percent of Iowans in the workforce, (inaudible) either education of training beyond high school by the year 2025.  We have a robust registered apprenticeship program that we're bringing into our high schools.

As we try to empower and grow rural Iowa, the more connectivity and relationships that we can build with our young people and our job creators right in our communities, that's a win-win.

     We have kids that are coming out of high school that have participated in a welding apprenticeship program where they're actually earning forty and fifty thousand dollars the last two years of high school and going right into a job, right in that community.  So that's keeping our communities vibrant and growing.  So we're really excited about the opportunities that we see there.

     I'm so proud to be a part of your Workforce Advisory Council to really create a national brand about the opportunities that exist in states all across this country to put some accountability in place and look for opportunity to really scale best practices that are working.

     The other thing that we did -- and it's been mentioned: Mental health is a big piece of that.

     THE PRESIDENT:  Right.
   
     GOVERNOR REYNOLDS:  We did comprehensive, adult mental health care reform last year.  And this year, I was able to pass -- working with the legislature -- a children's mental health system.  We've been talking about it for decades, and nobody got it done.  And it really -- there's a lot of money that goes into the system, but parents don't know where to start.

And so we've created a system -- a structure, some oversight, some eligibility requirements, and core-mandated services.  We're also appropriating some funds to educators to help them identify early warning signs of mental illness so we can get these kiddos the services that they need sooner rather than later, and to help buy down the waitlist.

And before I wrap up, we're really big on second chances too.

     THE PRESIDENT:  Good.

     GOVERNOR REYNOLDS:  We're coming back next year with criminal justice reform.  We did some employer liability shield.  We've got registered apprenticeship programs in every single institution.  We're helping them get driver's license.  We're dealing with transportation.  Living -- a place to live when they go back into society and a job that's waiting for them to participate in as well.

     So thanks for helping be a partner in what we're trying to do at the state level.  It's incredible.

Thanks, Ivanka.

     THE PRESIDENT:  It's been a great experience.  You've been fantastic.  And on top of all that -- and Mexico and Canada are now buying a lot of stuff.

     GOVERNOR REYNOLDS:  Yes.  Yeah.  And so we --

     THE PRESIDENT:  They're buying a lot of your agricultural products again.  You know, that started as of a few days ago.  But they are buying a lot.

     GOVERNOR REYNOLDS:  Yeah.  We need Congress to ratify USMCA.

     THE PRESIDENT:  Yeah, well, they have to get that ratified.  Even before they ratify it.

     GOVERNOR REYNOLDS:  Oh, even -- yeah.

     THE PRESIDENT:  But even before.  They've been in for a period of time now, buying a lot of agricultural products.

     Hey, David, go ahead.  Please.

     GOVERNOR IGE:  Well, certainly.  We are doing many of the same things.  We're expanding our apprenticeship programs.  Really trying to connect the dots between our education system and the job opportunities.  Working with businesses to embrace new apprenticeship programs in healthcare and technology.  Trying to increase and improve ability of our high school students to get access to careers, whether that's higher education.  You know, we do have our early college program that's producing high school students that are graduating with associate of arts degrees because of our commitment to ensuring that all of our high school students have access to higher education.

     But we are also looking at taking apprenticeship programs that have been so successful, especially in the construction trades, into the new areas of job opportunities in healthcare, as well as technology.  So we're excited about that.

     And we are pursuing second chance and criminal justice reform as well, investing in prison industries programs, trying to ensure that those, at the time that they end their incarceration, have quality job skills so they can hit the job running as well.

So we're excited by all of those opportunities to make sure that everyone in our community has access to quality jobs and living wages.

     THE PRESIDENT:  Thank you very much, David.  Appreciate it.  Good job.

     Bill?

     GOVERNOR LEE:  Mr. President, I'm interested in the fact that all of us around this table are talking about the things that we're able to do because we have an economy that is so strong in this country because of the policies that you have put in place.

And we, in Tennessee, share in that strong economy and that low unemployment, but we want to continue to improve.  We want to continue to bring more people into the workforce.

And the work that you're doing in workforce development is particularly interesting to me.  Six months ago, I ran a company of 1,400 skilled workers: plumbers, pipefitters, welders, electricians.  That’s what I've done all my life.  I know firsthand how critically important it is to have skilled workers and the lack of them that we have in our country.

So when I became governor, we rolled out something called the Governor's Investment in Vocational Education Act -- the GIVE Act.  We're providing dual credit enrollment at no cost to high school students that are enrolled in vocational, technical, agricultural career paths.  It's a $25 million investment that’s going to set up through community grants, CTE programs in high schools that don't have them.

And we're working with the employers.  As a former employer, knowing that I knew what skills I needed better than the education system did, then we're working with employers to help design those curriculum for those programs.

We also are doing something called the Future Workforce Initiative that set up, initially, a hundred middle school STEM programs.  We want to be an attractive state for the jobs of the future.  And I have an engineering background myself, so we've rolled out this hundred -- a hundred middle school plan, but we have a goal of tripling the number of STEM-designated public high schools in Tennessee by 2022.

We think if we approach this vocational side, as well as the STEM education side, then we're going to have a workforce ready for the future.  And so we're grateful for your advancing workforce development in such a great way.

And I'll add, too, you know, I spent about 20 years working in a prison reentry program myself, in the private sector, in non-profit work.  And I mentored men coming out of prison.  And I saw how criminal justice reform changes lives.  It changes lives.  It saves taxpayers money because we incarcerate less people.  It reduces recidivism.  And at the end of the day, it lowers crime and it produces safer neighborhoods.

So we've invested, this year, in an education program for those who are incarcerated, knowing that a person coming out of incarceration reentry with a certificate or some level of attainment has about a 40 percent chance of more successful reentry than one who doesn’t.

So I could continue to talk, but I'm excited to be here because these are subjects that are near and dear to my heart but that are transformative for our nation.  And your leadership in them, on a national level, allows us at the state level to get more done, and so we're grateful for that.  I'm excited to be here.

THE PRESIDENT:  Well, you know, Bill -- thanks; that's really great.  But very few people thought that criminal justice reform could get done.

GOVERNOR LEE:  That's right.

THE PRESIDENT:  And they've been trying to get it done for years.  As you people know, they've been trying to get it done for many years, and we got it done.

GOVERNOR LEE:  That’s right.

THE PRESIDENT:  And, I guess, they're going to even make some modifications and some additions to it as time goes by.  And we got it done from some very liberal people and from some of the most conservative people in the country.  It's an incredible thing.  Some of the most conservative and some liberal folks, and they all pulled together.  We did something that everybody said could not happen.

GOVERNOR LEE:  That’s right.

THE PRESIDENT:  And it was a tremendous package, and part of what we're talking about is the prison reform and all of the other things that we're doing -- many, many things.  And so it's an honor to be involved with that.  But it was really something.

And Jared and Ivanka, and so many of the people -- a lot of the governors helped.  A lot of the governors.  States like Texas and states like Kentucky.  And some states where they're pretty tough states, Doug, right?  Like you?  But some pretty tough states.  They were -- they had done it long before the federal government.  You couldn’t get it done in the federal government, and we got it done.

So we owe a big thanks to a lot of people.  But that was something that was never going to happen, and everybody pulled together and did something very special.  So, it's great.

     I'd like to ask, maybe, a man who's been with me for a long time, and he's still with me, but he's going to be going from -- he's going to be working from the outside a little bit, as opposed to the inside.  Now, he can actually speak even more vociferously.  (Laughter.)

Kevin, could you say a few words?  Tell them just briefly where we've come from and where we're going.

     CHAIRMAN HASSETT:  Sure.  You know, I think that watching all of the governors talk about the great things they've done, one of the things that wasn’t mentioned that I know they've been paying attention to, as well, is the importance of childcare in helping single moms reconnect to the labor force.  Something that Ivanka has emphasized for the last couple of years.

     And, you, sir -- you might recall emphasized block grants to states so that the states could experiment to providing childcare and development to single moms.  Well, I pulled the data right before the meeting this morning, and the labor force participation rate for single moms aged 25 to 34, over the last couple of years -- three years -- is up 4 percentage points.

     And so it's not just -- you know, basically, the way you get growth like this is you solve a whole bunch of little problems.  And so it's not just setting the top rate; it's finding the little problems and working to fix them.

     And then, finally, sir, one of the things you charged me to do, you might recall, about two years ago, was to look at all the training programs everywhere in government and evaluate them at CEA -- to have our staff do that -- and to issue a report that we'll make public in about a week.  And so the report is going through Staff Sec right now.  I brought a copy, right here.  We've actually really done it.

But the sign of how much this effort has pulled everybody together is that -- Ivanka will smile; she gave me a whole bunch of comments this morning of like -- (laughs) -- of things that she wanted changed in the report because there was literature that we didn’t cite that we should've, and so on.  But the point is, it's really been a massive effort of this White House and it's really been successful.  Thank you, sir.

     THE PRESIDENT:  Great job.  Thank you very much, Kevin.  Really, a fantastic job that you've done.  And I know you'll just keep it going.  Maybe from a different little location, right?

     CHAIRMAN HASSETT:  Yeah.  (Inaudible) D.C.

     THE PRESIDENT:  Thank you.  Very, very talented man.  Thank you.

     CHAIRMAN HASSETT:  Thank you, sir.

     THE PRESIDENT:   Thank you, everybody, very much.  Appreciate it.

     Q    Mr. President, Lindsey Graham said nobody should ever accept assistance from a foreign government.  Any comment on that?  Any comment on Iran?

     THE PRESIDENT:  Thank you very much, everybody.

     Q    Do you think we should return to the gold standard?  (Laughter.)

     THE PRESIDENT:   (Inaudible) think about it.

     Q    Talk to me later.  (Laughter.)

     THE PRESIDENT:  I'll talk to you later.  That's an interesting question.

                                                      END                1:30 P.M. EDT

 

PRESIDENT DONALD J. TRUMP IS HELPING AMERICANS GAIN A SECOND CHANCE TO BUILD A BRIGHTER FUTURE

Office of the Press Secretary

PRESIDENT DONALD J. TRUMP IS HELPING AMERICANS GAIN A SECOND CHANCE TO BUILD A BRIGHTER FUTURE
 

“Americans have always believed in the power of redemption – that those who have fallen can work toward brighter days ahead.” – President Donald J. Trump 

PROVIDING A SECOND CHANCE AT SUCCESS: President Donald J. Trump is advancing second chance hiring to help give all Americans the opportunity to work towards a brighter future.  
  • The Trump Administration is promoting second chance hiring to ensure Americans have opportunities to succeed after leaving prison.    
  • The President is mobilizing resources across his Administration to boost second chance hiring.
    • The Department of Justice and Bureau of Prisons is launching a new “Ready to Work Initiative” to connect employers directly with former prisoners.
    • The Department of Labor is awarding more than $2 million to States to support fidelity bonds that will underwrite companies that hire workers with criminal backgrounds.
    • The Department of Education is expanding an initiative that allows individuals in prison to receive Pell Grants to better prepare themselves for the workforce.
    • The Office of Personnel Management is working to make USAJOBS – the Federal Government’s job listings – available to individuals in Federal prison and upon release.
  • The Trump Administration is working with the private sector and non-profit organizations to help give former prisoners a second chance at the American dream. 
    • Employers realize that second chance hiring is good for their businesses, especially in today’s thriving economy where there are far more job opportunities than job seekers. 
    • Non-profits play a critical role by providing transitional assistance, counseling, housing, and education to former prisoners so they may become productive members of society.
FROM THE FIRST STEP TO A SECOND CHANCE: The First Step Act and second chance hiring are part of President Trump’s agenda to create opportunity for all Americans.
  • Second chance hiring builds on the success of the historic First Step Act signed into law by President Trump in December 2018. The First Step Act created a fairer justice system for all and enacted programs to reduce recidivism and make our communities safer.   
  • This landmark legislation reformed policies that failed Americans for decades and enabled some offenders to petition for a review of their sentences.
  • Since the First Step Act was signed into law, 90 percent of those who have had their sentences reduced are African American.
LIFTING UP OUR WORKERS, BUSINESSES, AND COMMUNITIES: The American people, our businesses, and our communities all benefit from second chance hiring. 
  • Second chance hiring gives former prisoners the chance to successfully reenter society and live a life with dignity and meaning.  
  • Instead of struggling to find the talent they need, businesses that hire former prisoners can often gain productive and dedicated workers.
  • All Americans benefit when former prisoners are able to find an occupation and a purpose rather than returning to crime.
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