WATCH: Biden announces $35 million investment to help supply chain resiliency
On the identical working day that President Joe Biden called out Russia and issued harsh sanctions for its invasion of Ukraine, his only other general public visual appeal was an party concentrated on the will need to unkink the provide chain for minerals used in batteries, electronics and other technologies.
Check out Biden’s remarks in the player earlier mentioned.
Biden declared a $35 million investment in the domestic production of minerals and materials that are needed to build a wide range of technological products, including pcs, batteries, smartphones, motor vehicles and home appliances.
The Section of Protection awarded a agreement to MP Materials Corp. to style and design and build a facility to process major exceptional earth features (HREEs) at the company’s Mountain Go, California creation web page.
The undertaking will create the initially processing and separation facility of its kind for HREEs in assistance of both equally defense and professional programs in the United States.
Biden’s back-to-back occasions on Tuesday highlighted the competing claims for Biden’s attention getting into the spring of a midterm election year: the prospect of a calamitous European land war that will only include to inflation and other troubles at household even though also handling a vexing set of domestic problems and need to-do responsibilities.
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For Biden, the convergence of these types of urgent foreign and domestic troubles puts to a examination the normally cavalier assertions of former administrations that a president has to be ready to “walk and chew gum” at the exact time.
Biden acknowledged the troubling overlap in remarks Tuesday as oil and gasoline charges have climbed on the grim headlines from Ukraine.
He announced sanctions from Russian financial institutions, oligarchs and banking institutions as effectively as Russia’s sovereign personal debt, correctly chopping the state off from U.S. and European economic methods.
But Biden also mentioned he wishes to limit the “pain” to People in america due to the fact sanctions aimed at pressuring Russian President Vladimir Putin could also limit Russia’s exports of oil and normal gas and result in international strength price ranges to soar.
His White Property this 7 days is also vetting nominees for a coming opening on the Supreme Court.
Add that 40-calendar year high inflation, a stalled domestic agenda, a slew of government orders to enforce, infrastructure pounds to expend and sagging acceptance ratings that could make implementation all the much more tough. And the impact of the COVID pandemic, though seeming to fade, is nevertheless staying felt.
Biden made use of the minerals function to tension the importance of investing in U.S. output and steering clear of reliance on China.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom greeted Biden at the minerals party Tuesday afternoon by expressing surprise that the virtual occasion hadn’t been rescheduled for the reason that of Ukraine.
“I had an in excess of-under that you were likely to this these days,” Newsom joked. “Thank you for not canceling on us.”