Pool Reports of July 2, 2021

Intown Pool Report #1

Good morning. It's Dodgers day at the White House. The briefing has been moved to 1 pm.

Intown Pool Report #2

POTUS appeared at 10:50 in the EEOB downstairs auditorium, in suit and blue striped tie. There was an "American Jobs Plan" backdrop, and he was clearly ebullient about the jobs numbers, and the report of 850,000 new jobs.

"This is historic progress,'' he said, "pulling our economy out of the worst crisis in 100 years." (Your pooler not certain how he got to that number: 1921 was eight years before the Great Crash.) He noted that the US was the only nation "where the OECD projections of future output are higher today than they were in January, 2020."

He argued it was all "a direct result of the American rescue plan." He noted that the CBO projection for growth for 2021 was 3.7 percent in February; that is now 7.4 percent, "in large part because of the plan and our work to defeat the virus."

"The last time the economy grew at this rate was in 1984 and Ronald Reagan was tells us it is morning in America. Well, this is getting close to afternoon here, the sun is coming out."

He ended with a call for passage of the rest of his plan. "Our plan is working. We're not going to let up now." Full transcript will follow from the White House.

President took three questions on Afghanistan, and that will be in next report.

Intown pool report #3 - Afghanistan

The president answered a few questions on Afghanistan after his discussion of the jobs report. Check against transcript — below is rough.

On the withdrawal, and today's departure of American troops from Bagram air base, he said "we are on track exactly where we expected to be." He said there had to be "some sort of rational drawdown with our allies."

Asked about the risks of withdrawal, he said: "Look we were in Afghanistan for 20 years, 20 years." Said he met with Ghani, and "they have capacity" to sustain their government. But he said he was "concerned that they deal with the internal issues that they have to be able to general the kind of the support they need nationwide."

Your pooler asked about whether the US would have the capability to provide air support or other support to keep Kabul from being overrun he said: "We have worked out an over the horizon capacity that we can be value-added, but the afghans are going to have to do it themselves with the Air Force they have" which the US is helping maintain.

He said he wanted to talk not about Afghanistan now, but swung to how "wages are up," Covid is down, and he wanted to focus on that for the weekend. He then talked briefly about his concerns that people who are not vaccinated will be at risk of the variant. "I'm not concerned there's going to be a major outbreak, in other worlds that we're going to have another epidemic nationwide. But I'm concerned lives will be lost." He noted a report that the new variant might be communicable to pets - "so I say not totally facetiously, for those of you who haven't been vaccinated" do it for your families.

He walked off, but came back to answer a question about whether his program would be passed in congress. He said he can never be onfidenct of anything. "This is the process." Clearly a bit exasperated at the question he said, "I love you guys but you want me to say "Yes, I'm absolutely certain." He noted life isn't like like

He posed hypotheticals:

"Are you absolutely certain that this new commission is going to work, investigating what happened on the Sixth? Are you guys confident that Republicans will participate? " He said his job was to "do my best to lay out what I think the country has to do, try to be as persuasive as I can," and hope for best outcome

Intown Pool Report 4, Dodgers World Series event

The Dodgers event was in the East Room, with the World Series trophy set behind the podium, and the Dodgers, their owners and managers filed into to stand on three tiers behind the President, with George and Martha Washington framing the team assemblage.

VP Harris came in, and sat next to the Senate Republican leader, Kevin McCarthy. (That would have been an interesting conversation to hear, but they did not appear to say much to each other beyond initial pleasantries.)

The President entered and said "We're here today to congratulate a group of folks who did pretty well. I have a feeling, Kamala, that we may be doing this again by the end of the year." (For those who don't keep up, the Dodgers are 50-31 for the season, and a half game behind the Giants in NL West.)

POTUS then went on to talk about divisions in team loyalties at the White House — he alluded to the fact that Harris was from Northern California, and said he wouldn't discuss "who she roots for" and in his own family.

Best quote of the day: "My wife is a Philly girl from her belt buckle to her shoe soles, and if I root for anybody but the Phillies, I sleep in the Lincoln Bedroom alone."

He alluded to Dodger history, including a quick reference to Jackie Robinson, with no reference to the teams traitorous move from Brooklyn to L.A. Instead he celebrated the fact that the Dodgers "finished with the highest winning percentage of any team since 1954." Then he wound into a discussion of the pandemic, the interruption of the season, and how sports brings the nation together. He thanked the Dodgers for turning Dodger stadium into a mass testing and vaccination center. "So not only does Dodger Stadium host world champions, it helps save lives and strengthen our democracy."

There was a ritual presentation of Dodger T-shirts to POTUS, who got Number 46, and VPOTUS, who got number 49.

POTUS came back to talk about how the United States is the only country "in the world based on an idea" rather than culture or geography. He talked about equity. And then he quoted Satchel Paige, because at a baseball even you have to quote Satchel Paige or Yogi Berra. Asked about age, Satchel said he doesn't look at it as "how old would you be if you didn't know how old you were." Biden, who is 78, said he would be 51. He thought the team would be 19. He did get a laugh.

A lot of photos were taken, with Biden kneeling at the center, team around him and VP Harris. Mayor Eric Garcetti joined for later shots.

From White House:

In attendance:

• 50 members of The Los Angeles Dodgers, including:
  
  • Mark Walter, Owner & Chairman
  • Clayton Kershaw, Pitcher (program speaker)
  • Dave Roberts, Team Manager
  • Byron Minerd, Main Owner
  • Bobby Patton, Owner
  • Todd Boehly, Owner
  • Stan Kasten, CEO
  • Andrew Friedman, President of Baseball Operations
  • Justin Turner, Third Baseman
  • Mookie Betts, Right Fielder
  • Cody Bellinger, Center Fielder
  • Walker Buehler, Pitcher
  • Victor Gonzalez, Pitcher
  • Julio Urias, Pitcher

• 10 members of the California Congressional delegation
• Mayor Eric Garcetti of Los Angeles
• Leader Kevin McCarthy (CA)

Intown Pool Report #5 — Swearing in of new citizens

POTUS returned to the East Room at 2:53 pm, where previously he had been host to the Dodgers, for a swearing-of-allegiance ceremony for 21 naturalized Americans, including several now serving in the armed forces. This appears to be the first such ceremony in the White House since President Trump did a small one that turned out to be for the Republican National Convention, though that seemed to surprise those sworn in at the time.

The introduction on Friday was done by Tracy Reno, the acting director of US Citizenship and Immigration. The new citizens came from 16 countries, ranging from Afghanistan to New Zealand. She swore them in, and the Sec. Of Homeland Security Alejandro Mayorkas, took the stage, described how his mother had been a political refugee twice, first from the Nazis, then from Cuba, where she brought the secretary as an infant. "Today our nation is better than it was yesterday,'' he said, "in part because we have new citizens."

He introduced POTUS, who described his own ancestors' trip to America in a coffin-ship in 1849, from Ireland, "having no idea whether they would make it across the Atlantic to the United States." He then traced their move to Scranton. "And I stand here on the shoulders of sacrifices of my great great grandfather, my great grandfather, my grandfather…"

He repeated what he had said to the Dodgers, about how America was "founded on an idea,'' and that "every other nation in the world was founded on your geography, or ethnicity or religion." Then he said "you can't define an American,'' describing the nation's diversity.

He recalled swearing in new citizens, all members of the military, in Saddam Hussein's palace in Baghdad. "I got to swear them in, in the palace of a dictator." Then he talked about immigration reform, "smart border management," and cited "Vice President Harris's leadership for getting into the root causes of why people are migrating."

"We need an immigration system that reflects our values, and upholds our laws. We can do both,'' he said. He presented an award to a nurse from New York, Sandra Lindsay, an immigrant from Jamaica. He described her work saving patients at a hospital on Long Island, saying "she poured her heart and soul into the work" of saving COVID-19 patients, while some of her own relatives died. And she was "the first person in 'America to get fully vaccinated outside of clinical trials." Her scrubs will be in an exhibit about Covid at the Smithsonian, he announced.

They ended with the pledge of allegiance.

Intown Pool Repot #6 National Education Association, Washington Convention Center

The President appeared onstage at the Convention Center, but it was the FLOTUS, Jill Biden, who took the microphone. She said that she had promised that she and the POTUS would come to the NEA conference next year if elected, and "here we are."

She spoke to a largely empty hall, talking about the dedication of teachers to keeping students safe this past year, and for teaching remotely.

While there are about 60 members of NEA leadership and staff in the vast hall, but NEA members — or at least those who have not departed for the long weekend — are attending virtually. This year is the 100th anniversary of the NEA hosting a Representative Assembly.

NEA President Becky Pringle introduced the President after saying "how cool" it was to have an NEA member "who happens to be the First Lady of the United States." She described the President's commitment "to racial and social justice, which we at the NEA know is education justice."

Biden took the podium at 5:16, to as much applause as a crowd of 50 NEA members could muster in a vast hall.

The audio was poor, so please compare your poolers notes to the actual transcript. He talked about the projected growth rate of the economy at the beginning of the year, and the 7.4 percent projected today — just as said this morning, at the announcement of the job numbers.

He congratulated the group for its 100th Anne Israel, made the requisite joke that he did not attend that first session, paid homage to his wife's own teaching. "Jill always says that teaching is not what she does, it's who she is." He spoke about the "incredible dedication" of teachers who made it through the pandemic "all while trying to take care of their own children."

He wound to the importance of competitiveness, said "the rest of the world is not sitting around and waiting" for the U.S. to get competitive. He talked again about how "high speed internet is essential,'' along with electricity.

"You deserve a raise."

Then, "I have a lot more to say, but I'll get the hook from Jill if I keep talking." He ended talking about a "stronger fairer education system,'' and said "this is a campaign in and of itself." He talked about himself as a "stuttering kid" who was told he could achieve. He said he could still name the teachers who believed in him. Kids, he said, had to "believe in themselves."

"You are the people who take our children and nurture them,'' he said, praising the cafeteria workers who help kids who seem shamed that they don't have enough food at home. "I think you are the most important component in America's future."

Comments ended 5:37 — headed back to vans and White House.

Intown Pool Report 7 - Lid and CX

We have a lid.

An alert reader corrects your pooler's error in Intown Pool Report 5, a mispelling of the name of the acting

Director of US Citizenship and Immigration Services. It is Tracy Renaud. Apologies.

And Happy Fourth, everyone.