Vice Presidential Pool Reports of April 5, 2021

VP pool report #1

The Vice President landed from LAX at the Oakland airport on Monday morning at 9:50 local time.

Greeting her at the airport: Lt. Governor Eleni Kounalakis, Senator Alex Padilla and Congresswoman Barbara Lee. As she came down the stairs of AF2, Kounalakis started applauding and the others joined in. VPOTUS chatted briefly with each as they remained in their socially distanced spots. She did not speak to the pool before getting into her vehicle.

Motorcade headed straight to the first stop, arriving just after 10:30 local time.

The VP’s office sends along this background:

Today, Vice President Kamala Harris is returning to the Bay Area. First, the Vice President will do a walking tour of the East Bay Municipal Utility District’s Upper San Leandro Water Treatment Plant in Oakland. She is visiting the treatment plant to discuss the American Jobs Plan. The AJP would provide a historic investment of more than $111 billion in the nation’s water infrastructure – to ensure clean water and help produce good jobs.

On the walking tour, the Vice President will be joined by Governor Newsom. The tour will be led by Dave Briggs, the Director of Operations and Maintenance for East Bay Municipal Utility District. She will learn about the treatment plant, and she will speak with union workers who graduated from job training and apprenticeship programs – programs intended to diversify the water work force. She will also discuss the importance of water equity and justice.

After the Vice President’s tour, several of the participants that the Vice President meets with will join a virtual roundtable with EPA Administrator Michael Regan, along with other water infrastructure workers around the country.

The Vice President has been a leader on addressing the nation’s water infrastructure needs with an emphasis on ensuring that all American’s have clean water, including through authoring comprehensive water legislation as Senator.

Additional Background on Water infrastructure in the American Jobs Plan

• $45 billion to replace 100% of the nation’s lead service lines and reduce lead exposure in schools and childcare facilities.
• $56 billion to modernize drinking water, wastewater, and stormwater systems and facilities.
• $10 billion to address PFAS contamination and rural water infrastructure.
• Additional funding beyond the $111 billion to support Western water sustainability projects like water recycling, groundwater storage, and water efficiency.

VP pool report #2

VPOTUS and Governor Newsom were given a tour of the water treatment facility. For the first part of the tour, their conversation with David Briggs, Director of Operations and Maintenance, EBMUD, who was conducting the tour, was not audible over the water moving at the treatment plant.

It's pretty much exactly what you'd expect of a water treatment plant - asphalt, cement, pipes, water.

"Maybe because I'm a kid from California," VPOTUS said, she thinks more about drought and water policy. She asked two people who've worked as apprentices at the facility to tell her about how their work helps address that. They discussed how they have helped provide water to fight wildfires. The governor asked how they've adapted to dealing with power outages. Harris said she'd be telling their stories, including that they are members of a union, all around the country. The VP's office identified the apprentices as Nalani Heath-Delaney, Carpenter, EBMUD and Walter Coty, Construction Inspector, EBMUD.

Speaking with Angela Glover Blackwell, founder of PolicyLink later in the tour, she spoke about human infrastructure in addition to physical infrastructure: "it's also about building up the skill set of America's workers." For example, she said, "that literally is part of the infrastructure of any working family - the caregivers," she said. "It's all connected."

But then she started talking about equity issues around water treatment and, shaking her arms in the air to show excitement, jokingly apologized to Newsom: "I'm just going to continue to geek out on water."

She addressed the pool at the end, starting by saying she was glad to be home in Oakland.

"We must understand the equities and inequities of distribution and access to clean water especially clean drinking water, and address it in a way that is about supporting what governments must do at a local at a state and federal level, understanding the opportunities here and this is a big part of the American Jobs Plan, which is the opportunity to not only build back up our infrastructure around water and water policy .... part of our reason for being here to advance is the issue of water equity, whether you're talking about Iowa, where I spent a lot of time, and places in the Midwest where people have wells in their backyard and sewage systems on their property. It is on their property it is there, but it is eroding and they don't have the resources to actually upgrade and make it safe. And so part of our policy is to say give grants, give support to homeowners to be able to upgrade their systems because of course this is a public health issue. We are looking at it in terms of places like Flint, the Mississippi Delta." She spoke about the need for more union jobs and for lead pipes to be replaced to stop water contamination and the health effects of lead in water.

In comments that will be relevant to a governor facing a recall, she turned to Newsom and said, "I especially want to thank you Governor. He and I have worked together for a long time we were elected to our first office, same time. Back in 2003, and one of the things I know is that Gavin has always been a champion about what we need to do around our environment, and he and I have had many conversations over the years in particular about preservation of water. And so I'm just so happy that you've been able to join us, governor."

Newsom started by saying "you don't need to educate the Vice President on water policy and what a gift that is for us particularly out here in the state of California." He spoke about the well below average results of the annual snowpack survey and the water shortages likely to come. Referring to the administration's infrastructure proposal, he said, "I know we're prone to hyperbole, it's a game changer, to complement the efforts that are happening at the local level to address the needs here in the East Bay system that was designed in the 1930s that needs investment needs upgrade."

Rolling to the next stop at 11:18.

VP Pool report #3

VPOTUS stood with Congresswoman Barbara Lee, Senator Alex Padilla and Lt Gov Eleni Kounalakis and several business leaders in the kitchen of Red Door Catering to talk about the investments into new businesses by Community Development Financial Institutions. Reign Free, the owner of the catering business, spoke about how important CDFIs were in making her own business possible.

Lee in particular spoke about how she had tears in her eyes watching Air Force 2 land at Oakland airport. "She brings us Hope. She lets us know the American dream is real, and it may take a while."

This was a theme. Kounalakis called her "daughter of Oakland, daughter of California and you came back home for the first time in your new role," as she praised Harris for taking the time to talk about CDFIs and for helping get more CDFI funding while still in the Senate. Padilla talked about the shoes he has to fill in taking her Senate seat, and said how proud California is of her.

VPOTUS in her remarks said "CDFIs particular knew that there were a lot of folks who have bad credit because they've been receiving bad advice. They want to do better, but if you walk into a financial institution and feel you're being judged, you're likely to walk out without receiving help. And that's the other benefit and strength of our community banks."

We are holding as VPOTUS does a few local interviews on site before heading to the next stop.

The VP's office sends this background along:

Stop #2: Red Door Catering

Next, the Vice President will visit a small business called The Red Door Catering to host a listening session. The Red Door Catering, owned by Reign Free, prepares fresh, local ingredients, for diverse events and dining experiences. Notably, The Red Door Catering received both financial and technical support from two Bay Area Community Development Financial Institutions: Accion Opportunity Fund and ICA.

The owner of Red Door Catering, Ms. Reign Free, will participate in the listening session. Also joining will be California Lieutenant Governor Eleni Kounalakis, Senator Alex Padilla, Congresswoman Barbara Lee, and executives from Accion and ICA. The listening session will focus on the role of CDFIs, and the importance of providing capital to small businesses in underserved communities.

Additional Background on the Biden-Harris Administration / Small Businesses
The Vice President has fought for years to ensure small business owners and aspiring small business owners have access to capital - no matter his or her zip code.

• The Vice President worked to secure $12b for CDFIs in one of the last bills she worked on in the senate, which passed in December. This matters, because CDFIs provide capital and resources, usually in the form of financial assistance, to low-income communities and communities of color.
• Now as Vice President, she continues to work with Secretary Yellen on CDFIs lending capacity - so more businesses get the support they need.
• This is in addition to the Biden-Harris Administrations work extending and improving the PPP program, securing $60b for small businesses in the American Rescue Plan, in addition to support for small businesses we're proposing in the American Jobs Plan.

VP pool report #4

VPOTUS was back at LAX and off AF2 at 3:50. Her motorcade departed the airport separately from the pool, as she’s headed back to her home. That’s a wrap for today. More to come tomorrow as she makes her way back to DC via Chicago.