Vice Presidential Pool Reports of January 22, 2023

VPOTUS pool report 1 — checking in

Good morning from not-so-sunny Tallahassee. I’m your pooler for the Vice President’s noon(ish) remarks on abortion access.

It’s overcast with a high of 70 degrees. The speech is the only event on the calendar. Feel free to

Here’s the guidance from the White House.

Sunday, January 22
At 12:10 PM ET, the Vice President will deliver remarks for the 50th commemoration of the Supreme Court's Roe v. Wade decision. The Second Gentleman will attend. This event will be pooled press and open to pre-credentialed media.

The White House has also released this background on the speech.

On Background from a White House Official

On Sunday, January 22, 2023, the White House will commemorate what would have been the 50thAnniversary of Roe v. Wade. Vice President Kamala Harris will deliver remarks in Florida.

The Vice President’s speech will headline the Administration’s engagement during the weekend, and she will highlight the Administration’s continued focus on the fight for reproductive health care and abortion access at the state level. The Vice President will push for national legislation to protect reproductive rights, and she will draw contrast between the Republicans’ extreme approach to reproductive health and that of the Biden-Harris Administration. The commemoration comes as Republicans continue to push extreme legislation at all levels of government, including a national abortion ban.

The Vice President has brought together leaders from across the nation who are on the frontlines fighting to protect reproductive health care and abortion access. From June through November 2022, she hosted leaders from 38 states across 40 different convenings to discuss attacks on reproductive freedom, and she convened nearly 200 state legislators from 18 states to discuss the fight at the state level. Through the Vice President’s convenings, she met with health care providers, constitutional law and privacy experts, faith leaders, disability rights leaders, civil rights leaders, higher education leaders, students, advocates, state attorneys general, and other state leaders.

VPOTUS 1/22 Pool report no.2

VPOTUS motorcade left RON at 11:15 am for a brief ride through rainy downtown Tallahassee. Few people on streets, but most were scurrying to someplace dry.

VPOTUS Arrived at The Moon at 11:22 am, where a sign says Willie Nelson and his family will be playing on March 4.

The amphitheater is standing room only and boisterous.

Event will be live-streamed here: https://youtu.be/5fv9lSdMv-4

Speaking order:

On Background from a White House Official:

The Vice President will deliver remarks in Tallahassee at an event site called The Moon.

Expected pre-program participant speaking order:

• State Representative Fentrice Driskell (D-FL-67)
• Mary Kay Henry, President, SEIU
• Alexis McGill Johnson, President, Planned Parenthood
• State Senator Lauren Book (D-FL-32)

Expected program speaking order:

• Dr. Sujatha Prabhakaran, Abortion Care Physician, Planned Parenthood of Southwest and Central Florida
• The Vice President

VPOTUS 1/22 Pool Report No. 3 Color, excerpts

Harris is scheduled to go on shortly.

Before she came onstage, segments of the crowd chanted "Stand up, fight back," "hands up, our fight," "Hey-hey, ho-ho, abortion bans have got to go" and another, more political variation: "Hey-hey, ho-ho, Ron DeSantis has got to go."

Reminder, event will be livestreamed here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5fv9lSdMv-4 also at www.whitehouse.gov/live

The White House has released background and excerpts from VPOTUS's speech:
On Background from a White House Official
Today, on what would have been the 50th Anniversary of Roe v. Wade, Vice President Harris is in Tallahassee, Florida to discuss the fight for reproductive rights. Watch her remarks at 12:10 PM ET: www.whitehouse.gov/live [whitehouse.gov].
The Vice President has brought together leaders from across the nation who are on the frontlines fighting to protect reproductive health care and abortion access. From June through November 2022, she hosted leaders from 38 states across 40 different convenings to discuss attacks on reproductive freedom, and she convened nearly 200 state legislators from 18 states to discuss the fight at the state level. She has met with health care providers, constitutional law and privacy experts, faith leaders, disability rights leaders, civil rights leaders, higher education leaders, students, advocates, state attorneys general, and other state leaders. The President and Vice President remain committed to protecting and expanding access to reproductive care.
Below are excerpts from her remarks as prepared for delivery.
---
Speech Excerpts
America is a promise. A promise of freedom and liberty. Not for some. For all.
[…]
Since our founding, we have been on a march forward to fully realize our promise. To complete the unfinished work. To secure freedom and liberty for all. This fight will not be inevitable. This will not just happen. It takes steadfast determination and dedication. The kind of determination possessed by some of our greatest patriots.
[…]
So today, we are fighting back. I am pleased to announce that President Biden has issued a Presidential Memorandum. Members of our Cabinet and our Administration are now directed to identify barriers to access and recommend actions to make sure that: doctors can legally prescribe, doctors can dispense, and women can secure safe and effective medication.
[…]
The right of every woman in every state in the country to make decisions about her own body is on the line. Republicans in Congress are now calling for an abortion ban at the moment of conception nationwide. How dare they?
[…]
Understand clearly: the majority of Americans oppose these attacks. Americans of every background in every community have voiced their perspective. From Kansas to California, Michigan, Montana, Kentucky and Vermont. They spoke with their vote.
[…]
America is the land of the free and the home of the brave. But let us ask: can we truly be free if a woman cannot make decisions about her own body? Can we truly be free if a doctor cannot care for her patients? Can we truly be free if families cannot make intimate decisions about the course of their own lives?

VPOTUS 1/22 Pool Report No. 4 -- Remarks

VPOTUS began speaking at 12:21 p.m. and remarks concluded at 12:39. Noting that she addressed the mass shooting in California at the top of her remarks. Motorcade will be disembarking shortly.

VPOTUS 1/22 pool report no. 5 Calls w/ state leaders

WH passed along this crowd count: 1,500

On background from WH official

Today, the Vice President spoke with House Minority Leader Fentrice Driskell and Senate Minority Leader Lauren Book about the decision by the Florida Department of Education to block an Advanced Placement course on African American history. The Vice President said:

"Every student in our nation should be able to learn about the culture, contributions, and experiences of all Americans – including Black Americans – who shaped our history. Unfortunately, in Florida, extremist so-called leaders ban books, block history classes, and prevent teachers from freely discussing who they are and who they love. Anyone who bans teaching American history has no right to shape America's future."

VPOTUS 1/22 pool report no. 6. Tallahassee departure

Motorcade departed The Moon at 12:56 pm and, after a rainy but uneventful ride, arrived at Tallahassee International Airport at 1:16.

VPOTUS did not take questions under the wing.

Wheels up to JBA shortly.

VPOTUS 1/22 pool report no. 7. Back at JBA

Air Force 2 was wheels down at JBA at 3:08 pm. following an uneventful flight.

VPOTUS and SGOTUS came down the stairs at 3:19 PM. They did not take questions from reporters standing underneath the wing.