One of the main components of President Biden’s campaign was his commitment to American labor groups to advance infrastructure and domestic manufacturing legislation.

United Steelworkers District 1 Director Pat Gallagher discussed the President’s promises, his recent meeting with American labor leaders, his plan for steel and aluminum tariffs and the future of pipelines on America’s Work Force Union Podcast.

Investing in American infrastructure

Gallagher voiced the importance of American manufacturing, which was highlighted by the COVID-19 pandemic. The U.S. was unable to fend for itself because we could not produce enough PPE.

He said Trump hooked many blue collar Americans by talking about infrastructure, leading them to believe he would be able to get it done. When this turned out to be an empty campaign promise, the Biden campaign jumped on it and made it central. Providing an infrastructure plan will be crucial to the Biden presidency.

The executive orders issued by President Biden have been promising, Gallagher said. His domestic manufacturing order will help American workers by mandating federal money be spent on American products, when possible.

Finally, Gallagher said the U.S. needs to base its economy around manufacturing, saying we cannot base our economy on insurance and hamburgers.

The future of pipelines

A pipeline in Michigan is being threatened for being potentially harmful for the environment. Gallagher said while accidents rarely happen, it is still safer to transport fossil fuels via pipeline than tanker or other methods.

Additionally, he said pipelines are great job creators. The construction industry benefits from the building of pipelines, while jobs in refineries and elsewhere are created.

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