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     Today, we pay tribute to General Casimir Pulaski, a Polish immigrant who served alongside American soldiers in the Revolutionary War and made the ultimate sacrifice for our Nation.  And we honor the culture and contributions of all our Nation’s Polish Americans who follow his legacy, standing up for the cause of freedom at home and around the world.

     General Pulaski dedicated his life to the pursuit of liberty — not just for himself or his country but for all of us.  Born and raised in Warsaw, Poland, he fought against the Russian domination of Poland — efforts that ultimately led him to flee his home country.  Later in life, when he was offered an opportunity to join another fight for liberty on the other side of the world, he took it — joining our Nation’s fight for independence.  General Pulaski’s service was critical:  He led a critical counterattack that helped slow the British, and during the course of the war, it was said that he even saved George Washington’s life. 

     General Pulaski’s story and service are just one example of how much Polish Americans have shaped our Nation’s history and our future.  Our country’s Polish-American communities have helped create new possibilities for all of us — leading in every sector, powering our economy, and enriching our culture.  They also strengthen our deep alliance and partnership with Poland and its people at a critical time in our history.  Since Russia’s brutal invasion of Ukraine, the people of Poland have courageously stood up for freedom, liberty, and justice, rallying around the Ukrainian people and offering them safety and light in their darkest moments.  At the same time, Poland has donated tanks, artillery, and aircraft to support Ukraine’s self-defense all while becoming an important hub for aid from key partners.

     No one knows better than the people of Poland that, in moments of great upheaval and uncertainty, what you stand for is important and who you stand with makes all the difference.  Today, we celebrate General Casimir Pulaski, who decided to stand with our Nation to fight for our freedoms.  And we honor all the Polish Americans, who continue to push our Nation forward and fight for a future based on our most fundamental values:  dignity, liberty, and opportunity.

     NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim October 11, 2024, as General Pulaski Memorial Day.  I encourage all Americans to commemorate this occasion with appropriate programs and activities paying tribute to General Casimir Pulaski, honoring all those who champion freedom around the world, and celebrating the vast contributions of the Polish American communities.

     IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this tenth day of October, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty-four, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-ninth.

                             JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR.

The post A Proclamation on General Pulaski Memorial Day, 2024 appeared first on The White House.

     Today, we pay tribute to General Casimir Pulaski, a Polish immigrant who served alongside American soldiers in the Revolutionary War and made the ultimate sacrifice for our Nation.  And we honor the culture and contributions of all our Nation’s Polish Americans who follow his legacy, standing up for the cause of freedom at home and around the world.

     General Pulaski dedicated his life to the pursuit of liberty — not just for himself or his country but for all of us.  Born and raised in Warsaw, Poland, he fought against the Russian domination of Poland — efforts that ultimately led him to flee his home country.  Later in life, when he was offered an opportunity to join another fight for liberty on the other side of the world, he took it — joining our Nation’s fight for independence.  General Pulaski’s service was critical:  He led a critical counterattack that helped slow the British, and during the course of the war, it was said that he even saved George Washington’s life. 

     General Pulaski’s story and service are just one example of how much Polish Americans have shaped our Nation’s history and our future.  Our country’s Polish-American communities have helped create new possibilities for all of us — leading in every sector, powering our economy, and enriching our culture.  They also strengthen our deep alliance and partnership with Poland and its people at a critical time in our history.  Since Russia’s brutal invasion of Ukraine, the people of Poland have courageously stood up for freedom, liberty, and justice, rallying around the Ukrainian people and offering them safety and light in their darkest moments.  At the same time, Poland has donated tanks, artillery, and aircraft to support Ukraine’s self-defense all while becoming an important hub for aid from key partners.

     No one knows better than the people of Poland that, in moments of great upheaval and uncertainty, what you stand for is important and who you stand with makes all the difference.  Today, we celebrate General Casimir Pulaski, who decided to stand with our Nation to fight for our freedoms.  And we honor all the Polish Americans, who continue to push our Nation forward and fight for a future based on our most fundamental values:  dignity, liberty, and opportunity.

     NOW, THEREFORE, I, JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR., President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim October 11, 2024, as General Pulaski Memorial Day.  I encourage all Americans to commemorate this occasion with appropriate programs and activities paying tribute to General Casimir Pulaski, honoring all those who champion freedom around the world, and celebrating the vast contributions of the Polish American communities.

     IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this tenth day of October, in the year of our Lord two thousand twenty-four, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-ninth.

                             JOSEPH R. BIDEN JR.

The post A Proclamation on General Pulaski Memorial Day, 2024 appeared first on The White House.

South Court Auditorium
Eisenhower Executive Office Building

2:02 P.M. EDT

THE PRESIDENT:  Good afternoon. 

Q    Good afternoon.

THE PRESIDENT:  I’ll be brief.  Last night, Hurricane Milton made landfall, as we all know, on the west coast of Florida.  It brought hurricane winds, heavy rains, including 10 to 20 inches of rain in the Tampa area overnight. 

Storm surge measurements are still being taken, but 38 tornadoes ripped through 13 counties.  Four deaths have been reported thus far. 

It’s too early to know the full account of the damage though, but we know lifesaving measures did make a difference.  More than 80,000 people followed orders to safety — to safely shelter last night.  And we’ve had search and rescue teams at the ready for any calls for help this morning. 

There are still very dangerous conditions in the state, and people should wait to be given the all-clear by their leaders before they go out.  We know from previous hurricanes that it’s often the case that more lives are lost in the days following the storm than actually during the storm itself. 

Vice President Harris and I have been in constant contact with the state and local officials.  And we’re offering everything they need.  I must have spoken to somewhere between 10 and 15 mayors and county executives and all the governors.

And, in fact, starting this morning, we are getting direct assessments from the storm of FEMA and Director Criswell as well, also Florida Governor DeSantis, with whom I had a chance to speak. 

And the vice president and I have just convened a meeting this morning with the leaders of the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of Defense, including Northcom commander, who has responsibility for providing defense support to civilian authorities — and that, apparently, is going very well — as well as from the Coast Guard and FEMA, we’ve received reports. 

We focused on what the American military can do like no one else can: provide emergency support for communities in need and we’re required by the governor in a federal — and — required by the governor in the affected states.  And I’ve spoken to all the governors — not today, all of them, but I’ve spoken to all of them thus far.  And how we can be ready to go in an instant when the call comes. 

At my direction, Defense Secretary Austin has provided a range of capabilities both to Florida for Hurricane Milton as well as the states impacted by Hurricane Helene.  And the more capabilities are available, we assess the pressing needs, we can get whatever they need. 

To the servicemen and women who are on the ground responding to this — these disasters: Thank you.  Thank you for pr- — your professionalism, your dedication to every mission you’re given.  And you’re repeating it again.

This is a whole-of-government effort that also includes the Department of Energy and Department of Transportation, the Department of Health and Human Services, and the Department of Housing and Urban Development, which is providing mortgage relief for impacted homeowners. 

As directed, FEMA is going to open disaster recovery centers all across the impacted communities right away so there’s one stop for the residents can go to to learn about the support they might need.  And that  — it’ll be advertised where those places are.

Three million people are without power.  But more than 40 million [40,000] power work- — powerline workers have come from around the country, from Canada to Florida, to restore power across the state. 

In addition, the Federal Aviation has authorized Florida Power and Light to fly large drones before other manned aircraft can get up in the sky to quickly assess the damage on the ground so ground crews can restore power as quickly as possible. 

The Coast Guard and the Army Corps of Engineers are assessing how fast they can reopen the Port of Tampa to get fuel, food, water, and other basic goods flowing into the area again and quickly. 

Additionally, Vice President Harris and I said yesterday and we’ll say it again: To anyone who seeks to take advantage of our fellow Americans’ desperation, whether you’re a company engaging in price gouging or a citizen trying to scam your neighbors, we will go after you and we will hold you accountable. 

Now, not only that.  Our fellow Americans are putting their lives on the line to do this dangerous work and received death thre- — some received death penalties [threats] yesterday as a result of reckless, irresponsible, and relentless disinformation and outright lies that continue to flow.  Those who engage in such lies are undermining the confidence in the rescue and recovery work that’s opening and ongoing.  As I speak, they’re continuing. 

These lies are also harmful to those who most need help.  Lives are on the line.  People are in desperate situations.  Have the decency to tell them the truth.  

So, let me say this.  To all the people impacted by Hurricane Helene and Hurricane Milton, despite the misinformation and lies, the truth is we’re providing the resources needed to rescue, recover, and rebuild — and rebuild. 

Let me close with this.  I know recovery and rebuilding projects can take a long and difficult time.  But as — long after the press and the cameras move on, I promise you — you have to pick up the pieces still.  I want you to know we’ll do everything in our power to help you put the pieces back together and get all that you need. 

May God bless you.  And may God bless our troops and our first responders, who are — many — in some cases risking their lives to help. 

Thank you very much.  I’ll be reporting again tomorrow.

Thank you.

Q    Mr. President, on FEMA funding.  On FEMA funding.  How much time does Congress have to act before FEMA or the SBA run out of money?

THE PRESIDENT:  That’s in discussion now, and I don’t want to give you — mislead you.  I think in terms of the SBA, it’s pretty right at the edge right now.

And I think the Congress should be coming back and moving on emergency needs immediately.  And they’re going to have to come back after the election as well, because this is going to be a long haul to- — for total rebuilding.  It’s going to take several billion dollars.  It’s not going to be a matter of just a little bit.

But we’re providing now to make sure people have the emergency relief they need with dollars just to be able to get a prescription filled, to get a baby formula do- — all the thing- —

That $750 that they’re talking about, Mr. Trump and every- — all those other people know it’s a lie to suggest that’s all they’re going to get.  That’s bizarre.  It’s bizarre.  They got to stop this.  It’s s- — I mean, they’re being so damn un-American with the way they’re talking about this stuff.

But there’s going to be a need for significant amounts of money.  We’re already underway at trying to calculate what the cost will be because you don’t want to mislead anybody.  We want to make sure all the costs are able to be covered.

Q    Have you spoken to Speaker Johnson about coming back before the election to vote?

THE PRESIDENT:  No, I haven’t.

Q    Mr. President, are you calling on Congress to come back early?

THE PRESIDENT:  I think Congress should move as rapidly as they can, particularly on the most immediate need, which is small business.

Q    Mr. President, the vice president said yesterday that — that FEMA has what it needs.  There’s enough resources.  They don’t need — that Congress does not need to come back right away.  Who’s right?

THE PRESIDENT:  FEMA has what it needs.

Q    Okay.

THE PRESIDENT:  That’s different than SBA.

Q    Okay.  So, it’s SBA that — they need to come back and do SBA?

THE PRESIDENT:  Yeah, but they’re going to need a lot more.

Q    Mr. President, wh- — what did you — what did Prime Minister Netanyahu tell you about his plans relating to retaliation against Iran?

THE PRESIDENT:  He’s coming over to help with the storm.

Q    Mr. President, have you spoken with former President Trump at all —

THE PRESIDENT:  Are you kidding me?

Q    — about the disinformation?

THE PRESIDENT:  (Laughs.)  Mr. President Trump — former President Trump, get a life, man.  Help these people. 

Q    Will you hold him accountable?  You said you were going to hold those accountable.

THE PRESIDENT:  The public will hold him accountable. 

Q    The —

THE PRESIDENT:  You better, in the press, hold him accountable because you know the truth. 

Q    Well, do you plan to speak with former President Trump?

THE PRESIDENT:  No.

2:10 P.M. EDT

The post Remarks by President Biden on the Initial Impacts of Hurricane Milton and the Federal Government’s Ongoing Support to State and Local Officials appeared first on The White House.

South Court Auditorium
Eisenhower Executive Office Building

2:02 P.M. EDT

THE PRESIDENT:  Good afternoon. 

Q    Good afternoon.

THE PRESIDENT:  I’ll be brief.  Last night, Hurricane Milton made landfall, as we all know, on the west coast of Florida.  It brought hurricane winds, heavy rains, including 10 to 20 inches of rain in the Tampa area overnight. 

Storm surge measurements are still being taken, but 38 tornadoes ripped through 13 counties.  Four deaths have been reported thus far. 

It’s too early to know the full account of the damage though, but we know lifesaving measures did make a difference.  More than 80,000 people followed orders to safety — to safely shelter last night.  And we’ve had search and rescue teams at the ready for any calls for help this morning. 

There are still very dangerous conditions in the state, and people should wait to be given the all-clear by their leaders before they go out.  We know from previous hurricanes that it’s often the case that more lives are lost in the days following the storm than actually during the storm itself. 

Vice President Harris and I have been in constant contact with the state and local officials.  And we’re offering everything they need.  I must have spoken to somewhere between 10 and 15 mayors and county executives and all the governors.

And, in fact, starting this morning, we are getting direct assessments from the storm of FEMA and Director Criswell as well, also Florida Governor DeSantis, with whom I had a chance to speak. 

And the vice president and I have just convened a meeting this morning with the leaders of the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of Defense, including Northcom commander, who has responsibility for providing defense support to civilian authorities — and that, apparently, is going very well — as well as from the Coast Guard and FEMA, we’ve received reports. 

We focused on what the American military can do like no one else can: provide emergency support for communities in need and we’re required by the governor in a federal — and — required by the governor in the affected states.  And I’ve spoken to all the governors — not today, all of them, but I’ve spoken to all of them thus far.  And how we can be ready to go in an instant when the call comes. 

At my direction, Defense Secretary Austin has provided a range of capabilities both to Florida for Hurricane Milton as well as the states impacted by Hurricane Helene.  And the more capabilities are available, we assess the pressing needs, we can get whatever they need. 

To the servicemen and women who are on the ground responding to this — these disasters: Thank you.  Thank you for pr- — your professionalism, your dedication to every mission you’re given.  And you’re repeating it again.

This is a whole-of-government effort that also includes the Department of Energy and Department of Transportation, the Department of Health and Human Services, and the Department of Housing and Urban Development, which is providing mortgage relief for impacted homeowners. 

As directed, FEMA is going to open disaster recovery centers all across the impacted communities right away so there’s one stop for the residents can go to to learn about the support they might need.  And that  — it’ll be advertised where those places are.

Three million people are without power.  But more than 40 million [40,000] power work- — powerline workers have come from around the country, from Canada to Florida, to restore power across the state. 

In addition, the Federal Aviation has authorized Florida Power and Light to fly large drones before other manned aircraft can get up in the sky to quickly assess the damage on the ground so ground crews can restore power as quickly as possible. 

The Coast Guard and the Army Corps of Engineers are assessing how fast they can reopen the Port of Tampa to get fuel, food, water, and other basic goods flowing into the area again and quickly. 

Additionally, Vice President Harris and I said yesterday and we’ll say it again: To anyone who seeks to take advantage of our fellow Americans’ desperation, whether you’re a company engaging in price gouging or a citizen trying to scam your neighbors, we will go after you and we will hold you accountable. 

Now, not only that.  Our fellow Americans are putting their lives on the line to do this dangerous work and received death thre- — some received death penalties [threats] yesterday as a result of reckless, irresponsible, and relentless disinformation and outright lies that continue to flow.  Those who engage in such lies are undermining the confidence in the rescue and recovery work that’s opening and ongoing.  As I speak, they’re continuing. 

These lies are also harmful to those who most need help.  Lives are on the line.  People are in desperate situations.  Have the decency to tell them the truth.  

So, let me say this.  To all the people impacted by Hurricane Helene and Hurricane Milton, despite the misinformation and lies, the truth is we’re providing the resources needed to rescue, recover, and rebuild — and rebuild. 

Let me close with this.  I know recovery and rebuilding projects can take a long and difficult time.  But as — long after the press and the cameras move on, I promise you — you have to pick up the pieces still.  I want you to know we’ll do everything in our power to help you put the pieces back together and get all that you need. 

May God bless you.  And may God bless our troops and our first responders, who are — many — in some cases risking their lives to help. 

Thank you very much.  I’ll be reporting again tomorrow.

Thank you.

Q    Mr. President, on FEMA funding.  On FEMA funding.  How much time does Congress have to act before FEMA or the SBA run out of money?

THE PRESIDENT:  That’s in discussion now, and I don’t want to give you — mislead you.  I think in terms of the SBA, it’s pretty right at the edge right now.

And I think the Congress should be coming back and moving on emergency needs immediately.  And they’re going to have to come back after the election as well, because this is going to be a long haul to- — for total rebuilding.  It’s going to take several billion dollars.  It’s not going to be a matter of just a little bit.

But we’re providing now to make sure people have the emergency relief they need with dollars just to be able to get a prescription filled, to get a baby formula do- — all the thing- —

That $750 that they’re talking about, Mr. Trump and every- — all those other people know it’s a lie to suggest that’s all they’re going to get.  That’s bizarre.  It’s bizarre.  They got to stop this.  It’s s- — I mean, they’re being so damn un-American with the way they’re talking about this stuff.

But there’s going to be a need for significant amounts of money.  We’re already underway at trying to calculate what the cost will be because you don’t want to mislead anybody.  We want to make sure all the costs are able to be covered.

Q    Have you spoken to Speaker Johnson about coming back before the election to vote?

THE PRESIDENT:  No, I haven’t.

Q    Mr. President, are you calling on Congress to come back early?

THE PRESIDENT:  I think Congress should move as rapidly as they can, particularly on the most immediate need, which is small business.

Q    Mr. President, the vice president said yesterday that — that FEMA has what it needs.  There’s enough resources.  They don’t need — that Congress does not need to come back right away.  Who’s right?

THE PRESIDENT:  FEMA has what it needs.

Q    Okay.

THE PRESIDENT:  That’s different than SBA.

Q    Okay.  So, it’s SBA that — they need to come back and do SBA?

THE PRESIDENT:  Yeah, but they’re going to need a lot more.

Q    Mr. President, wh- — what did you — what did Prime Minister Netanyahu tell you about his plans relating to retaliation against Iran?

THE PRESIDENT:  He’s coming over to help with the storm.

Q    Mr. President, have you spoken with former President Trump at all —

THE PRESIDENT:  Are you kidding me?

Q    — about the disinformation?

THE PRESIDENT:  (Laughs.)  Mr. President Trump — former President Trump, get a life, man.  Help these people. 

Q    Will you hold him accountable?  You said you were going to hold those accountable.

THE PRESIDENT:  The public will hold him accountable. 

Q    The —

THE PRESIDENT:  You better, in the press, hold him accountable because you know the truth. 

Q    Well, do you plan to speak with former President Trump?

THE PRESIDENT:  No.

2:10 P.M. EDT

The post Remarks by President Biden on the Initial Impacts of Hurricane Milton and the Federal Government’s Ongoing Support to State and Local Officials appeared first on The White House.

South Court Auditorium
Eisenhower Executive Office Building

2:02 P.M. EDT

THE PRESIDENT:  Good afternoon. 

Q    Good afternoon.

THE PRESIDENT:  I’ll be brief.  Last night, Hurricane Milton made landfall, as we all know, on the west coast of Florida.  It brought hurricane winds, heavy rains, including 10 to 20 inches of rain in the Tampa area overnight. 

Storm surge measurements are still being taken, but 38 tornadoes ripped through 13 counties.  Four deaths have been reported thus far. 

It’s too early to know the full account of the damage though, but we know lifesaving measures did make a difference.  More than 80,000 people followed orders to safety — to safely shelter last night.  And we’ve had search and rescue teams at the ready for any calls for help this morning. 

There are still very dangerous conditions in the state, and people should wait to be given the all-clear by their leaders before they go out.  We know from previous hurricanes that it’s often the case that more lives are lost in the days following the storm than actually during the storm itself. 

Vice President Harris and I have been in constant contact with the state and local officials.  And we’re offering everything they need.  I must have spoken to somewhere between 10 and 15 mayors and county executives and all the governors.

And, in fact, starting this morning, we are getting direct assessments from the storm of FEMA and Director Criswell as well, also Florida Governor DeSantis, with whom I had a chance to speak. 

And the vice president and I have just convened a meeting this morning with the leaders of the Department of Homeland Security, the Department of Defense, including Northcom commander, who has responsibility for providing defense support to civilian authorities — and that, apparently, is going very well — as well as from the Coast Guard and FEMA, we’ve received reports. 

We focused on what the American military can do like no one else can: provide emergency support for communities in need and we’re required by the governor in a federal — and — required by the governor in the affected states.  And I’ve spoken to all the governors — not today, all of them, but I’ve spoken to all of them thus far.  And how we can be ready to go in an instant when the call comes. 

At my direction, Defense Secretary Austin has provided a range of capabilities both to Florida for Hurricane Milton as well as the states impacted by Hurricane Helene.  And the more capabilities are available, we assess the pressing needs, we can get whatever they need. 

To the servicemen and women who are on the ground responding to this — these disasters: Thank you.  Thank you for pr- — your professionalism, your dedication to every mission you’re given.  And you’re repeating it again.

This is a whole-of-government effort that also includes the Department of Energy and Department of Transportation, the Department of Health and Human Services, and the Department of Housing and Urban Development, which is providing mortgage relief for impacted homeowners. 

As directed, FEMA is going to open disaster recovery centers all across the impacted communities right away so there’s one stop for the residents can go to to learn about the support they might need.  And that  — it’ll be advertised where those places are.

Three million people are without power.  But more than 40 million [40,000] power work- — powerline workers have come from around the country, from Canada to Florida, to restore power across the state. 

In addition, the Federal Aviation has authorized Florida Power and Light to fly large drones before other manned aircraft can get up in the sky to quickly assess the damage on the ground so ground crews can restore power as quickly as possible. 

The Coast Guard and the Army Corps of Engineers are assessing how fast they can reopen the Port of Tampa to get fuel, food, water, and other basic goods flowing into the area again and quickly. 

Additionally, Vice President Harris and I said yesterday and we’ll say it again: To anyone who seeks to take advantage of our fellow Americans’ desperation, whether you’re a company engaging in price gouging or a citizen trying to scam your neighbors, we will go after you and we will hold you accountable. 

Now, not only that.  Our fellow Americans are putting their lives on the line to do this dangerous work and received death thre- — some received death penalties [threats] yesterday as a result of reckless, irresponsible, and relentless disinformation and outright lies that continue to flow.  Those who engage in such lies are undermining the confidence in the rescue and recovery work that’s opening and ongoing.  As I speak, they’re continuing. 

These lies are also harmful to those who most need help.  Lives are on the line.  People are in desperate situations.  Have the decency to tell them the truth.  

So, let me say this.  To all the people impacted by Hurricane Helene and Hurricane Milton, despite the misinformation and lies, the truth is we’re providing the resources needed to rescue, recover, and rebuild — and rebuild. 

Let me close with this.  I know recovery and rebuilding projects can take a long and difficult time.  But as — long after the press and the cameras move on, I promise you — you have to pick up the pieces still.  I want you to know we’ll do everything in our power to help you put the pieces back together and get all that you need. 

May God bless you.  And may God bless our troops and our first responders, who are — many — in some cases risking their lives to help. 

Thank you very much.  I’ll be reporting again tomorrow.

Thank you.

Q    Mr. President, on FEMA funding.  On FEMA funding.  How much time does Congress have to act before FEMA or the SBA run out of money?

THE PRESIDENT:  That’s in discussion now, and I don’t want to give you — mislead you.  I think in terms of the SBA, it’s pretty right at the edge right now.

And I think the Congress should be coming back and moving on emergency needs immediately.  And they’re going to have to come back after the election as well, because this is going to be a long haul to- — for total rebuilding.  It’s going to take several billion dollars.  It’s not going to be a matter of just a little bit.

But we’re providing now to make sure people have the emergency relief they need with dollars just to be able to get a prescription filled, to get a baby formula do- — all the thing- —

That $750 that they’re talking about, Mr. Trump and every- — all those other people know it’s a lie to suggest that’s all they’re going to get.  That’s bizarre.  It’s bizarre.  They got to stop this.  It’s s- — I mean, they’re being so damn un-American with the way they’re talking about this stuff.

But there’s going to be a need for significant amounts of money.  We’re already underway at trying to calculate what the cost will be because you don’t want to mislead anybody.  We want to make sure all the costs are able to be covered.

Q    Have you spoken to Speaker Johnson about coming back before the election to vote?

THE PRESIDENT:  No, I haven’t.

Q    Mr. President, are you calling on Congress to come back early?

THE PRESIDENT:  I think Congress should move as rapidly as they can, particularly on the most immediate need, which is small business.

Q    Mr. President, the vice president said yesterday that — that FEMA has what it needs.  There’s enough resources.  They don’t need — that Congress does not need to come back right away.  Who’s right?

THE PRESIDENT:  FEMA has what it needs.

Q    Okay.

THE PRESIDENT:  That’s different than SBA.

Q    Okay.  So, it’s SBA that — they need to come back and do SBA?

THE PRESIDENT:  Yeah, but they’re going to need a lot more.

Q    Mr. President, wh- — what did you — what did Prime Minister Netanyahu tell you about his plans relating to retaliation against Iran?

THE PRESIDENT:  He’s coming over to help with the storm.

Q    Mr. President, have you spoken with former President Trump at all —

THE PRESIDENT:  Are you kidding me?

Q    — about the disinformation?

THE PRESIDENT:  (Laughs.)  Mr. President Trump — former President Trump, get a life, man.  Help these people. 

Q    Will you hold him accountable?  You said you were going to hold those accountable.

THE PRESIDENT:  The public will hold him accountable. 

Q    The —

THE PRESIDENT:  You better, in the press, hold him accountable because you know the truth. 

Q    Well, do you plan to speak with former President Trump?

THE PRESIDENT:  No.

2:10 P.M. EDT

The post Remarks by President Biden on the Initial Impacts of Hurricane Milton and the Federal Government’s Ongoing Support to State and Local Officials appeared first on The White House.

President Joseph R. Biden, Jr., spoke today with Chancellor Olaf Scholz of Germany. The President underscored the enduring strength of the U.S.-German relationship and noted his intention to continue our strong collaboration on geopolitical priorities, including supporting Ukraine’s defense against Russian aggression.

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The post Readout of President Joe Biden’s Call with Chancellor Olaf Scholz of Germany appeared first on The White House.

President Joseph R. Biden, Jr., spoke today with Chancellor Olaf Scholz of Germany. The President underscored the enduring strength of the U.S.-German relationship and noted his intention to continue our strong collaboration on geopolitical priorities, including supporting Ukraine’s defense against Russian aggression.

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The post Readout of President Joe Biden’s Call with Chancellor Olaf Scholz of Germany appeared first on The White House.

President Joseph R. Biden, Jr., spoke today with President João Lourenço of Angola. The President thanked President Lourenço for his continued leadership on both regional and global priorities and underscored the U.S. commitment to deepening our strategic partnership with the government and people of Angola.  

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The post Readout of President Joe Biden’s Call with President João Lourenço of Angola appeared first on The White House.

President Joseph R. Biden, Jr., spoke today with President João Lourenço of Angola. The President thanked President Lourenço for his continued leadership on both regional and global priorities and underscored the U.S. commitment to deepening our strategic partnership with the government and people of Angola.  

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The post Readout of President Joe Biden’s Call with President João Lourenço of Angola appeared first on The White House.

In celebration of International Day of the Girl, the First Lady is honoring ten young women who are leading change and shaping a brighter future in their communities 

In honor of International Day of the Girl, First Lady Jill Biden will celebrate ten young women leaders, selected by the White House Gender Policy Council, who are leading change and shaping a brighter future in their communities across the United States.    

As an educator for more than 40 years, Dr. Biden has continued to be a champion for young people here in the United States and abroad. Together with the White House Gender Policy Council, Dr. Biden is hosting the second “Girls Leading Change” event at the White House to recognize the profound impact young women are having on their communities and their efforts to strengthen our country for generations to come.     

“Everywhere I travel, I see inspiring girls leading change in their communities,” said First Lady Jill Biden. “These incredible honorees are meeting the challenges they see in the world by developing innovative new technologies, expanding access to education, erasing silence through the power of art and poetry and more. It is an honor to celebrate these young leaders at the White House and I hope that their courage and determination inspires the next generation.”  

The Biden-Harris Administration is committed to ensuring that girls can pursue their dreams free from fear, discrimination, violence, or abuse; and to advancing the safety, education, health, and wellbeing of girls everywhere. Investing in young people means investing in our future; they should have the opportunity and resources they need to succeed. Since day one in office, this Administration has taken actions to advance the safety, education, health, and well-being of girls. A full summary of these actions can be found via a White House Fact Sheet released today HERE.  

“Girls Leading Change” will begin at 5:30 PM ET today, Thursday, October 10th, and be available via livestream at whitehouse.gov/live  

  2024 Girl Leading Change Honorees   

Cheyenne Anderson (Albuquerque, New Mexico) 

Cheyenne Anderson, Iztac Citlali (White Star), age 17, is an artist and photographer who aims to lift up underrepresented communities, including those of her own Chicana, Mexica, and Apache heritage, through creative art forms. In ninth grade, Cheyenne created and co-edited a book, titled South Valley, which features poetry and artwork from fellow youth poets and local community members that showcase the beauty and spirit of Albuquerque’s South Valley. Through her art and elevating the art of others, Cheyenne hopes to inspire people of all backgrounds to share their unique stories. 

Emily Austin (Alcabideche, Portugal) 

Emily Austin, age 17, is a proud daughter of a U.S. Navy service member. Emily and her family have moved to seven different duty stations. She has attended seven different schools, over the course of her education. She currently serves as the Chief of Staff at Bloom, an organization started by military-connected teens dedicated to empowering teens from military families and elevating their voices. Emily started the Bloom Ambassador program to directly connect teens from military families to Bloom staff members and opportunities in their region, cultivating a sense of community and providing peer support through the shared joys and challenges of the military lifestyle. 

Sreenidi Bala (Farmington, Connecticut) 

Sreenidi Bala, age 16, is an advocate for the accessibility of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education for students of all abilities. After recognizing a gap in STEM education for neurodivergent students in her school district, Sreenidi developed an elective to fill that gap called ASPIRE Adaptive STEM. Sreenidi also founded Code for All Minds—a free online platform offering educators and families comprehensive lessons in coding, digital citizenship, and essential technology skills tailored for students with learning disabilities. Through partnerships with neurodiversity advocacy groups and local college access programs, Code for All Minds has created and distributed adaptive STEM curriculums to schools across the country. 

Noel Demetrio (Lake Forest, Illinois) 

Noel Demetrio, age 17, is dedicated to supporting refugee and immigrant communities. Noel is the founder of Project Xenia, a local program that aims to educate students about displacement and show how they can support and welcome refugees into their community. Project Xenia has also helped fund scholarships for Ukrainian refugees in her local community. Noel serves as a Girl Delegate of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America to the United Nations and attended the 68th United Nations Commission on the Status of Women to advocate for the rights of girls all over the world. 

Serena Griffin (Oakland, California) 

Serena Griffin, age 17, is passionate about empowering youth through poetry, songwriting, and storytelling, and using creative expression as a tool for social change. She is the founder of EmpowHer Poets, a free afterschool program that provides writing workshops to local Bay Area youth, particularly young girls of color, to encourage them to find power in their voices. In addition, Serena is the current Berkeley Vice Youth Poet Laureate. She also serves as a member of the California Commission on the Status of Women and Girls Youth Advisory Council, advising on the impact of state legislation on youth and its implementation in schools.  

Pragathi Kasani-Akula (Cumming, Georgia) 

Pragathi Kasani-Akula, age 17, is a scientist and innovator dedicated to developing novel solutions that make health care more accessible to people across the world. Following her mother’s breast cancer diagnosis, she developed a prototype for a low-cost, less invasive test to detect triple negative breast cancer. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Pragathi also worked with the ScioVirtual Foundation to teach an online course on epidemiology to students across the nation, including education on how to advance public health. 

Meghna “Chili” and Siona “Dolly” Pramoda (Guaynabo, Puerto Rico) 

Meghna “Chili” Pramoda, age 17, and Siona “Dolly” Pramoda, age 16, are advocates for digital safety for all. As co-founders of SafeTeensOnline (STO), the Pramoda sisters have educated and empowered over 5 million teens worldwide. STO’s work consists of year-round online awareness campaigns through social media and teen-led large-scale survey and research initiatives on topics such as internet usage and patterns of cyber incidents. During the COVID-19 pandemic when the world moved online, the Pramoda sisters noticed that older members of their community often felt isolated due to a lack of digital literacy. As a result, STO expanded from a teen-focused organization to one that also educates parents, teachers, and grandparents on safe digital practices and on how to build judgment-free spaces online. 

Kira Tiller (Gainesville, Virginia) 

Kira Tiller, age 18, is a disability rights activist who aims to expand accessibility and amplify the voices of young people with disabilities. After Kira discovered that the flashing lights during school fire drills posed a seizure risk for her due to her epilepsy, she dedicated herself to advocating for legislation to ensure students with disabilities are fully accommodated and protected during emergency situations at school. Kira founded and is the executive director of a national, student-led organization called Disabled Disrupters, which advocates for state and federal disability rights legislation and helps students take action to advance disability equity. 

Morgaine Wilkins-Dean (Denver, Colorado) 

Morgaine Wilkins-Dean, age 18, is a Gold Award Girl Scout who is working to eliminate gun violence in her community and across the country.  Morgaine’s high school experienced three firearm-related incidents in a single year that resulted in the loss of two of her classmates. As a result, Morgaine worked with the Denver Public School Board on gun violence prevention and safe gun storage policies. Due in part to Morgaine’s advocacy, this school year, for the first time, Denver Public Schools are required to educate families about the risks associated with unsecured firearms at home. 

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The post First Lady Jill Biden Announces 2024 “Girls Leading Change” Honorees appeared first on The White House.

In celebration of International Day of the Girl, the First Lady is honoring ten young women who are leading change and shaping a brighter future in their communities 

In honor of International Day of the Girl, First Lady Jill Biden will celebrate ten young women leaders, selected by the White House Gender Policy Council, who are leading change and shaping a brighter future in their communities across the United States.    

As an educator for more than 40 years, Dr. Biden has continued to be a champion for young people here in the United States and abroad. Together with the White House Gender Policy Council, Dr. Biden is hosting the second “Girls Leading Change” event at the White House to recognize the profound impact young women are having on their communities and their efforts to strengthen our country for generations to come.     

“Everywhere I travel, I see inspiring girls leading change in their communities,” said First Lady Jill Biden. “These incredible honorees are meeting the challenges they see in the world by developing innovative new technologies, expanding access to education, erasing silence through the power of art and poetry and more. It is an honor to celebrate these young leaders at the White House and I hope that their courage and determination inspires the next generation.”  

The Biden-Harris Administration is committed to ensuring that girls can pursue their dreams free from fear, discrimination, violence, or abuse; and to advancing the safety, education, health, and wellbeing of girls everywhere. Investing in young people means investing in our future; they should have the opportunity and resources they need to succeed. Since day one in office, this Administration has taken actions to advance the safety, education, health, and well-being of girls. A full summary of these actions can be found via a White House Fact Sheet released today HERE.  

“Girls Leading Change” will begin at 5:30 PM ET today, Thursday, October 10th, and be available via livestream at whitehouse.gov/live  

  2024 Girl Leading Change Honorees   

Cheyenne Anderson (Albuquerque, New Mexico) 

Cheyenne Anderson, Iztac Citlali (White Star), age 17, is an artist and photographer who aims to lift up underrepresented communities, including those of her own Chicana, Mexica, and Apache heritage, through creative art forms. In ninth grade, Cheyenne created and co-edited a book, titled South Valley, which features poetry and artwork from fellow youth poets and local community members that showcase the beauty and spirit of Albuquerque’s South Valley. Through her art and elevating the art of others, Cheyenne hopes to inspire people of all backgrounds to share their unique stories. 

Emily Austin (Alcabideche, Portugal) 

Emily Austin, age 17, is a proud daughter of a U.S. Navy service member. Emily and her family have moved to seven different duty stations. She has attended seven different schools, over the course of her education. She currently serves as the Chief of Staff at Bloom, an organization started by military-connected teens dedicated to empowering teens from military families and elevating their voices. Emily started the Bloom Ambassador program to directly connect teens from military families to Bloom staff members and opportunities in their region, cultivating a sense of community and providing peer support through the shared joys and challenges of the military lifestyle. 

Sreenidi Bala (Farmington, Connecticut) 

Sreenidi Bala, age 16, is an advocate for the accessibility of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education for students of all abilities. After recognizing a gap in STEM education for neurodivergent students in her school district, Sreenidi developed an elective to fill that gap called ASPIRE Adaptive STEM. Sreenidi also founded Code for All Minds—a free online platform offering educators and families comprehensive lessons in coding, digital citizenship, and essential technology skills tailored for students with learning disabilities. Through partnerships with neurodiversity advocacy groups and local college access programs, Code for All Minds has created and distributed adaptive STEM curriculums to schools across the country. 

Noel Demetrio (Lake Forest, Illinois) 

Noel Demetrio, age 17, is dedicated to supporting refugee and immigrant communities. Noel is the founder of Project Xenia, a local program that aims to educate students about displacement and show how they can support and welcome refugees into their community. Project Xenia has also helped fund scholarships for Ukrainian refugees in her local community. Noel serves as a Girl Delegate of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America to the United Nations and attended the 68th United Nations Commission on the Status of Women to advocate for the rights of girls all over the world. 

Serena Griffin (Oakland, California) 

Serena Griffin, age 17, is passionate about empowering youth through poetry, songwriting, and storytelling, and using creative expression as a tool for social change. She is the founder of EmpowHer Poets, a free afterschool program that provides writing workshops to local Bay Area youth, particularly young girls of color, to encourage them to find power in their voices. In addition, Serena is the current Berkeley Vice Youth Poet Laureate. She also serves as a member of the California Commission on the Status of Women and Girls Youth Advisory Council, advising on the impact of state legislation on youth and its implementation in schools.  

Pragathi Kasani-Akula (Cumming, Georgia) 

Pragathi Kasani-Akula, age 17, is a scientist and innovator dedicated to developing novel solutions that make health care more accessible to people across the world. Following her mother’s breast cancer diagnosis, she developed a prototype for a low-cost, less invasive test to detect triple negative breast cancer. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Pragathi also worked with the ScioVirtual Foundation to teach an online course on epidemiology to students across the nation, including education on how to advance public health. 

Meghna “Chili” and Siona “Dolly” Pramoda (Guaynabo, Puerto Rico) 

Meghna “Chili” Pramoda, age 17, and Siona “Dolly” Pramoda, age 16, are advocates for digital safety for all. As co-founders of SafeTeensOnline (STO), the Pramoda sisters have educated and empowered over 5 million teens worldwide. STO’s work consists of year-round online awareness campaigns through social media and teen-led large-scale survey and research initiatives on topics such as internet usage and patterns of cyber incidents. During the COVID-19 pandemic when the world moved online, the Pramoda sisters noticed that older members of their community often felt isolated due to a lack of digital literacy. As a result, STO expanded from a teen-focused organization to one that also educates parents, teachers, and grandparents on safe digital practices and on how to build judgment-free spaces online. 

Kira Tiller (Gainesville, Virginia) 

Kira Tiller, age 18, is a disability rights activist who aims to expand accessibility and amplify the voices of young people with disabilities. After Kira discovered that the flashing lights during school fire drills posed a seizure risk for her due to her epilepsy, she dedicated herself to advocating for legislation to ensure students with disabilities are fully accommodated and protected during emergency situations at school. Kira founded and is the executive director of a national, student-led organization called Disabled Disrupters, which advocates for state and federal disability rights legislation and helps students take action to advance disability equity. 

Morgaine Wilkins-Dean (Denver, Colorado) 

Morgaine Wilkins-Dean, age 18, is a Gold Award Girl Scout who is working to eliminate gun violence in her community and across the country.  Morgaine’s high school experienced three firearm-related incidents in a single year that resulted in the loss of two of her classmates. As a result, Morgaine worked with the Denver Public School Board on gun violence prevention and safe gun storage policies. Due in part to Morgaine’s advocacy, this school year, for the first time, Denver Public Schools are required to educate families about the risks associated with unsecured firearms at home. 

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The post First Lady Jill Biden Announces 2024 “Girls Leading Change” Honorees appeared first on The White House.

International Day of the Girl provides an opportunity to celebrate the leadership of girls around the world and recommit to addressing the barriers that continue to limit their full participation. Today, to commemorate International Day of the Girl, First Lady Jill Biden will host the second “Girls Leading Change” event at the White House to recognize outstanding young women from across the United States who are making a difference in their communities. This year’s event will honor 10 young women leaders, selected by the White House Gender Policy Council, who are leading change and shaping a brighter future for generations to come.  

The Biden-Harris Administration is committed to ensuring that girls can pursue their dreams free from fear, discrimination, violence, or abuse; and to advancing the safety, education, health, and wellbeing of girls everywhere. Investing in young people means investing in our future; and they should have the opportunity and resources they need to succeed.

That’s why, since day one in office, this Administration has taken action to advance the safety, education, health, and well-being of girls, including:

• Accelerating Learning and Improving Student Achievement. The American Rescue Plan, the largest one-time education investment in our history, included $130 billion to help schools address the impact of the pandemic on student well-being and academic achievement. To sustain these efforts, the Biden-Harris Administration increased funding and targeting of federal grants to better support academic recovery—from the Education Innovation and Research program to extended-day and afterschool programming through 21st Century Community Learning Centers. And the Administration’s Improving Student Achievement Agenda for 2024 is helping accelerate academic performance for every child in school.

• Canceling Student Debt. President Biden and Vice President Harris vowed to fix the federal student loan program and make sure higher education is a ticket to the middle class—not a barrier to opportunity. The Biden-Harris Administration has approved nearly $170 billion in loan forgiveness for almost 5 million borrowers through more than two dozen executive actions with the goal of helping these borrowers get more breathing room in their daily lives, access economic mobility, buy homes, start businesses, and pursue their dreams.

• Cutting Child Poverty Nearly in Half in 2021. President Biden and Vice President Harris believe that no child should grow up in poverty. Their expansion of the Child Tax Credit helped cut child poverty nearly in half in 2021 to a record low of 5.2%. President Biden and Vice President Harris are fighting to restore this expansion, which would lift over a million girls out of poverty and narrow racial disparities. The Biden-Harris Administration has also lifted hundreds of thousands of girls out of poverty by updating the Thrifty Food Plan and creating SunBucks, a new program that helps low-income families afford groceries over the summer when they don’t have access to school meals.

• Supporting Youth Mental Health. President Biden and Vice President Harris believe that health care is a right, not a privilege, and that mental health care is health care—period. That’s why they invested almost $1.5 billion to strengthen the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline and launched the National Mental Health Strategy, with ongoing investments to strengthen the mental health workforce, ensure parity for mental health and substance use care, connect Americans to care, and better protect youth from the harms of social media. The Biden-Harris Administration is also delivering the largest investments in school-based mental health services ever, bringing 14,000 new mental health professionals into schools across the country and making it easier for schools to leverage Medicaid to deliver care.
   
• Preventing Gun Violence, Including Domestic Violence with Firearms. Gun violence is the leading killer of children and teenagers in the United States. President Biden and Vice President Harris have taken historic executive action to reduce gun violence and violent crime. In 2022, President Biden signed into law the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act (BSCA), the most significant new gun safety legislation in nearly 30 years. The intersection between guns and domestic violence can be especially deadly, and BSCA expanded background checks to keep guns out of the hands of more domestic abusers, narrowed the “boyfriend loophole” so an individual convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence against a dating partner is prohibited from purchasing a firearm, and expanded funding for red flag laws that allow for temporary removal of firearms from an individual who is a danger to themselves or others. President Biden established the first-ever Office of Gun Violence Prevention, overseen by Vice President Harris. The Biden-Harris Administration has made historic investments in law enforcement and community-led crime prevention and intervention strategies and has announced more executive actions to reduce gun violence than any other administration. Most recently, building on life-saving actions that the Administration has already taken, President Biden signed a new Executive Order in September 2024 to improve school-based active shooter drills and combat emerging firearms threats. The President and Vice President also announced new actions to support survivors of gun violence, promote safe gun storage, fund community violence intervention, and improve the gun background check system, among other actions.
   
• Launching the American Climate Corps. President Biden launched the American Climate Corps to give a diverse new generation of young people the tools to fight the impacts of climate change today and the skills to join the clean energy and climate-resilience workforce of tomorrow. The American Climate Corps is tackling the climate crisis, including by restoring coastal ecosystems, strengthening urban and rural agriculture, investing in clean energy and energy efficiency, improving disaster and wildfire preparedness, and more. More than 15,000 young Americans have already been put to work in high-quality, good-paying clean energy and climate resilience workforce training and service opportunities through the American Climate Corps—putting the program on track to reach President Biden’s goal of 20,000 members in the program’s first year ahead of schedule.
   
• Providing Children with Healthier, More Sustainable Environments. The Environmental Protection Agency’s Clean School Bus Program has awarded nearly $3 billion and funded approximately 8,700 electric and low-emission school buses nationwide, protecting children from air pollution by transforming school bus fleets across America. The Biden-Harris Administration also invested $15 billion toward replacing every toxic lead pipe in the country within a decade, protecting children and schools from lead exposure that can cause irreversible harm to cognitive development and hamper children’s learning. And earlier this year, the Environmental Protection Agency provided $58 million to protect children from lead in drinking water at schools and child care facilities.

• Fighting Online Harassment and Abuse. Online harassment and abuse is increasingly widespread in today’s digitally connected world and disproportionately affects women, girls, and LGBTQI+ individuals. President Biden established the White House Task Force to Address Online Harassment and Abuse to coordinate comprehensive actions from more than a dozen federal agencies, and his Executive Order on artificial intelligence directs federal agencies to address deepfake image-based abuse. The Department of Justice also funded the first-ever national helpline to provide 24/7 support and specialized services for victims of online harassment and abuse, including the non-consensual distribution of intimate images; raised awareness of new legal protections against the non-consensual distribution of intimate images that were included in the Violence Against Women Act Reauthorization Act of 2022; and funded a new National Resource Center on Cybercrimes Against Individuals.

• Keeping Students Safe and Addressing Campus Sexual Assault. The Department of Education restored and strengthened vital Title IX protections against discrimination on the basis of sex for students and employees. The Department of Justice awarded more than $20 million in FY 2024 to support colleges and universities in preventing and responding to sexual assault, domestic violence, dating violence, and stalking. And the Department of Education—in collaboration with the Departments of Justice and Health and Human Services—launched a Task Force on Sexual Violence in Education that has released data on sexual violence at educational institutions and is working to improve sexual violence prevention and response on campus.

• Supporting Vulnerable Youth. The Biden-Harris Administration has taken action to support the needs of vulnerable and underserved youth—from helping prevent youth homelessness and human trafficking to supporting employment initiatives for youth with disabilities. This includes $800 million in dedicated funding to support students experiencing homelessness through the President’s American Rescue Plan. The Department of Health and Human Services also issued landmark rules to improve the child welfare system, particularly for the most vulnerable children, and to advance the safety and wellbeing of families across the country, including for LGBTQI+ children in foster care. And the Department of Justice has funded programs to help communities develop, enhance, or expand early intervention programs and treatment services for girls who are involved in the juvenile justice system.

The Biden-Harris Administration has also taken action to support girls around the globe by fighting to advance the human rights of women and girls and promote access to education, health, and safety, including:

• Promoting Girls’ Education Globally. The United States is investing in girls’ education around the world, which in turn advances health and economic development. The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) invested more than $2.5 billion from FY 2021-2023 to increase access to quality basic and higher education, and reached 18.7 million girls and women in 69 countries in FY23 alone to advance gender equality in and through education. The Departments of State and Labor have also supported efforts to promote girls’ education through science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education programs in Kenya and Namibia, as well as technical and vocational education training centers for adolescent girls in Ethiopia. The United States has strongly condemned the restriction of girls’ education in Afghanistan, including by restricting visas for individuals believed to be responsible for, or complicit in, repressing women and girls by limiting or prohibiting access to education.

• Closing the Gender Digital Divide. Last year, Vice President Harris launched the Women in the Digital Economy Fund (Wi-DEF) to accelerate progress towards closing the gender digital divide. To date, Wi-DEF has raised over $80 million, including an initial $50 million commitment from USAID. Building on the success of the Fund, the Women in the Digital Economy Initiative includes commitments from governments, private sector companies, foundations, civil society, and multilateral organizations that have pledged more than $1 billion to accelerate gender digital equality. This Initiative supports girls’ access to digital learning opportunities, provides employment and educational skills, and helps fulfill the historic commitment of G20 Leaders to halve the digital gender gap by 2030. Since the launch of Wi-DEF, the United States has invested $102 million in direct and aligned commitments to closing the gender digital divide and accelerating gender digital equality.

• Preventing and Responding to Online Harassment and Abuse Globally. To address the scourge of online harassment and abuse against girls and women, the Biden-Harris Administration launched the 15-country Global Partnership for Action on Gender-Based Online Harassment and Abuse, which has advanced international policies to address online safety and supported programs to prevent and respond to technology-facilitated gender-based violence. Since the Global Partnership was launched in 2022, the Department of State has supported projects in every region to prevent, document, and address technology-facilitated gender-based violence, cultivate safe online use, and respond to survivors’ needs. 

• Championing Girls’ Leadership in Addressing the Climate Crisis. In 2023, Vice President Harris announced the Women in the Sustainable Economy Initiative—an over $2 billion public-private partnership to promote women’s access to jobs in the green and blue industries of the future—including by advancing girls’ access to STEM education. Through WISE, the Department of State is investing more than $12 million in programs to benefit girls, including programs that promote girls’ economic skills and opportunities in STEM and that foster girls’ roles in leading, shaping, and informing equitable and inclusive climate policies and actions.

• Strengthening HIV Prevention Services for Girls. To address key factors that make adolescent girls and young women particularly vulnerable to HIV, the United States launched the DREAMS (Determined, Resilient, Empowered, AIDS-free, Mentored, and Safe) public-private partnership as part of the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) in 2014. Announced in 2023, PEPFAR’s DREAMS NextGen program is the next phase of DREAMS that will take a more nuanced approach that is responsive to the current context within each of the 15 DREAMS countries. PEPFAR has invested more than $2 billion in comprehensive HIV prevention programming for girls through DREAMS—including $1.3 billion since the start of the Administration—and the program reaches approximately 2.5 to 3 million girls annually.

• Increasing Efforts to End Child Marriage Globally. To address the global scourge of child, early, and forced marriage, USAID and the Department of State invested $86 million in 27 countries to support programs that prevent and respond to this harmful practice, including by equipping girls and young women with education and workforce readiness skills; providing education, health, legal, and economic support; and raising awareness. Under the leadership of the Biden-Harris Administration, the United States also made its first-ever contribution to the UNICEF-UNFPA Global Programme to End Child Marriage, which works in 12 countries in Africa and South Asia to promote the rights of adolescent girls, and is contributing more than $2 million in FY 2024 to UNFPA to help reach refugee adolescent girls and prevent child marriages in humanitarian settings.

• Leading Programs to End Female Genital Mutilation and Cutting. To address the harmful practice of female genital mutilation and cutting (FGM/C), USAID invested in programs to address this issue in Djibouti, Egypt, Mauritania, and Nigeria. The United States is a long-standing donor to the UNICEF-UNFPA Joint Programme on the Elimination of Female Genital Mutilation, and invested $20 million from FY 2020-FY 2023 in this partnership, which has succeeded in advocating for legal and policy frameworks banning FGM/C in 14 of 17 countries and supported more than 6.3 million women and girls with FGM/C-related protection and care services.

• Promoting Young Women’s Civic and Political Participation. The Biden-Harris Administration has advanced the political and civic participation of women and girls as a pillar of democracy promotion efforts worldwide. The Administration launched Women LEAD, a $900 million public-private partnership focused on building the pipeline of women leaders around the world, including by supporting programs to reach girls and young women. Under this umbrella, the USAID-led Advancing Women’s and Girls’ Civic and Political Leadership Initiative provides more than $25 million to identify and dismantle the individual, structural, and socio-cultural barriers to the political empowerment of women and girls in ten focus countries: Côte d’Ivoire, Nigeria, Tanzania, Kenya, Colombia, Ecuador, Honduras, Kyrgyz Republic, Yemen, and Fiji. Furthermore, the State Department is launching a new $1.25 million program in Africa that will empower and equip young women leaders to take on decision-making roles in democratic transition processes.

• Protecting Girls in Humanitarian Emergencies. The United States government has increased its support for girls in humanitarian and fragile contexts. Since 2021, USAID has more than doubled the percentage of its humanitarian budget allocated to the protection sector, which includes child protection and gender-based violence activities serving girls. In FY 2023, USAID provided $163 million specifically towards addressing gender-based violence in humanitarian emergencies. In 2022, USAID and the Department of State launched Safe from the Start: ReVisioned, which seeks to better address the needs of girls and women from the onset of a conflict or crisis.

• Combatting Child Trafficking. To combat child trafficking, including trafficking of girls, the Department of State has committed $37.5 million through Child Protection Compacts, building capacity in Jamaica, Peru, and Mongolia, and establishing new partnerships with Colombia, Cote d’Ivoire, and Romania. These partnerships strengthen country responses to child trafficking to more effectively prosecute and convict traffickers, provide comprehensive trauma-informed care for child victims—including girls—and prevent child trafficking in all its forms.
  

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The post FACT SHEET: Biden-Harris Administration Celebrates International Day of the Girl and Continues Commitment to Supporting Youth in the U.S. and Abroad appeared first on The White House.

International Day of the Girl provides an opportunity to celebrate the leadership of girls around the world and recommit to addressing the barriers that continue to limit their full participation. Today, to commemorate International Day of the Girl, First Lady Jill Biden will host the second “Girls Leading Change” event at the White House to recognize outstanding young women from across the United States who are making a difference in their communities. This year’s event will honor 10 young women leaders, selected by the White House Gender Policy Council, who are leading change and shaping a brighter future for generations to come.  

The Biden-Harris Administration is committed to ensuring that girls can pursue their dreams free from fear, discrimination, violence, or abuse; and to advancing the safety, education, health, and wellbeing of girls everywhere. Investing in young people means investing in our future; and they should have the opportunity and resources they need to succeed.

That’s why, since day one in office, this Administration has taken action to advance the safety, education, health, and well-being of girls, including:

• Accelerating Learning and Improving Student Achievement. The American Rescue Plan, the largest one-time education investment in our history, included $130 billion to help schools address the impact of the pandemic on student well-being and academic achievement. To sustain these efforts, the Biden-Harris Administration increased funding and targeting of federal grants to better support academic recovery—from the Education Innovation and Research program to extended-day and afterschool programming through 21st Century Community Learning Centers. And the Administration’s Improving Student Achievement Agenda for 2024 is helping accelerate academic performance for every child in school.

• Canceling Student Debt. President Biden and Vice President Harris vowed to fix the federal student loan program and make sure higher education is a ticket to the middle class—not a barrier to opportunity. The Biden-Harris Administration has approved nearly $170 billion in loan forgiveness for almost 5 million borrowers through more than two dozen executive actions with the goal of helping these borrowers get more breathing room in their daily lives, access economic mobility, buy homes, start businesses, and pursue their dreams.

• Cutting Child Poverty Nearly in Half in 2021. President Biden and Vice President Harris believe that no child should grow up in poverty. Their expansion of the Child Tax Credit helped cut child poverty nearly in half in 2021 to a record low of 5.2%. President Biden and Vice President Harris are fighting to restore this expansion, which would lift over a million girls out of poverty and narrow racial disparities. The Biden-Harris Administration has also lifted hundreds of thousands of girls out of poverty by updating the Thrifty Food Plan and creating SunBucks, a new program that helps low-income families afford groceries over the summer when they don’t have access to school meals.

• Supporting Youth Mental Health. President Biden and Vice President Harris believe that health care is a right, not a privilege, and that mental health care is health care—period. That’s why they invested almost $1.5 billion to strengthen the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline and launched the National Mental Health Strategy, with ongoing investments to strengthen the mental health workforce, ensure parity for mental health and substance use care, connect Americans to care, and better protect youth from the harms of social media. The Biden-Harris Administration is also delivering the largest investments in school-based mental health services ever, bringing 14,000 new mental health professionals into schools across the country and making it easier for schools to leverage Medicaid to deliver care.
   
• Preventing Gun Violence, Including Domestic Violence with Firearms. Gun violence is the leading killer of children and teenagers in the United States. President Biden and Vice President Harris have taken historic executive action to reduce gun violence and violent crime. In 2022, President Biden signed into law the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act (BSCA), the most significant new gun safety legislation in nearly 30 years. The intersection between guns and domestic violence can be especially deadly, and BSCA expanded background checks to keep guns out of the hands of more domestic abusers, narrowed the “boyfriend loophole” so an individual convicted of a misdemeanor crime of domestic violence against a dating partner is prohibited from purchasing a firearm, and expanded funding for red flag laws that allow for temporary removal of firearms from an individual who is a danger to themselves or others. President Biden established the first-ever Office of Gun Violence Prevention, overseen by Vice President Harris. The Biden-Harris Administration has made historic investments in law enforcement and community-led crime prevention and intervention strategies and has announced more executive actions to reduce gun violence than any other administration. Most recently, building on life-saving actions that the Administration has already taken, President Biden signed a new Executive Order in September 2024 to improve school-based active shooter drills and combat emerging firearms threats. The President and Vice President also announced new actions to support survivors of gun violence, promote safe gun storage, fund community violence intervention, and improve the gun background check system, among other actions.
   
• Launching the American Climate Corps. President Biden launched the American Climate Corps to give a diverse new generation of young people the tools to fight the impacts of climate change today and the skills to join the clean energy and climate-resilience workforce of tomorrow. The American Climate Corps is tackling the climate crisis, including by restoring coastal ecosystems, strengthening urban and rural agriculture, investing in clean energy and energy efficiency, improving disaster and wildfire preparedness, and more. More than 15,000 young Americans have already been put to work in high-quality, good-paying clean energy and climate resilience workforce training and service opportunities through the American Climate Corps—putting the program on track to reach President Biden’s goal of 20,000 members in the program’s first year ahead of schedule.
   
• Providing Children with Healthier, More Sustainable Environments. The Environmental Protection Agency’s Clean School Bus Program has awarded nearly $3 billion and funded approximately 8,700 electric and low-emission school buses nationwide, protecting children from air pollution by transforming school bus fleets across America. The Biden-Harris Administration also invested $15 billion toward replacing every toxic lead pipe in the country within a decade, protecting children and schools from lead exposure that can cause irreversible harm to cognitive development and hamper children’s learning. And earlier this year, the Environmental Protection Agency provided $58 million to protect children from lead in drinking water at schools and child care facilities.

• Fighting Online Harassment and Abuse. Online harassment and abuse is increasingly widespread in today’s digitally connected world and disproportionately affects women, girls, and LGBTQI+ individuals. President Biden established the White House Task Force to Address Online Harassment and Abuse to coordinate comprehensive actions from more than a dozen federal agencies, and his Executive Order on artificial intelligence directs federal agencies to address deepfake image-based abuse. The Department of Justice also funded the first-ever national helpline to provide 24/7 support and specialized services for victims of online harassment and abuse, including the non-consensual distribution of intimate images; raised awareness of new legal protections against the non-consensual distribution of intimate images that were included in the Violence Against Women Act Reauthorization Act of 2022; and funded a new National Resource Center on Cybercrimes Against Individuals.

• Keeping Students Safe and Addressing Campus Sexual Assault. The Department of Education restored and strengthened vital Title IX protections against discrimination on the basis of sex for students and employees. The Department of Justice awarded more than $20 million in FY 2024 to support colleges and universities in preventing and responding to sexual assault, domestic violence, dating violence, and stalking. And the Department of Education—in collaboration with the Departments of Justice and Health and Human Services—launched a Task Force on Sexual Violence in Education that has released data on sexual violence at educational institutions and is working to improve sexual violence prevention and response on campus.

• Supporting Vulnerable Youth. The Biden-Harris Administration has taken action to support the needs of vulnerable and underserved youth—from helping prevent youth homelessness and human trafficking to supporting employment initiatives for youth with disabilities. This includes $800 million in dedicated funding to support students experiencing homelessness through the President’s American Rescue Plan. The Department of Health and Human Services also issued landmark rules to improve the child welfare system, particularly for the most vulnerable children, and to advance the safety and wellbeing of families across the country, including for LGBTQI+ children in foster care. And the Department of Justice has funded programs to help communities develop, enhance, or expand early intervention programs and treatment services for girls who are involved in the juvenile justice system.

The Biden-Harris Administration has also taken action to support girls around the globe by fighting to advance the human rights of women and girls and promote access to education, health, and safety, including:

• Promoting Girls’ Education Globally. The United States is investing in girls’ education around the world, which in turn advances health and economic development. The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) invested more than $2.5 billion from FY 2021-2023 to increase access to quality basic and higher education, and reached 18.7 million girls and women in 69 countries in FY23 alone to advance gender equality in and through education. The Departments of State and Labor have also supported efforts to promote girls’ education through science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) education programs in Kenya and Namibia, as well as technical and vocational education training centers for adolescent girls in Ethiopia. The United States has strongly condemned the restriction of girls’ education in Afghanistan, including by restricting visas for individuals believed to be responsible for, or complicit in, repressing women and girls by limiting or prohibiting access to education.

• Closing the Gender Digital Divide. Last year, Vice President Harris launched the Women in the Digital Economy Fund (Wi-DEF) to accelerate progress towards closing the gender digital divide. To date, Wi-DEF has raised over $80 million, including an initial $50 million commitment from USAID. Building on the success of the Fund, the Women in the Digital Economy Initiative includes commitments from governments, private sector companies, foundations, civil society, and multilateral organizations that have pledged more than $1 billion to accelerate gender digital equality. This Initiative supports girls’ access to digital learning opportunities, provides employment and educational skills, and helps fulfill the historic commitment of G20 Leaders to halve the digital gender gap by 2030. Since the launch of Wi-DEF, the United States has invested $102 million in direct and aligned commitments to closing the gender digital divide and accelerating gender digital equality.

• Preventing and Responding to Online Harassment and Abuse Globally. To address the scourge of online harassment and abuse against girls and women, the Biden-Harris Administration launched the 15-country Global Partnership for Action on Gender-Based Online Harassment and Abuse, which has advanced international policies to address online safety and supported programs to prevent and respond to technology-facilitated gender-based violence. Since the Global Partnership was launched in 2022, the Department of State has supported projects in every region to prevent, document, and address technology-facilitated gender-based violence, cultivate safe online use, and respond to survivors’ needs. 

• Championing Girls’ Leadership in Addressing the Climate Crisis. In 2023, Vice President Harris announced the Women in the Sustainable Economy Initiative—an over $2 billion public-private partnership to promote women’s access to jobs in the green and blue industries of the future—including by advancing girls’ access to STEM education. Through WISE, the Department of State is investing more than $12 million in programs to benefit girls, including programs that promote girls’ economic skills and opportunities in STEM and that foster girls’ roles in leading, shaping, and informing equitable and inclusive climate policies and actions.

• Strengthening HIV Prevention Services for Girls. To address key factors that make adolescent girls and young women particularly vulnerable to HIV, the United States launched the DREAMS (Determined, Resilient, Empowered, AIDS-free, Mentored, and Safe) public-private partnership as part of the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) in 2014. Announced in 2023, PEPFAR’s DREAMS NextGen program is the next phase of DREAMS that will take a more nuanced approach that is responsive to the current context within each of the 15 DREAMS countries. PEPFAR has invested more than $2 billion in comprehensive HIV prevention programming for girls through DREAMS—including $1.3 billion since the start of the Administration—and the program reaches approximately 2.5 to 3 million girls annually.

• Increasing Efforts to End Child Marriage Globally. To address the global scourge of child, early, and forced marriage, USAID and the Department of State invested $86 million in 27 countries to support programs that prevent and respond to this harmful practice, including by equipping girls and young women with education and workforce readiness skills; providing education, health, legal, and economic support; and raising awareness. Under the leadership of the Biden-Harris Administration, the United States also made its first-ever contribution to the UNICEF-UNFPA Global Programme to End Child Marriage, which works in 12 countries in Africa and South Asia to promote the rights of adolescent girls, and is contributing more than $2 million in FY 2024 to UNFPA to help reach refugee adolescent girls and prevent child marriages in humanitarian settings.

• Leading Programs to End Female Genital Mutilation and Cutting. To address the harmful practice of female genital mutilation and cutting (FGM/C), USAID invested in programs to address this issue in Djibouti, Egypt, Mauritania, and Nigeria. The United States is a long-standing donor to the UNICEF-UNFPA Joint Programme on the Elimination of Female Genital Mutilation, and invested $20 million from FY 2020-FY 2023 in this partnership, which has succeeded in advocating for legal and policy frameworks banning FGM/C in 14 of 17 countries and supported more than 6.3 million women and girls with FGM/C-related protection and care services.

• Promoting Young Women’s Civic and Political Participation. The Biden-Harris Administration has advanced the political and civic participation of women and girls as a pillar of democracy promotion efforts worldwide. The Administration launched Women LEAD, a $900 million public-private partnership focused on building the pipeline of women leaders around the world, including by supporting programs to reach girls and young women. Under this umbrella, the USAID-led Advancing Women’s and Girls’ Civic and Political Leadership Initiative provides more than $25 million to identify and dismantle the individual, structural, and socio-cultural barriers to the political empowerment of women and girls in ten focus countries: Côte d’Ivoire, Nigeria, Tanzania, Kenya, Colombia, Ecuador, Honduras, Kyrgyz Republic, Yemen, and Fiji. Furthermore, the State Department is launching a new $1.25 million program in Africa that will empower and equip young women leaders to take on decision-making roles in democratic transition processes.

• Protecting Girls in Humanitarian Emergencies. The United States government has increased its support for girls in humanitarian and fragile contexts. Since 2021, USAID has more than doubled the percentage of its humanitarian budget allocated to the protection sector, which includes child protection and gender-based violence activities serving girls. In FY 2023, USAID provided $163 million specifically towards addressing gender-based violence in humanitarian emergencies. In 2022, USAID and the Department of State launched Safe from the Start: ReVisioned, which seeks to better address the needs of girls and women from the onset of a conflict or crisis.

• Combatting Child Trafficking. To combat child trafficking, including trafficking of girls, the Department of State has committed $37.5 million through Child Protection Compacts, building capacity in Jamaica, Peru, and Mongolia, and establishing new partnerships with Colombia, Cote d’Ivoire, and Romania. These partnerships strengthen country responses to child trafficking to more effectively prosecute and convict traffickers, provide comprehensive trauma-informed care for child victims—including girls—and prevent child trafficking in all its forms.
  

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The Biden-Harris Administration has worked to strengthen our ties with ASEAN and deliver on our commitments to the region. Over the past three and a half years, we have pursued an unprecedented expansion in the breadth and depth of U.S.-ASEAN relations, including upgrading our relationship to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and institutionalizing cooperation in five new areas—health, transportation, women’s empowerment, environment and climate, and energy—as well as deepening our cooperation in foreign affairs, economics, technology, and defense. To date, we have made significant progress in fulfilling 98.37 percent of our commitments in the ASEAN-U.S. Plan of Action (2022-2025) and its Annex. The United States will continue working with ASEAN, including through ASEAN-led mechanisms, to build an open, inclusive, transparent, resilient, and rules-based regional architecture in which ASEAN is its center.
 
DELIVERING ON OUR COMPREHENSIVE STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP

This year, the United States and ASEAN are celebrating 47 years of U.S.-ASEAN relations. President Biden and Vice President Harris remain committed to ASEAN centrality and supporting the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific, which shares fundamental principles with the U.S. Indo-Pacific Strategy. ASEAN is at the heart of the U.S. approach to the Indo-Pacific, as reflected in numerous U.S. initiatives to promote economic prosperity and regional stability. Through the U.S.-ASEAN Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, the United States has demonstrated that we are a reliable and enduring partner for our combined one billion people. Key U.S.-ASEAN accomplishments under the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership include:

• The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) extended the U.S.-ASEAN Regional Development Cooperation Agreement to 2029 enabling the launch of the new five-year ASEAN USAID Partnership Program in March 2024. 
• The United States plans to conduct a second U.S.-ASEAN maritime exercise in 2025, co-hosted by Indonesia. U.S. and ASEAN Member States’ navies will exercise communication, information sharing, and the implementation of maritime security protocols in accordance with international law.
• In August 2024, the United States and ASEAN agreed to formalize U.S.-ASEAN health cooperation, elevating our engagement to a biennial U.S.-ASEAN Health Ministers Dialogue. USAID also officially launched the U.S.-ASEAN-Airborne Infection Defense Platform to bolster the region’s tuberculosis response capacity.
• The United States is launching a cybersecurity training program for the ASEAN Secretariat that will enhance the cybersecurity awareness, knowledge, and skills of our partners who are the backbone of ASEAN institutions.  
• At the third U.S.-ASEAN High-Level Dialogue on Environment and Climate this year, the United States unveiled the U.S.-ASEAN Climate Solutions Hub to help ASEAN members states develop and implement their contributions under the Paris Agreement.
• In 2023, the United States and ASEAN held the inaugural Dialogue on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities to advance human rights for persons with disabilities across Southeast Asia, including working with private sector to find ways to support accessibility across Southeast Asia.

As a reflection of the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership reaching its full potential, the United States and ASEAN celebrated the launch of the U.S.-ASEAN Center in Washington, DC in December 2023. The Center has already hosted several high-profile ASEAN-related events and is on track to become the key hub for ASEAN’s engagement with the United States.

• In June 2024, the Center hosted the Secretary-General of ASEAN, Dr. Kao Kim Hourn, for his first working visit to the United States, where he launched a speaker series.
• In August 2024, the Center hosted an ASEAN Day celebration, showcasing a wide array of cultural activities from ASEAN Member States.
• The Center is also partnering with the Antiquities Coalition to host a Cultural Property Agreement workshop.

The U.S.-ASEAN Smart Cities Partnership (USASCP) is a key mechanism for our engagement on innovating sustainable cities of the future. Since it was launched in 2018, USASCP has invested more than $19 million in over 20 projects across urban sectors throughout the region. USASCP tackles the varied challenges of rapid urbanization, including accelerating climate action and promoting sustainable urban services.

• In 2024, the USASCP Smart Cities Business Innovation Fund 2.0 will grant $3 million for net-zero urban innovation projects to strengthen private sector investment in sustainability and climate action across the ASEAN region.
• In 2022, the Smart Cities Business Innovation Fund 1.0 granted a total of $1 million to six awardees across the region, including a solar panel recycling facility in Da Nang Vietnam and a seaweed/bioplastics manufacturer in Tangerang Indonesia.
• The United States paired municipal water and wastewater facility operators from five cities across the United States and the ASEAN Smart Cities Network to share their expertise.

This year marks the Young Southeast Asian Leadership Initiative’s (YSEALI) second decade of building youth leadership capabilities across Southeast Asia to promote cross-border cooperation on regional and global challenges. YSEALI’s 160,000 strong digital network and 6,000 plus alumni community is creating new opportunities for its members to shape YSEALI’s next 10 years of impact. The State Department is well on its way to doubling the number of Southeast Asian youth participating in the YSEALI Academic and Professional Fellowships by 2025, in line with the commitments laid out by President Biden and Vice President Harris during the May 2022 U.S.-ASEAN Special Summit.

• The United States has invested over $1.8 million to empower nearly 500 young women as part of the YSEALI Women’s Leadership Academy (WLA). In celebration of the WLA’s 10th anniversary, the U.S. Mission to ASEAN granted $44,000 to alumni groups to foster collaboration and find innovative ways to close the gender leadership gap.
• The YSEALI Seeds for the Future Program—a grant program intended to support innovative initiatives in Southeast Asia—has provided nearly $3 million for more than 500 young leaders to carry out projects that improve their communities.
• The Department of State’s YSEALI Alumni Engagement Innovation Fund supported 16 YSEALI alumni-led public service projects in 2024. 

ENHANCING CONNECTIVITY AND RESILIENCE

The Biden-Harris Administration continues to build greater connectivity with ASEAN and enhancing regional resilience to bolster economic development and integration. The United States is ASEAN’s number one source of foreign direct investment, and U.S. goods and services trade totaled an estimated $500 billion in 2023. Since 2002, the United States has provided more than $14.7 billion in economic, health, and security assistance to Southeast Asian allies and partners. During that same period, the United States provided nearly $1.9 billion in humanitarian assistance, including life-saving disaster assistance, emergency food aid, and support to refugees throughout the region. As a durable and reliable partner of ASEAN, the United States supports the governments and people of Southeast Asia in enhancing the region’s connectivity and resilience. In addition to U.S. companies’ substantial investments, the United States is cooperating with the private sector to equip the region’s workforce with the skills needed to succeed in Southeast Asia’s burgeoning digital economy. Other key U.S. initiatives supporting this effort include:

• USAID announces $2 million of new funding to support the sustainable development of critical minerals, supporting ASEAN’s goal of raising environmental, social, and governance standards for mineral sector development. 

• Through the Japan-U.S.-Mekong Power Partnership (JUMPP), the U.S. Department of State has implemented over 60 technical assistance activities to strengthen national power sectors and regional electricity market, enhancing the clean energy export potential of Cambodia, Lao PDR, Thailand, and Vietnam to the ASEAN market. 
• The U.S. Trade and Development Agency is supporting a feasibility study to develop two cross-border interconnections, further expanding our longstanding support to connect the ASEAN Power Grid.
• USAID is expanding cooperation with the ASEAN Center for Energy to support private sector and multilateral development bank investment to operationalize regional connectivity through the ASEAN Power Grid.
• Through the ASEAN Digital Ministers’ Meeting and Digital Senior Officials’ Meeting, we are intensifying our cooperation on trusted information and communications technology infrastructure – including undersea cables, cloud computing, and wireless networks, artificial intelligence (AI), cybersecurity, and combatting online scams.
• The United States supported development of the ASEAN Responsible AI Roadmap and provided AI technical assistance for the Digital Economy Framework Agreement. Our collective effort ensures ASEAN can foster an inclusive environment where affirmative, safe, secure, and trustworthy AI innovation can flourish.
• Under the U.S.-ASEAN Connect framework, the U.S. Mission to ASEAN is leveraging the U.S. government and private sector expertise to advance economic engagement, including through workshops covering topics such as best practices to strengthen cybersecurity and how to harness digital technologies.

Over the past three and a half years, the Biden-Harris Administration has also spurred investment and economic growth through the advancement of over $1.4 billion in private sector investments in the ASEAN region. This past year alone, the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) has invested over $341 million in ASEAN markets. To further our cooperation and support, DFC has announced that it will open new offices in Vietnam and the Philippines to source more opportunities and further advance private sector investment. DFC’s key initiatives and investments have included:

• Loaning up to $126 million loan to power company PT Medco Cahaya Geothermal to strengthen Indonesia’s energy security.
• Initiating DFC’s first investment in Lao PDR with a $4 million loan portfolio guarantee to Phongsavanh Bank, which will work with Village Funds to give farmers financing to scale their businesses, increase their incomes, and improve their livelihoods.
• Initiating DFC’s first investment in East Timor with a $3 million loan to microfinance institution Kaebauk Investimentu No Finansas, which will provide financing to small businesses, especially rural and unbanked ones.

We look forward to continue advancing our Comprehensive Strategic Partnership with ASEAN in 2025 by formulating a new plan of action to guide the next five years of our enduring partnership as we work to further the prosperity of our combined one billion people.

###

The post FACT SHEET: Delivering on Our Commitments, 12th U.S.-ASEAN Summit in Vientiane, Lao PDR appeared first on The White House.

The Biden-Harris Administration has worked to strengthen our ties with ASEAN and deliver on our commitments to the region. Over the past three and a half years, we have pursued an unprecedented expansion in the breadth and depth of U.S.-ASEAN relations, including upgrading our relationship to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and institutionalizing cooperation in five new areas—health, transportation, women’s empowerment, environment and climate, and energy—as well as deepening our cooperation in foreign affairs, economics, technology, and defense. To date, we have made significant progress in fulfilling 98.37 percent of our commitments in the ASEAN-U.S. Plan of Action (2022-2025) and its Annex. The United States will continue working with ASEAN, including through ASEAN-led mechanisms, to build an open, inclusive, transparent, resilient, and rules-based regional architecture in which ASEAN is its center.
 
DELIVERING ON OUR COMPREHENSIVE STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIP

This year, the United States and ASEAN are celebrating 47 years of U.S.-ASEAN relations. President Biden and Vice President Harris remain committed to ASEAN centrality and supporting the ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific, which shares fundamental principles with the U.S. Indo-Pacific Strategy. ASEAN is at the heart of the U.S. approach to the Indo-Pacific, as reflected in numerous U.S. initiatives to promote economic prosperity and regional stability. Through the U.S.-ASEAN Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, the United States has demonstrated that we are a reliable and enduring partner for our combined one billion people. Key U.S.-ASEAN accomplishments under the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership include:

• The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) extended the U.S.-ASEAN Regional Development Cooperation Agreement to 2029 enabling the launch of the new five-year ASEAN USAID Partnership Program in March 2024. 
• The United States plans to conduct a second U.S.-ASEAN maritime exercise in 2025, co-hosted by Indonesia. U.S. and ASEAN Member States’ navies will exercise communication, information sharing, and the implementation of maritime security protocols in accordance with international law.
• In August 2024, the United States and ASEAN agreed to formalize U.S.-ASEAN health cooperation, elevating our engagement to a biennial U.S.-ASEAN Health Ministers Dialogue. USAID also officially launched the U.S.-ASEAN-Airborne Infection Defense Platform to bolster the region’s tuberculosis response capacity.
• The United States is launching a cybersecurity training program for the ASEAN Secretariat that will enhance the cybersecurity awareness, knowledge, and skills of our partners who are the backbone of ASEAN institutions.  
• At the third U.S.-ASEAN High-Level Dialogue on Environment and Climate this year, the United States unveiled the U.S.-ASEAN Climate Solutions Hub to help ASEAN members states develop and implement their contributions under the Paris Agreement.
• In 2023, the United States and ASEAN held the inaugural Dialogue on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities to advance human rights for persons with disabilities across Southeast Asia, including working with private sector to find ways to support accessibility across Southeast Asia.

As a reflection of the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership reaching its full potential, the United States and ASEAN celebrated the launch of the U.S.-ASEAN Center in Washington, DC in December 2023. The Center has already hosted several high-profile ASEAN-related events and is on track to become the key hub for ASEAN’s engagement with the United States.

• In June 2024, the Center hosted the Secretary-General of ASEAN, Dr. Kao Kim Hourn, for his first working visit to the United States, where he launched a speaker series.
• In August 2024, the Center hosted an ASEAN Day celebration, showcasing a wide array of cultural activities from ASEAN Member States.
• The Center is also partnering with the Antiquities Coalition to host a Cultural Property Agreement workshop.

The U.S.-ASEAN Smart Cities Partnership (USASCP) is a key mechanism for our engagement on innovating sustainable cities of the future. Since it was launched in 2018, USASCP has invested more than $19 million in over 20 projects across urban sectors throughout the region. USASCP tackles the varied challenges of rapid urbanization, including accelerating climate action and promoting sustainable urban services.

• In 2024, the USASCP Smart Cities Business Innovation Fund 2.0 will grant $3 million for net-zero urban innovation projects to strengthen private sector investment in sustainability and climate action across the ASEAN region.
• In 2022, the Smart Cities Business Innovation Fund 1.0 granted a total of $1 million to six awardees across the region, including a solar panel recycling facility in Da Nang Vietnam and a seaweed/bioplastics manufacturer in Tangerang Indonesia.
• The United States paired municipal water and wastewater facility operators from five cities across the United States and the ASEAN Smart Cities Network to share their expertise.

This year marks the Young Southeast Asian Leadership Initiative’s (YSEALI) second decade of building youth leadership capabilities across Southeast Asia to promote cross-border cooperation on regional and global challenges. YSEALI’s 160,000 strong digital network and 6,000 plus alumni community is creating new opportunities for its members to shape YSEALI’s next 10 years of impact. The State Department is well on its way to doubling the number of Southeast Asian youth participating in the YSEALI Academic and Professional Fellowships by 2025, in line with the commitments laid out by President Biden and Vice President Harris during the May 2022 U.S.-ASEAN Special Summit.

• The United States has invested over $1.8 million to empower nearly 500 young women as part of the YSEALI Women’s Leadership Academy (WLA). In celebration of the WLA’s 10th anniversary, the U.S. Mission to ASEAN granted $44,000 to alumni groups to foster collaboration and find innovative ways to close the gender leadership gap.
• The YSEALI Seeds for the Future Program—a grant program intended to support innovative initiatives in Southeast Asia—has provided nearly $3 million for more than 500 young leaders to carry out projects that improve their communities.
• The Department of State’s YSEALI Alumni Engagement Innovation Fund supported 16 YSEALI alumni-led public service projects in 2024. 

ENHANCING CONNECTIVITY AND RESILIENCE

The Biden-Harris Administration continues to build greater connectivity with ASEAN and enhancing regional resilience to bolster economic development and integration. The United States is ASEAN’s number one source of foreign direct investment, and U.S. goods and services trade totaled an estimated $500 billion in 2023. Since 2002, the United States has provided more than $14.7 billion in economic, health, and security assistance to Southeast Asian allies and partners. During that same period, the United States provided nearly $1.9 billion in humanitarian assistance, including life-saving disaster assistance, emergency food aid, and support to refugees throughout the region. As a durable and reliable partner of ASEAN, the United States supports the governments and people of Southeast Asia in enhancing the region’s connectivity and resilience. In addition to U.S. companies’ substantial investments, the United States is cooperating with the private sector to equip the region’s workforce with the skills needed to succeed in Southeast Asia’s burgeoning digital economy. Other key U.S. initiatives supporting this effort include:

• USAID announces $2 million of new funding to support the sustainable development of critical minerals, supporting ASEAN’s goal of raising environmental, social, and governance standards for mineral sector development. 

• Through the Japan-U.S.-Mekong Power Partnership (JUMPP), the U.S. Department of State has implemented over 60 technical assistance activities to strengthen national power sectors and regional electricity market, enhancing the clean energy export potential of Cambodia, Lao PDR, Thailand, and Vietnam to the ASEAN market. 
• The U.S. Trade and Development Agency is supporting a feasibility study to develop two cross-border interconnections, further expanding our longstanding support to connect the ASEAN Power Grid.
• USAID is expanding cooperation with the ASEAN Center for Energy to support private sector and multilateral development bank investment to operationalize regional connectivity through the ASEAN Power Grid.
• Through the ASEAN Digital Ministers’ Meeting and Digital Senior Officials’ Meeting, we are intensifying our cooperation on trusted information and communications technology infrastructure – including undersea cables, cloud computing, and wireless networks, artificial intelligence (AI), cybersecurity, and combatting online scams.
• The United States supported development of the ASEAN Responsible AI Roadmap and provided AI technical assistance for the Digital Economy Framework Agreement. Our collective effort ensures ASEAN can foster an inclusive environment where affirmative, safe, secure, and trustworthy AI innovation can flourish.
• Under the U.S.-ASEAN Connect framework, the U.S. Mission to ASEAN is leveraging the U.S. government and private sector expertise to advance economic engagement, including through workshops covering topics such as best practices to strengthen cybersecurity and how to harness digital technologies.

Over the past three and a half years, the Biden-Harris Administration has also spurred investment and economic growth through the advancement of over $1.4 billion in private sector investments in the ASEAN region. This past year alone, the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) has invested over $341 million in ASEAN markets. To further our cooperation and support, DFC has announced that it will open new offices in Vietnam and the Philippines to source more opportunities and further advance private sector investment. DFC’s key initiatives and investments have included:

• Loaning up to $126 million loan to power company PT Medco Cahaya Geothermal to strengthen Indonesia’s energy security.
• Initiating DFC’s first investment in Lao PDR with a $4 million loan portfolio guarantee to Phongsavanh Bank, which will work with Village Funds to give farmers financing to scale their businesses, increase their incomes, and improve their livelihoods.
• Initiating DFC’s first investment in East Timor with a $3 million loan to microfinance institution Kaebauk Investimentu No Finansas, which will provide financing to small businesses, especially rural and unbanked ones.

We look forward to continue advancing our Comprehensive Strategic Partnership with ASEAN in 2025 by formulating a new plan of action to guide the next five years of our enduring partnership as we work to further the prosperity of our combined one billion people.

###

The post FACT SHEET: Delivering on Our Commitments, 12th U.S.-ASEAN Summit in Vientiane, Lao PDR appeared first on The White House.

James S. Brady Press Briefing Room

1:12 P.M. EDT

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  Good afternoon, everyone.

Q    Good afternoon.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  So, before I turn it — turn to the latest — to the latest on the hurricane, I wanted to briefly mention at the top that — at the top regarding the passing of Ethel Kennedy. 

I expect you will have something from the president very, very soon.  They were dear friends.  And I don’t want to get ahead of him in his statement, but the president and first lady are sending their love to her entire family and everyone whose life was touched by her strength and service.

Now shifting gears to the storm.  This morning, the president and the vice president were briefed on the impacts from Hurricane Milton and will continue to be briefed throughout the day.

We are praying for those who lost their lives and all the communities devastated by this storm.  The president and vice president will do everything in our power to help — to help — to help with the respond, the recovery, and rebuild.

Last night, in advance of Hurricane Milton making landfall, the president spoke by phone with several officials in Florida, including Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer, Sarasota Mayor Liz Alpert, and Representative Gus Bilirakis and Kathy Castor.

This morning, President Biden also spoke to Governor DeSantis about the impacts of Hurricane Milton.  The governor thanked the president for the extensive federal support to prepare for and respond to the storm.

This afternoon, the president spoke with several additional Florida officials following the impacts of Hurricane Milton across the Florida Peninsula, including Senator Rick Scott, Representative Anna Paulina Luna, Gainesville Mayor Harvey Ward, Fort Myers Mayor Kevin Anderson, Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings, and Pasco County Chair Ron Oakley. 

The president told each of these leaders to call him directly if they need additional assistance on rescue, response, and recovery efforts.  The president also emphasized that he will be with them and their communities no matter how long it takes.

Additionally, FEMA Administrator Criswell has been on the ground in Florida since last night, and today she is survi- — surveying the damage alongside her state and local counterparts and will work closely with them to determine any unmet needs.

At the direction of the president, FEMA and the federal family began to quickly deploy resources to assist with rescue and response operations, including over 1,200 urban search and rescue personnel and the three U.S. Coast Guard Swift Water Rescue teams, with rescues already underway — over 1,000 federal personnel, all focused on helping the people of Florida respond and recover.  And over 15 million meals and 13 million liters of water are already in the region, with 20 million meals and 40 million liters of water ready to be deployed.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has two temporary power teams and a roofing team to diagnose the need for short-term repairs to homes and structures.

The Department of Defense has also provided 60 high-water vehicles and personnel who can further aid in search and rescue efforts.

To the people of Florida, this is still a very serious situation.  Please remain vigilant.  Listen to local officials.  As the president has said, we will be here for you as long as it takes. 

Now, as you all know, this is an ongoing response and we are getting information in real time.

We are very grateful that we have the secretary, Secretary of Homeland Security Mayorkas, here, who is on the ground — here virtually, obviously — who is on the ground in North Carolina surveying the damage and helping with response to Hurricane Helene.

Regarding Hurricane Milton — Milton, we won’t have all of the answers right now, but we want to provide as much information as we can. 

And so, with that, I will turn it over to the Homeland secretary and — Homeland Security secretary.

Thank you so much, again, for joining us, sir.  The floor is yours.

SECRETARY MAYORKAS:  (Via teleconference.)  Thank you, Karine, and good afternoon.

Can everybody hear me?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  Yeah.  Yes, we can hear you fine.  Thank you.

SECRETARY MAYORKAS:  Thank you.  So, I am currently joining you from North Carolina, where I’ve been meeting with our extraordinary FEMA personnel and federal, state, and local partners on the ground about Hurricane Helene’s devastating impact and the progress we are making in our work to help North Carolina communities and aid in their recovery.

Before I share an update on the situation here in North Carolina, I’ll provide you an update on Hurricane Milton, which, last night, made landfall as a Category 3 storm near Siesta Key, Florida, following a day of heavy rain and at least 27 tornado touchdowns.  Our hearts break for the Floridians who have lost so much.

I was briefed earlier by FEMA Administrator Criswell, who is on the ground in Florida, as Karine noted, along with more than 1,000 FEMA personnel. 

There is significant water and wind damage across Central Florida.  As of this morning, over 3 million customers are without power.  Structures have been severely damaged or collapsed.  And tragically, we know that lives have been lost.  We are praying for them and their loved ones.

Right now, search and rescue is our highest priority, and we are also praying for those who are unaccounted for and for their safe return.

It is very significant that many followed local guidance and evacuated ahead of landfall.  We cannot minimize the impact of that.

It is imperative that everyone continues to follow the direction of local officials.  Milton may have passed, but the danger it poses has not.  Downed power lines, flood waters, non-potable drinking water, and debris are creating deadly conditions. 

Keep listening to local officials and shelter in place until it is safe if told to do so.

Only use generators when and where it is safe to do so.

You can find — people can find more tips on staying safe after a storm on the FEMA app or by visiting Ready.gov.

In the lead-up to Milton, our administration made robust preparations for the storm.  President Biden approved emergency declarations for the state of Florida and for the Seminole Tribe of Florida days before this storm made landfall to provide full federal support for the response.

We’ve pre-positioned supplies, including food and water, 20 helicopters, 60 Department of Defense high-water vehicles with ladders, 1,300 U.S. Coast Guard personnel, and 1,400 Urban Search and Rescue team members across Florida in anticipation of the storm, and staged hundreds of ambulances to assist in the transport of hospitalized patients.

Today, FEMA is joining the state to begin damage assessments to ensure Floridians have what they need.  FEMA and our federal partners, including the Department of Defense and the United States Coast Guard, are already working closely to — to support the state of Florida in a comprehensive, coordinated response to the storm.

To reiterate President Biden’s message yesterday, every available resource is being deployed as fast as possible to impacted communities, and we will not leave until the work is done. 

The same is true for communities devastated by Hurricane Helene, including here in North Carolina.  President Biden and Vice President Harris were here last week, as was I, and we will continue to support impacted communities and first responders on the ground.  More than 10,000 federal staff are on the ground supporting Helene and Milton response efforts across the Southeast.

Since Helene first made landfall, Urban Search and Rescue teams have rescued over 4,300 people.  From a peak of 5.1 million customers without power, we have helped restore power for more than 5 million of them, and we are restoring more every day. 

We have helped quickly restore cell phone service across the region.  At its peak, 3.4 million customers were without service.  I — we have restored service now to more than 3.2 million of them. 

We have delivered more than 17.2 million meals and more than 13.9 million liters of water.  We have helped get over $350 million in assistance out to Helene survivors, with millions more going out every day.  All this and much more.

These first responders and their state and local partners are doing truly heroic work in extremely difficult circumstances.  We are all immensely grateful for their extraordinary, selfless service. 

The weeks since Hurricane Helene first made landfall have been devastating and difficult, but I want to be clear: We have the capability and the capacity to respond to and recover from multiple simultaneous disasters.  No resources needed for Hurricane Helene response will be diverted to respond to Hurricane Milton. 

We have made it clear we will be there for every impacted community every step of the way. 

Thank you.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  Thank you, Mr. Secretary.  We’ll go to questions. 

Okay.  Go ahead, Kayla.  (Laughs.)

Q    Thank you so much.  Mr. Secretary, this is Kayla Tausche from CNN.  President Biden indicated that FEMA and the Department of Defense would have enough money to get through their immediate needs in this recovery phase.  I’m wondering, after your early assessments of the damage from Hurricane Milton, now coupled with the damage from Hurricane Helene, do you still believe that to be the case?

SECRETARY MAYORKAS:  Yes, I do.  We have the resources to respond to the immediate needs of individuals impacted by Hurricane Helene and Hurricane Milton and the associated — and it’s very important to remember — the tornadoes associated with the hurricane.  That being said, we will need additional funds, and we implore Congress, when it returns, to, in fact, fund FEMA as is needed.

Q    If I could, just a quick follow-up.  You said on CNN yesterday that some of the misinformation that had been perpetuated around these storms was already beginning to have an impact on individuals either applying or deciding — deciding not to apply for government relief.  Can you elaborate on what exactly you’re seeing and what exactly you determined to be the cause of that?

SECRETARY MAYORKAS:  So, let me — let me repeat that, in fact, the false information that is being spread deliberately does have a real-life impact on survivors, and it is also demoralizing for those heroic individuals who are risking their lives in the service of others. 

Let me give you one example.  There is false information that federal employees, who are there to help people, will actually take their land.  And what we have seen is people reticent, reluctant to access the relief to which they are entitled and which will help them, because of the fear that that false information has instilled in them. 

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  Go ahead, Mary.

SECRETARY MAYORKAS:  That is just one example. 

Q    Thank you, Mr. Secretary.  Mary Bruce with ABC.  Another question on misinformation.  You know, we’ve seen reports that some FEMA officials, including the administrator, are being doxed and targeted online in the wake of these hurricanes.  Are you concerned that individuals involved in the recovery effort, you know, are — are being threatened online?

SECRETARY MAYORKAS:  We most certainly are.  We are seeing horrific hate speech of all types propagated on online platforms.  That deplorable speech has an impact on people’s lives, and it is also a motivating force for people to do harm.  And it has got to stop, and it is our work in the Department of Homeland Security to combat hate in all its forms.  We —

Q    And do you —

SECRETARY MAYORKAS:  — will continue that work.

Q    Do you have any information to suggest that any foreign governments have tried to take advantage and amplify this misinformation about the response and recovery effort?

SECRETARY MAYORKAS:  I have not been alerted to that phenomenon.  We, of course, have seen foreign nations disseminate false information for other purposes.  I have not seen it in the context of Hurricane Helene or the Hurricane Milton, which just transpired, but of course, we are quite vigilant in monitoring that.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  Go ahead, Nancy.

Q    Thank you.  Secretary Mayorkas, it’s Nancy Cordes from CBS News.  Sec- — Hurricane Milton knocked out power to more than 3 million customers.  How does the scope of the power situation compare to other disasters?  And what is the federal government’s role in coordinating the restoration of that power?  How long will it take?

SECRETARY MAYORKAS:  So, Nancy, a number of questions.  Unclear how long it’s going to take, because, quite frankly, the damage asses- — assessment is still underway.  So, we’re — we’re at a very, very early stage. 

Our role, generally, is to support the state and local officials, the state and local resources to augment those resources and to work very, very closely alongside them.  And we are doing so both in response to Hurricane Helene and Hurricane Milton. 

Loo- — you know, the — the response is actually in a number of phases.  The immediate phase is search and rescue, life and safety of individuals.  And then we — we go from search and rescue to response and then to recovery. 

We work very closely with the state and local officials to rebuild whatever infrastructure has been damaged, to get power up.  We have the capacity to assist.  And we also work with the private sector.

We have the ability to deliver power immediately, but for the long term, very often, infrastructure has to be rebuilt. 

My visit here in North Carolina underscored that fact, because one of the long-term challenges is going to be to rebuild the water system in a number of cities where it’s been completely decimated. 

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  Go ahead, Jacqui.

Q    Thanks, Karine.  Mr. Secretary, it’s Jacqui Heinrich from Fox.  I want to ask you about a different story. 

This Afghan national who was working for the CIA in Afghanistan was arrested for planning an Election Day terror plot.  He was brought to the U.S. after Afghanistan collapsed, your agency says, as part of the SIV program. 

The State Department is telling us he was not part of the SIV program, which had strenuous vetting.  They say he was never issued an SIV or immigrant visa, and DHS paroled him into the U.S.  They further expect the court document to be updated to reflect this from the DOJ side. 

So, Mr. Secretary, how was this man brought into the U.S.?  What screening did he undergo?  What did he apply for to get here?

SECRETARY MAYORKAS:  Jacqui, I — I’m here in North Carolina communicating with the individuals who are still conducting search and rescue operations.  Over 200 people have lost their lives in Hurricane Helene.  We have reports that at least 10 individuals have lost their lives as a result of Hurricane Milton. 

I’d be very pleased to answer your question in a different setting, but we’re here to talk about emergencies and the support that we can deliver to people in desperate need.  Thank you.

Q    I appreciate that, Mr. Secretary, but we’re getting conflicting answers from your agency and from the State Department about a man who was arrested for an Election Day terror plot.  How do you not have those answers prepared?

SECRETARY MAYORKAS:  Oh, Jacqui, that’s not what I said.  What I said is I’d be pleased to discuss this issue at a different time, but I am here to speak about disasters that have impacted people’s lives in real time, and that is the subject that I am addressing today.

Q    Can you assure people, though —

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  We’re going to —

Q    Mr. Secretary, can you assure people that appropriate steps have been taken to secure the country against these kinds of threats?  Because the outstanding question is whether this man was radicalized before the U.S. government brought here — him here or afterward.  And people should be concerned about that.

SECRETARY MAYORKAS:  Jacqui — Jacqui — Jacqui, your persistence in questioning can be matched my — by my persistence in answers.  (Laughter.)

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  All right.  We’re going to go.  Go ahead, Gabe.

Q    Mr. Secretary, thank you.  Gabe Gutierrez here with NBC.  I want to go back to the funding question a little bit more specifically. 

So, eight days into the fiscal year, the federal government has spent nearly half of the money that Congress has allocated for disaster relief for the next 12 months.  How concerning is that?

SECRETARY MAYORKAS:  It is very concerning.  But — but let me be clear: We can meet the immediate needs arising from Hurricane Helene, Hurricane Milton, and the tornadoes associated with it. 

When Congress returns, we will need them to act swiftly to appropriately fund the Disaster Relief Fund upon which FEMA relies to deliver assistance to people after extreme weather events.  And so, we can meet the immediate needs.  We will need funding very rapidly. 

Q    What if there’s another disaster next week?

SECRETARY MAYORKAS:  We — we have — we are working on a continuing resolution.  That is not stable footing for the work that we do in disaster response, and so that is why I underscore the need for Congress to act swiftly upon its return. 

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  Go ahead, Michael.

Q    Thank you, Karine.  Mr. Secretary, Michael Wilner with McClatchy.  Just want to ask you specifically about the National Flood Insurance Program.  Already this — the NFIP has been chronically in the red.  How do you anticipate Milton will affect that program?  And is there a specific ask of Congress?

SECRETARY MAYORKAS:  Michael, I’ll — I’ll have to follow up with you on that.  But I — you know, I’ve been in the Department of Homeland Security as the director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services and the deputy secretary and now, of course, as the secretary, and I’ve always known the — the Flood Insurance Program to be in the red.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  Okay.  Go ahead.

Q    Thank you.  Mr. Secretary, this is Courtney Rozen from Bloomberg Government.  I would like to ask about the upcoming election in the next couple of weeks.  Are you thinking about that issue in terms of voters being able to access their polling places in states that are having such significant damage?

SECRETARY MAYORKAS:  Courtney, we have seen state and local officials who are, of course, on point in ensuring access to voting.  We have seen them make — take measures to ensure that people can, in fact, reach their polling places. 

Some polling places have been damaged, for example, as a result of Hurricane Helene, but they are pivoting to make sure that there are other facilities available to them, and they’ll have different places at which they can place their votes. 

And this is something that the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency of our department — CISA, as it — as it is known by its acronym — works very closely with state and local officials to assist in that regard.

Q    Can you give an example of one way that they are assisting in this time?

SECRETARY MAYORKAS:  So, what we do — what — there —

Q    Can you give some examples of what that work looks like?

SECRETARY MAYORKAS:  There are three — there are three threat vectors.  There’s physical violence — there’s the concern about physical violence.  There is the concern about cyberattacks.  And there’s the concern about disinformation.

An example is that we are protecting — protective security advisers in each state that assist state and local officials in sharing best practices about how to secure the facilities, both from a physical perspective and a cybersecurity perspective.  That would be one example.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  Okay.  Go ahead.  We’re going to start wrapping it up, but go ahead.

Q    Thank you, Mr. Secretary.  This is Skylar Woodhouse with Bloomberg News.  As you mentioned earlier, you said that FEMA, you know, will need funds when — when Congress comes back.  But if there is another disaster prior to Congress coming back to session and as you continue to work with Helene and Milton, is there — will FEMA have to perhaps stop offering services or sending out support for aid if you’re running out of cash before Congress comes back?

SECRETARY MAYORKAS:  No, it — no, it will not.  We — we have the funds to address immediate needs.  If we have to devote the resources that we have to immediate needs, we will do so at the expense of perhaps other long-term recovery efforts.  We need Congress to act swiftly upon its return, but we will meet immediate needs.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  All right.  Jared, you have the last question.

Q    Thank you.  Mr. Secretary, as you talk about the need for Congress to come back and, obviously, replenish funds when they do that, I’m just curious: Moving forward, as you look forward to future appropriation battles, does Congress need to rethink how they are funding FEMA and disaster relief?  In other words, is it, like, an underfunded service and program of the federal government, as is?

SECRETARY MAYORKAS:  Let me — let me take a step back and widen the aperture of that question, if I may.  The — the — a continuing resolution is not a stable way to fund the federal government.  Needs change from year to year, and we need real budgets upon which we can rely and upon which we can predicate responsible financial planning and financial management.  So, a continuing resolution only retains a level of instability in the work that we do, in terms of the assurance of the funding that we need. 

We — the Disaster Relief Fund and the funding of it should be completely nonpartisan and apolitical.  This is a fund that provides much-needed relief to individuals, regardless of party.  And I have said publicly many a time since Hurricane Hele- — Helene first hit in late September, that when our brave individuals — and I say “our” meaning not just federal but federal, state, and local — reach into flooded waters to save an individual, they are not asking about that individual’s party affiliation.  They are rescuing a fellow human being, and we need to be funded accordingly.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  All right.  Thank —

Q    And if I —

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  Oh —

Q    — just one quick one to follow up —

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  Okay.

Q    — with the secretary.  The — the —

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  Wait, hold on.  Hold on.  Go ahead, Will.  I told him it was the last question.

So, Mr. Secretary, we have one more for you. 

Go ahead, Will.

Q    Sorry.  Sorry.  It’s Will Weissert with AP.  You mentioned at least 10 people killed in relation to Milton.  Is that — were those tornado deaths?  Can you give us a little bit more information about where that number came from?

SECRETARY MAYORKAS:  So, let me — let me be clear.  And this is something I want to echo that Karine mentioned at the very outset.  This is a very fluid situation.  We are just beginning damage assessment.  So, when I — we have 10 confirmed fatalities.  Our understanding is that those fatalities were caused by the tornadoes.

But — but I just want to introduce a little bit of tentativeness to that because of the fluidity of the situation and how nascent it — it is.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  All right.

SECRETARY MAYORKAS:  It is our job to make sure that that number doesn’t climb, through valiant search and rescue efforts, but we are dealing in the immediate aftermath of a terrible hurricane and many, many tornadoes ancillary to it.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  All right.  Thank you so much, Mr. Secretary.  Appreciate it.  Appreciate everything that you’re doing.

SECRETARY MAYORKAS:  Thank — thank you.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  Thank you. 

All right.  We don’t have too much time because the president, as you all know, is speaking at 2 o’clock.

So, Will, what do you have for me?

Q    Okay.  I wanted to switch gears a little bit.  Does the White House have a reaction to the U.N. Interim Force in Lebanon report that Israel has fired on their position in — in Lebanon, and there’s been at least two peacekeepers that were injured?  Does the president —

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  So — yeah.

Q    — think that — that there should still be U.N. peacekeepers in the region?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  So, I want to be mindful.  I heard about those reports coming in.  I — I need to talk to the team and get to the ground truth of exactly what’s happening.  I just want to be super mindful, because I don’t have all the information for me to respond to you at this time.

Once I have that, then we can certainly respond.

Q    Can you comment more generally on — on peacekeepers in —

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  I — I mean, obviously, peacekeepers — we want them to be safe and protected, but I just don’t have anything for you on that particular event that’s happening on the ground.  I just heard those reports, and I just want to make sure I have the full — full breadth of the information before I respond.

Go ahead, Danny.

Q    Thanks, Karine.  The readout of the president’s call with Prime Minister Netanyahu yesterday said they’d be — remain in close touch.  Just wondered if the president or the White House has heard anything more about Israel’s plans for retaliation.  And, secondly, when — and, secondly, do we know when they’re expected to speak again?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  So, look, I don’t have anything to preview on the next call.  As you know — and I’ve said this many times before — since this past little bit mo- — now, over a year, the president and the prime minister have spoken over a dozen times.  We talked a little bit in this room about the call yesterday — 30 minutes; it was direct; it was productive.  There was a readout that we all put out.

And as I said yesterday and I’ll continue to iterate here, this was a — as it relates to the — Iran’s attack, they had a contin- — they continued the discussion that happened on the staff level, obviously, on the leaders level. 

And I’m just going to be super mindful here.  I’m not going to read out from here what Israel is going to do or not going to do.  And, frankly, I’m certainly not going to read that out to the Iranians. 

So, going to be — going to keep that diplomatic conversation as it should be.  It is a private conversation, and we read out as much as we were able to just to give you a little bit of — of a sense of color of what happened on that call.

Q    Can I ask if you do expect to hear from the Israelis after the Security Cabinet meeting? 

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  I don’t have anything to — to share.  What I can say, though, and we — and I — we’ve said this many times before: There is regular communication that is happening with the Israeli government, certainly on the staff level, on a daily — on a daily basis.  And certainly, that will continue as — as we have done for the past more — more than a year now. 

Go ahead, Kayla.

Q    Thank you, Karine.  Earlier this week, Hezbollah’s deputy secretary general expressed a willingness to renew talks for a ceasefire.  What is the U.S.’s response to that, and what does the White House believe the willingness of Israel is to begin those talks again?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  Say that one more time — the beginning of that.  Sorry.

Q    The deputy secretary general of Hezbollah expressed support for a ceasefire deal. 

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  Look, what I will say is, obviously, we do not have conversations here with Hezbollah or any of the Iran-backed groups.  We don’t speak to Iran.  That is not how we — we communicate. 

We will continue to have conversations with Israel about — about a way forward with Lebanon, about a way forward here.  We believe a ceasefire is the way to go in order to create space to have diplomatic conversations — that’s what we believe — and so that both sides can return back home to — to their respective borders. 

And that’s what we want to see.  And those discussions continue. 

Q    And just to follow up.  Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has showed a willingness to disregard the preferences of President Biden and the U.S. team in how he has prosecuted the conflict in the Middle East.  And I’m wondering if the White House is giving any new consideration to conditions being placed on aid delivered Israel.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  No.

Go ahead.

Q    I wanted to ask a question about the disinformation with the hurricanes.  And has the White House been in touch with the leadership of social media networks where a lot of this disinformation is being spread?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  So, obviously, as we have stated, and you — the president was very, very clear yesterday about misinformation, disinformation and how dangerous it is, especially right now when we’re — when he was speaking at the time — when we were dealing and trying to respond to disasters and preparing — at the time, when he was responding. 

So, we have made — we have certainly been in touch with — with trusted online publishers, influencers, other trusted messengers to — to meet people where they are, and that’s what we have been trying to do: be on those platforms, those traditional media outlets as well, to be very clear about making sure they have the accurate information. 

And so, that is one of the reasons, earlier this week, the White House launched the Reddit — the first Reddit account to ensure that even more people can — we can meet more people where they are so we can make sure that we [they] have that accurate information. 

So, that’s what we’re doing to make sure that we’re on those platforms, pushing out what we — what is the accurate information so folks out there, people out there who are certainly impacted — now impacted by two hurricanes has the information that they need.

Q    Are the platforms themselves doing enough to police the disinformation that’s on there? 

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  I mean, look, they’re private companies.  So, I’m not going to tell them what to do, what not to do.  I think everybody has a responsibility here to try to make sure that the information that they are providing — whether you are a leader, a national leader, a congressional leader, a former president — you have the — certainly, the duty to be accountable here and to make sure that you are sharing the right information, truthful information, not falsehoods that, you know, frankly, certainly put people in harm’s way and makes it hard for these brave men and women — you heard the president talk about this yesterday — who are on the ground providing assistance.  It puts them in harm’s way as well. 

Go ahead, Mary.

Q    Thanks.  To that end, Congresswoman Luna, who represents the Saint Petersburg area, said that she spoke with the president today about the response.  She is one of those people who has been spreading disinformation, misinformation about FEMA assistance.  Did that come up in the conversation?  Did the president, you know, directly talk to her about that and

encourage her to stop it?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  Look, the president was certainly focused on what’s happening on the ground and making sure that the federal government is — is — any needs that are unmet are met, and that everybody who is on the ground, certainly local officials, elected officials who are trying to help their community has what they need. 

And, look, the president was very clear.  It is unacceptable.  It is unacceptable for bad-faith actors — right? — to — to continue to push out misinformation.  As I stated, it is dangerous.  It does not — it gets in the way of providing the assistance that we need.  We have heard — you all have reported on stories where people are not going for — asking for assistance because of the misinformation. 

And so, the president was really clear.  It is very, very clear. 

And one of the — one of the issues that we have heard — or the lies or falsehoods that are out there is the $750.  It is the beginning.  It is something so that people are able to buy, you know, diapers, to buy milk, are able to buy necess- — ne- — necessities that they need in the moment at the time after dealing with such a horrible event.  And the $750 is the beginning, and there is more to come. 

But it’s not helpful when people do that.  So, the president is not going to shy away from that.  He was very straightforward, very forceful about it twice yesterday when he spoke to the public.  And so, we’re going to keep — be very, very clear.  It is unacceptable. 

But the calls that the president made today was about making sure that Americans, people on the ground who had been affected by this hurricane — this most recent hurricane, Hurricane Milton — they have what they need on the ground.

Go ahead, Gabe.

Q    Thanks, Karine.  Following up on Jacqui’s question from earlier on the Afghan terror suspect.  NBC is reporting that he was a security guard for the CIA before he came to the U.S. and that he passed two rounds of vetting.  Does the administration believe there was adequate vetting?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  So, what I can say is I cannot comment on this directly because — because it is an active investigation.  As you know, that the Department of Justice is currently un- –moving forward with.  So, I’m going to be really careful. 

What I can say is every Afghan national who entered the U.S. was screened and vetted by intelligence, law enforcement, counterterrorism professionals, and with every new information that emerges that in- — individual that — if that individual could pose a threat to public safety, we take immediate action, and we take that action. 

And so, going to be — not going to speak to this particular case, but I can speak more broadly, and that’s the actions that we normally take.  That’s how we move forward. 

And the president has always been clear, protecting the American people will always be — always be his top priority.

Q    More broadly, what would you say to critics who say there isn’t enough vetting in these cases?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  What I can say is how I just ended my last question to you.  Protecting the American people is the president’s top priority.

Go ahead, in the back.

Q    Thank you, Karine.  From what you and other officials have said, I gather that the U.S. has at least two stated goals in Lebanon.  The first one, you said that you don’t want it to turn into another Gaza — 

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  Yeah.

Q    — you’re working towards cessation of hostilities, but you also support Israeli efforts in dismantling Hezbollah infrastructure in Lebanon.  So, how can those two goals exist in the same time frame?  Is the understanding to first allow Israel to push back against Hezbollah before going into negotiations?

AIDE:  Karine —

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  Sorry.

(An aide shows Ms. Jean-Pierre a phone.)

Oh, gosh.  Okay. 

Q    Karine —

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  We got to move s- —

Q    Can you share those developments, Karine? 

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  We have to move —

Q    What’s going on there? 

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  No, I’m — I’m just trying to make sure that we’re out of here because the president is speaking at 2 o’clock.  That’s what they’re — they’re giving me updates on — on — we got to move pretty — pretty quickly.

On answering that question, Patsy, I’ll say this: Look, I think two things — both — both things could be true and — at the same time.  We believe that — and I said this moments ago — we want to see a cease- — a ceasefire deal — that’s what we want to see — to provide some space for di- — diplomacy so that — that would enable civilians to go back home on both sides — right? — to go back home — both sides of the border.

And so, we’re going to have those discussions.  We’ll — going to be able — hoping to be able to achieve that goal.  And we — we believe, ultimately, a diplomatic resolution is the way to — to move forward here. 

And to your point about Israel, we believe Israel has the right to defend itself.  That’s what we believe.  We’ve said that.

And what we understand is the operation that they’re moving forward with in Lebanon are indeed targeted.  We’re having those conversations.  We’re being very direct and having those doc- –conversations with the Israeli government.  That will continue.  And we have been very clear with this as well. 

Q    And —

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  We protect — we believe and support and — in — in — and certainly support Israel’s so- — right to defend itself and certainly our — their — Israel’s security continues to be ironglad [ironclad] — our support for them.

Q    And — and just to pick up on your point that it’s targeted.  Have you — considering the fact that there are American citizens still in Lebanon —

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  Yeah.

Q    — have you received any Israeli guarantees that they won’t strike the airport in Beirut, as well as the road to the airport, which I understand goes through Hezbollah-controlled territory?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  We continue to have very, very direct conversation with the Israeli government.  That’s what we’re going to do. 

But how — how the shape and scope and the nature of their operations, of their campaign moves forward, we are going to have, again, very direct conversations with them.

Q    And then, finally, just quickly on Taiwan, Karine.  In response to Taiwan National Day celebrations, China is feared to respond by either conducting war games or sending its assets to the region.  Is the administration prepared on such an event, considering a lot of the military assets have been deployed to the Middle East?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  So, look, you’re talking about the speech that the Taiwan president made?

Q    Yes.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  Look, that — it’s — it is — it is tradition, as you know, for — on that day, a long-standing tradition for Taiwan’s president to deliver remarks on 10/10.  It — it is routine, domestic-focus address that has historically prompted little response from Beijing.  This year should be no different. 

We are not going to speculate on what the PRC will or will not do this year, but we see no just- — justification, certainly, for a routine annual celebration to be used as a pretext for military exercises. 

We urge Beijing to act with restraint.  Our One China policy has not changed, and we’ve been really consistent about that in the past three and a half years.

Go ahead, Michael.

Q    Karine, just following up on my colleague’s question about the — the president’s call with some Florida officials and lawmakers.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  Yeah.

Q    I know you mentioned that he had been clear yesterday with regard to disinformation around the hurricane response, but did it come up specifically in that call?  Was there a conversation with Florida officials?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  I don’t have anything to share besides the president reaching out to elected officials, local and statewide, to offer up their assistance — his assistance, the federal government assistance to check in to see what else that they need.  We are dealing with, obviously, the impact of a pretty powerful hurricane, Hurricane Milton, and so that is his — was his focus on the call today. 

I think he’s been very — I mean, he said it publicly, right?  So, he’s been very public about how he feels about misinformation.  And as president, he felt that he needed to say something because it was harming — harming Americans out there who were impacted by — have been impacted, whether by Hurricane Helene, now impacted by Hurricane Milton, and they need to get the assistance.  Right?  They need to make sure that — we wanted to make sure they were pre-posi- — they were ready, whether evacuating, sheltered before — ahead of this hurricane.  And when you have this type of misinformation, disinformation out there, it certainly steps on that. 

And so, as president, he spoke very publicly twice — twice yesterday, and I think that message was sent loud and clear.

Go ahead.

Q    Thanks, Karine.  Since President Biden postponed his foreign trip due to — due to Hurricane Milton, has the president spoken with German Chancellor Scholz yet just about, you know, maybe rescheduling the trip, just kind of talking since there was a lot planned?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  Yeah.  So, I think we’ve stated that we’re going to be rescheduling the trip.  That’s what we’re — we’re trying to work out all of the details.  That’s important to the president to do that. 

Wh- — when I have more information, obviously, you all will be one of the first to know.

And the president is planning to speak to both of the leaders very, very soon.  And so, once we have that information, we’ll certainly share that with all of you as well. 

I think I have to wrap it up here.

Q    On the trip?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  Yep. 

Q    So, the — will the leader-level Ukraine Defense Contact Group be rescheduled, or will it happen in the coming weeks at the ministerial level? 

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  So, what I can say: On the leader level, I understand that that’s going to be the — that conversation is going to be postponed.  And so, that I can speak to. 

Q    Okay.

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  That’s going to definitely be postponed. 

Okay.  All right.  All right.  In the back.  I haven’t called on you in a while. 

Q    Oh, thank you. 

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  Yeah.  Go ahead.

Q    Just on the calls.  Florida Senator Rick Scott said that President Biden agreed that Congress should come back early to fund FEMA.  So, is there a more urgent need, and is the administration all in line with what we heard from the secretary, Mayorkas, talking about getting Congress to come back or not?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  I mean, look, what we have — what we have been very clear about is Congress needs to act.  We had a CR.  We had a pretty robust ask in the CR for — for — to make sure that we continued to fund that — that emergency disaster funding.  Pardon me.  And so, that didn’t go through.  It was not — we were disappointed that it didn’t make it into the CR.  And so, that is unfortunate. 

But we’ve also been clear that Congress needs to act.  And what we have seen in the past is what — Congress can still act on emergency items, move forward emergency asks in — during recess.  That is something that they can do.

And so, we’re going to continue to say that.  We’re going to continue to be very clear.  We have to see this moving forward. 

You saw the letter from the president earlier this week saying that there’s SBA disaster funding that’s about to run out in weeks — in weeks.

Q    But is he going to call them to come back?

MS. JEAN-PIERRE:  We believe that Congress can do the job, right?  They can do this job.  They can make sure that we get that additional funding during recess.  We have seen them do this before.  It is not unusual.  It is something that they’ve been able to do when there has been an important decision to be made.  And so, that’s what we want to see.

All right.  I know we got to go.  The president is about to speak, so I don’t want to hold you guys up.

Thanks, everybody.

Q    Thank you.

1:56 P.M. EDT

The post Press Briefing by Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre and Homeland Security Secretary Alejandro Mayorkas appeared first on The White House.

Tim Johnson served the people of South Dakota with distinction, and it was an honor to serve alongside him in the United States Senate for over a decade.

He always put South Dakotans first, and he never forgot where he came from. He worked tirelessly to bring clean drinking water to Americans wherever they lived: rural towns, inner cities, and Tribal lands. And he steered critical investments toward Indian Country and to South Dakota’s development and infrastructure.

As a Senator, Tim improved access to health care for millions of Americans by providing a critical vote on the Affordable Care Act, advocating for veterans’ health care funding, and fighting to expand Medicaid in South Dakota.

We also worked together to establish the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, to defend the backbone of our economy—hardworking Americans.

Over the years, Jill and I got to know Tim and Barb as true friends. Our hearts are with Barb, his three children, his eight grandchildren, and the people of South Dakota, whose lives Tim touched.

May God bless Tim Johnson.

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The post Statement from President Joe Biden on the Passing of Former U.S. Senator Tim Johnson appeared first on The White House.

Tim Johnson served the people of South Dakota with distinction, and it was an honor to serve alongside him in the United States Senate for over a decade.

He always put South Dakotans first, and he never forgot where he came from. He worked tirelessly to bring clean drinking water to Americans wherever they lived: rural towns, inner cities, and Tribal lands. And he steered critical investments toward Indian Country and to South Dakota’s development and infrastructure.

As a Senator, Tim improved access to health care for millions of Americans by providing a critical vote on the Affordable Care Act, advocating for veterans’ health care funding, and fighting to expand Medicaid in South Dakota.

We also worked together to establish the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, to defend the backbone of our economy—hardworking Americans.

Over the years, Jill and I got to know Tim and Barb as true friends. Our hearts are with Barb, his three children, his eight grandchildren, and the people of South Dakota, whose lives Tim touched.

May God bless Tim Johnson.

###

The post Statement from President Joe Biden on the Passing of Former U.S. Senator Tim Johnson appeared first on The White House.

Ethel Kennedy was an American icon—a matriarch of optimism and moral courage, an emblem of resilience and service. Devoted to family and country, she had a spine of steel and a heart of gold that inspired millions of Americans, including me and Jill. We were blessed to call her a dear friend.

Growing up in an Irish-Catholic family, I often looked to the Kennedy family for proof of America’s promise. Ethel’s husband, Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy, was one of my heroes, inspiring an entire generation to make real that promise for all Americans. Together, they were guided by values that were the same as those my grandparents and parents taught me around the kitchen table: Everyone is entitled to be treated with dignity and respect. We each have an obligation to one another, to give hate no safe harbor, and to leave no one behind.

After his shattering death, Ethel showed our whole nation a way forward, turning pain into purpose and continuing his march toward civil rights and social justice, an end to poverty at home, and securing peace abroad—all while raising their 11 children. Four years later, when I lost my own wife and infant daughter, Ethel was always there for me and my sons. She helped us find strength and perseverance. She taught us how to channel grief into the service of a greater good.

When I moved into the Oval Office as President, I placed a bust of Robert Kennedy by the fireplace, as he and Ethel always had a place in my heart. I cherish the cards she would send me and my family. And when Ethel presented me with the RFK Ripple of Hope Award in 2016, it was one of the greatest honors of my life because I received it from a hero in her own right. For over 50 years, Ethel traveled, marched, boycotted, and stood up for human rights around the world with her signature iron will and grace.

Through it all, Ethel’s story was the American story.

Jill and I send our love to her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren; to her nieces and nephews and the entire Kennedy family; and to the millions of people around the world touched over the decades by her remarkable life of strength and service.

May God bless Ethel Kennedy, a dear friend, and a great American.

###

The post Statement from President Joe Biden on the Passing of Ethel Kennedy appeared first on The White House.

Ethel Kennedy was an American icon—a matriarch of optimism and moral courage, an emblem of resilience and service. Devoted to family and country, she had a spine of steel and a heart of gold that inspired millions of Americans, including me and Jill. We were blessed to call her a dear friend.

Growing up in an Irish-Catholic family, I often looked to the Kennedy family for proof of America’s promise. Ethel’s husband, Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy, was one of my heroes, inspiring an entire generation to make real that promise for all Americans. Together, they were guided by values that were the same as those my grandparents and parents taught me around the kitchen table: Everyone is entitled to be treated with dignity and respect. We each have an obligation to one another, to give hate no safe harbor, and to leave no one behind.

After his shattering death, Ethel showed our whole nation a way forward, turning pain into purpose and continuing his march toward civil rights and social justice, an end to poverty at home, and securing peace abroad—all while raising their 11 children. Four years later, when I lost my own wife and infant daughter, Ethel was always there for me and my sons. She helped us find strength and perseverance. She taught us how to channel grief into the service of a greater good.

When I moved into the Oval Office as President, I placed a bust of Robert Kennedy by the fireplace, as he and Ethel always had a place in my heart. I cherish the cards she would send me and my family. And when Ethel presented me with the RFK Ripple of Hope Award in 2016, it was one of the greatest honors of my life because I received it from a hero in her own right. For over 50 years, Ethel traveled, marched, boycotted, and stood up for human rights around the world with her signature iron will and grace.

Through it all, Ethel’s story was the American story.

Jill and I send our love to her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren; to her nieces and nephews and the entire Kennedy family; and to the millions of people around the world touched over the decades by her remarkable life of strength and service.

May God bless Ethel Kennedy, a dear friend, and a great American.

###

The post Statement from President Joe Biden on the Passing of Ethel Kennedy appeared first on The White House.