WEBVTT 00:00.640 --> 00:02.780 First of all , I want to welcome you 00:02.780 --> 00:04.836 all to the White House and thank you 00:04.836 --> 00:07.840 for coming . Thank you for your service 00:07.840 --> 00:10.000 to others . And with that I will turn 00:10.000 --> 00:13.470 it over to the president of the United 00:13.470 --> 00:15.760 States . Thanks for being everybody . 00:16.000 --> 00:18.370 This is important , and I appreciate 00:18.370 --> 00:20.592 you being willing to come and tell your 00:20.592 --> 00:22.370 stories . I wanted this to be a 00:22.370 --> 00:24.820 conversation about what the impact of 00:24.820 --> 00:28.730 the $1400 that our plan has 00:28.730 --> 00:31.620 for every American out there and to 00:31.620 --> 00:34.910 make sure that I understand what you 00:34.910 --> 00:37.030 think is important about it . If you 00:37.030 --> 00:40.860 think it's important , I also want to 00:41.340 --> 00:43.690 now are people you're about to meet the 00:43.700 --> 00:45.700 millions of people who are going to 00:46.140 --> 00:48.300 help with this . I think with this 00:48.300 --> 00:50.570 check that's going to make a big 00:50.580 --> 00:52.636 difference in terms of their lives . 00:52.636 --> 00:54.747 And people in the country are hurting 00:54.747 --> 00:57.720 right now , With less than two weeks 00:57.720 --> 00:59.942 from enhanced unemployment checks being 00:59.942 --> 01:03.020 cut out and seven million kids don't 01:03.020 --> 01:06.590 have enough food , 13 million people 01:06.590 --> 01:09.990 are behind in the rent and the American 01:09.990 --> 01:12.610 rescue plan I believe in , according to 01:12.610 --> 01:14.610 polling data , the vast majority of 01:14.610 --> 01:16.830 Americans believe is essential to 01:16.830 --> 01:19.300 giving them some help and to turn it 01:19.300 --> 01:21.930 around . And I think it's going to 01:21.940 --> 01:24.480 pride immediate relief for millions of 01:24.490 --> 01:27.150 people that are going to be able to use 01:27.150 --> 01:29.317 it in a very constructive way and also 01:29.317 --> 01:31.940 grow the economy in the process . But 01:31.950 --> 01:33.950 it's essential getting kids back to 01:33.950 --> 01:36.890 school safely . It is also getting a 01:36.890 --> 01:39.057 lifeline to small businesses , many of 01:39.057 --> 01:40.830 whom 400,000 have gone under , 01:41.440 --> 01:44.720 affecting entire communities . And it 01:44.720 --> 01:47.600 is clearly , clearly necessary . A 01:47.600 --> 01:49.980 lifeline for getting the upper hand 01:49.980 --> 01:52.500 against covid 19 and getting under 01:52.500 --> 01:55.400 control . Yes , that isn't some 01:55.400 --> 01:57.880 academic discussion . It's about you . 01:57.890 --> 02:00.590 It's about people like you and and 02:00.590 --> 02:02.440 families I grew up with all over 02:02.450 --> 02:05.390 America . And , you know , you've all 02:05.390 --> 02:08.240 lived lives of service . You not only 02:08.240 --> 02:10.296 have taken care of yourself and your 02:10.296 --> 02:12.240 family , but you've lived lives of 02:12.240 --> 02:14.407 service to help other people as well . 02:14.407 --> 02:16.184 And so as again , this isn't an 02:16.184 --> 02:19.070 academic discussion . You deserve our 02:19.080 --> 02:21.560 thanks and our support . 02:22.310 --> 02:24.760 And I'm going to hand it back to Cedric 02:24.760 --> 02:27.920 so we can hear from you all while the 02:27.930 --> 02:31.080 press is still in here . Well , thank 02:31.080 --> 02:33.191 you , Mr President . Uh , today we're 02:33.191 --> 02:35.302 joined by three outstanding Americans 02:35.302 --> 02:38.520 that exemplify what America stands for , 02:38.530 --> 02:40.920 and especially your values , which is 02:40.920 --> 02:44.520 service to others . And first with Ms 02:44.520 --> 02:48.000 Alma Williams . Miss Williams is a para 02:48.000 --> 02:51.830 transit driver . She transports 02:51.840 --> 02:55.090 disabled Americans every day . She has 02:55.100 --> 02:56.933 all wonderful Children , and her 02:56.933 --> 02:59.100 youngest is in the process of applying 02:59.100 --> 03:01.750 to college . The other two are in 03:01.750 --> 03:04.330 college and one is on her way . So , uh , 03:04.340 --> 03:06.680 Miss Williams is close to being a empty 03:06.680 --> 03:09.700 nester . Then we have , uh , George 03:09.710 --> 03:12.830 Kirk , who served in , uh , the United 03:12.830 --> 03:16.120 States Navy for almost eight years , 03:16.130 --> 03:20.060 served on two Air Force carriers . And 03:20.840 --> 03:24.760 he volunteers , but also is starting 03:24.760 --> 03:28.660 a nonprofit small business to help 03:28.670 --> 03:31.410 people with substance use issues and 03:31.410 --> 03:34.230 health and harm effects . And he has , 03:34.240 --> 03:37.360 uh , which you mentioned earlier . Uh 03:38.140 --> 03:40.084 um , the unfortunate experience of 03:40.084 --> 03:42.370 having a house that burned out . And I 03:42.370 --> 03:44.592 know that you know that experience very 03:44.592 --> 03:46.481 well . And he's just a remarkable 03:46.490 --> 03:49.360 individual . And then with Miss Leader 03:49.840 --> 03:53.320 Venegas , who volunteers at 03:53.320 --> 03:56.850 a D . C . Community Health Center and 03:57.240 --> 04:00.000 spends her time counseling and helping 04:00.000 --> 04:02.510 Americans get through this very rough 04:02.510 --> 04:04.510 time , and she has seen the effects 04:04.940 --> 04:08.610 first hand of the challenges and the 04:08.620 --> 04:10.676 pain and the suffering that American 04:10.676 --> 04:12.787 citizens are going through , which is 04:12.787 --> 04:14.787 particularly important that you say 04:14.787 --> 04:17.240 through no fault of their own . And 04:17.250 --> 04:19.950 with that , Mr President , I'm going to 04:20.340 --> 04:22.890 turn it back over to now turn it over 04:22.890 --> 04:26.260 to Ms Williams so that she can , uh , 04:26.270 --> 04:29.190 tell us about what she thinks about 04:29.190 --> 04:32.060 American rescue plan . Actually , a 04:32.070 --> 04:35.940 wonderful plant and 04:35.940 --> 04:38.550 villages and a pair of transit operator . 04:38.550 --> 04:41.760 I'm also a union rep for the at you . 04:41.940 --> 04:44.470 Yes , sir . And , you know , just 04:44.470 --> 04:47.150 hearing the things that my co workers 04:47.160 --> 04:50.160 go through is devastating . You know , 04:50.540 --> 04:54.370 we're fighting to work . Uh , a maximum 04:54.380 --> 04:57.130 of less than 40 hours a week , you know ? 04:57.140 --> 05:00.580 And and I say the truth . A colleague 05:00.580 --> 05:03.520 of mine where we had a time when we 05:03.530 --> 05:05.474 paid our bills on the first of the 05:05.474 --> 05:07.697 month . And now we're struggling to pay 05:07.697 --> 05:10.490 him on the 15th . You're still employed ? 05:10.500 --> 05:14.260 Yeah . You know , and it's just a 05:14.260 --> 05:17.310 hard time Financially , mentally , 05:17.620 --> 05:19.731 emotionally , like , across the board 05:19.731 --> 05:22.550 for Children . Adult . You know , 05:23.640 --> 05:26.890 it's it's just I thank you for the plan . 05:26.900 --> 05:29.160 I think it will help a wide range of 05:29.170 --> 05:31.337 people you know , not just the working 05:31.337 --> 05:34.460 class but are retirees , you know , 05:34.840 --> 05:36.784 elementary school . You know , the 05:36.784 --> 05:38.784 grade school . If I have nieces and 05:38.784 --> 05:41.007 nephews who are very young and just the 05:41.007 --> 05:44.360 transition of going to school every day 05:44.360 --> 05:46.582 and now being home all day stuck behind 05:46.582 --> 05:49.360 the computer , it's training for them , 05:49.360 --> 05:51.416 too , And they don't understand it , 05:51.416 --> 05:55.310 you know . Thank you . 05:55.320 --> 05:57.320 I have a lot of questions , but I'm 05:57.320 --> 05:59.487 gonna wait until we hear all the press 05:59.487 --> 06:01.709 is here to hear from all three people . 06:01.709 --> 06:03.764 I'd like to talk more about this . I 06:03.764 --> 06:06.042 can't thank . Thank you , Mr President . 06:06.042 --> 06:08.264 With that , we'll turn it over to you , 06:08.264 --> 06:10.487 Mr Kirk . Well , once again , thank you 06:10.487 --> 06:12.710 for having me . It's really important 06:12.720 --> 06:15.950 having this conversation . I'm in full 06:15.950 --> 06:18.780 support of this . That piece of 06:18.790 --> 06:22.180 important legislation . Uh huh . As you 06:22.180 --> 06:26.160 said , I lost my home in November 06:26.160 --> 06:29.590 30th , 2019 . And then right after that , 06:29.600 --> 06:31.544 I got really sick and then cope It 06:31.544 --> 06:33.767 happened . And thankfully , I did not . 06:33.767 --> 06:37.610 I have not contracted coping , but it's 06:37.620 --> 06:41.350 led to a lot of other issues and being 06:41.350 --> 06:43.860 and having my own LLC , it's very 06:43.870 --> 06:45.981 difficult to find contracts right now 06:45.981 --> 06:49.220 because of the environment . And people 06:49.220 --> 06:51.387 are just not don't have the funding to 06:51.387 --> 06:54.870 get the support they need . And so I do 06:54.870 --> 06:57.820 a lot of work with different 06:57.820 --> 06:59.931 organizations . One of them is Mary's 06:59.931 --> 07:02.480 House World or adults , where we have a 07:02.480 --> 07:05.120 reach out and touch someone who talks , 07:05.130 --> 07:08.560 Uh , seniors LGBTQ seniors about 07:08.940 --> 07:11.230 isolation and being in contact with 07:11.240 --> 07:13.650 them . And so 07:15.140 --> 07:17.418 mental health is just a real important . 07:17.420 --> 07:19.476 And I'm glad to see there's a lot of 07:19.476 --> 07:21.309 money in there for mental health 07:21.309 --> 07:23.142 services because it's incredibly 07:23.142 --> 07:27.050 important . And at the same time , my 07:27.050 --> 07:29.440 community , the LGBTQ community , is 07:29.440 --> 07:32.770 under attack on constant basis , 07:33.020 --> 07:34.750 and we need to . 07:36.840 --> 07:39.590 The trauma that's around there needs to 07:39.590 --> 07:42.000 be addressed . And I'm hoping and 07:42.000 --> 07:44.111 praying that you will be able to sign 07:44.111 --> 07:46.950 in law . The Equality Act so much . 07:47.640 --> 07:50.440 Okay . And last , but certainly not 07:50.450 --> 07:53.760 least is Miss Leader Vanagas is 07:54.440 --> 07:56.773 Well , first of all , thank you so much . 07:56.773 --> 07:59.020 Thank you for allowing Mary Center . 07:59.030 --> 08:01.030 You know , on behalf of Mary Center 08:01.030 --> 08:02.974 being me here , uh , you know , to 08:02.974 --> 08:04.919 share the story of the many , many 08:04.919 --> 08:06.919 families that we have served during 08:06.919 --> 08:08.919 this pandemic . Um , you know , for 08:08.919 --> 08:11.141 those of you who don't know , Marissa , 08:11.141 --> 08:13.197 we're a community health Center . We 08:13.197 --> 08:13.060 are federally qualified health center , 08:13.340 --> 08:16.330 Uh , and we serve over 60,000 families 08:16.340 --> 08:20.260 in the D . C . Region , so we have been 08:20.260 --> 08:22.260 in service for 33 years . I've been 08:22.260 --> 08:24.990 with Mary Center for 19 years , and I 08:24.990 --> 08:27.046 guess we've seen it all , especially 08:27.046 --> 08:29.101 during this pandemic . The beauty of 08:29.101 --> 08:31.212 Mary Center the way I said is that we 08:31.212 --> 08:33.450 have this unique model . Mr President , 08:33.640 --> 08:35.980 that really tackles all the issues of 08:35.980 --> 08:38.091 our families is not only medical , we 08:38.091 --> 08:40.258 provide social services , behavioral , 08:40.258 --> 08:42.840 health , educational services . So 08:42.850 --> 08:44.961 that's the way that we have been able 08:44.961 --> 08:47.072 to support our families and move them 08:47.072 --> 08:48.906 back up to the economic ladder , 08:48.906 --> 08:51.800 especially during this time . Um , it's 08:51.800 --> 08:54.133 interesting . I was taken , and I think , 08:54.133 --> 08:56.244 if not mistaken , a year ago today is 08:56.244 --> 08:58.300 when the first case of Covid came to 08:58.300 --> 09:00.467 Maryland , right and two days later in 09:00.467 --> 09:02.870 DC . Since Day one Nurse Center has 09:02.880 --> 09:05.420 been on the front lines , Um , and the 09:05.420 --> 09:09.060 response and recovery process . So far , 09:09.060 --> 09:12.530 we have done more than 20,000 covid 09:12.530 --> 09:14.697 test . A lot of them , unfortunately , 09:14.697 --> 09:17.350 have been positive . Um , we serve 09:17.360 --> 09:20.460 about from our 60,000 participants . We 09:20.460 --> 09:24.130 serve around 70% of them are Latino and , 09:24.130 --> 09:26.186 you know , minorities have been very 09:26.186 --> 09:29.240 impacted . And so , um , we received 09:29.240 --> 09:31.960 the vaccine back in December . We have 09:31.960 --> 09:34.310 vaccinated 12 around 1200 from 09:34.320 --> 09:36.890 individuals . But if you put it in 09:36.890 --> 09:39.580 perspective , serving 60,000 09:39.580 --> 09:42.280 participants and let's say 50% are 09:42.280 --> 09:44.980 adults over 18 that can get the vaccine . 09:44.990 --> 09:48.250 So we still have , like , like , almost 09:48.250 --> 09:50.750 30,000 people that still need the 09:50.750 --> 09:53.310 vaccine . But we know , Mr President 09:53.310 --> 09:55.477 that that will multiply in a few weeks 09:55.477 --> 09:58.400 because we were trustful that , you 09:58.400 --> 10:00.567 know , you will deliver on the promise 10:00.567 --> 10:02.678 of vaccinated 100 million people . So 10:02.678 --> 10:04.844 right , And so , you know , if you ask 10:04.844 --> 10:07.130 me what our families have gone through , 10:07.140 --> 10:09.251 they have gone through everything you 10:09.251 --> 10:11.600 know , just by hearing Almas and 10:11.600 --> 10:13.711 Georgia stories . Just it just breaks 10:13.711 --> 10:15.433 my heart because it's the same 10:15.433 --> 10:17.322 situation . They're losing jobs . 10:17.322 --> 10:19.544 That's the main thing . You know that , 10:19.544 --> 10:21.767 um , And with that , they have unstable 10:21.767 --> 10:23.600 housing , uh , food insecurity . 10:23.600 --> 10:25.890 They're traveling long distances to go 10:25.890 --> 10:27.970 and visit the side , the food 10:27.970 --> 10:30.360 distribution side . And that's every 10:30.360 --> 10:33.210 day . Then they do long lines , and 10:33.210 --> 10:35.710 next day they have to do the same . And 10:35.710 --> 10:37.654 so it's been hard and because they 10:37.654 --> 10:39.654 haven't been able to pay rent . Now 10:39.654 --> 10:41.654 they're moving with other people to 10:41.654 --> 10:43.877 live together . And so they're sleeping 10:43.877 --> 10:46.270 on couches on the floor . Um , they're 10:46.280 --> 10:48.447 always at risk of being infected . And 10:48.447 --> 10:50.613 because they have lost jobs , a few of 10:50.613 --> 10:52.613 them have kept the jobs , but a few 10:52.613 --> 10:54.502 hours , but they still need to go 10:54.502 --> 10:56.613 outside . So when they go , there are 10:56.613 --> 10:58.780 risk of being infected , and then they 10:58.780 --> 11:00.836 come back and they have the family , 11:00.836 --> 11:03.330 right ? So , you know , is this circle 11:03.330 --> 11:05.760 of , um of situations that have been 11:05.760 --> 11:08.450 impacted all of our families ? So , you 11:08.450 --> 11:11.080 know , with that mental health , trauma , 11:11.090 --> 11:13.750 anxiety and our Children don't have 11:13.750 --> 11:15.910 laptops , we have been able to 11:15.920 --> 11:18.620 distribute about 1000 laptops or more . 11:18.630 --> 11:22.200 But you know , if they have one 11:22.200 --> 11:24.422 laptop , but they have three Children , 11:24.422 --> 11:26.478 how can they all be in school on the 11:26.478 --> 11:28.533 same day ? So they have to choose or 11:28.533 --> 11:30.700 they don't have Internet explanation . 11:30.700 --> 11:32.644 So there's a lot around that , and 11:32.644 --> 11:34.867 we've been trying to support as much as 11:34.867 --> 11:37.460 possible . Well , thank you for all of 11:37.460 --> 11:39.930 you . For what you do . I carry 11:39.940 --> 11:42.800 scheduled card me every day in the back 11:42.800 --> 11:45.760 of the card I list on a daily basis . 11:46.240 --> 11:48.840 How many people have died from Covid in 11:48.840 --> 11:51.460 the United States ? As of the day ? 11:51.470 --> 11:53.750 517,000 . 11:53.760 --> 11:56.950 224 not over 500,000 . 11:57.440 --> 11:58.900 5000 . 11:58.910 --> 12:02.900 517,224 . And we 12:02.900 --> 12:06.230 will meet the 100 million shots You're 12:06.230 --> 12:09.900 up to 82 million . 572,000 . 12:09.910 --> 12:12.450 848 shots . We're going to get this . 12:13.640 --> 12:15.696 I'm gonna ask some questions . Now , 12:15.696 --> 12:17.807 the press is going to leave , and I'm 12:17.807 --> 12:19.840 gonna get more personally if I can 12:19.850 --> 12:22.450 request It's okay . Mhm .