ICYMI: Tillis Discusses The Need To Hold China Accountable In Virtual Event With Lara Trump
May 19th, 2020
Lays Out Contrast With Cunningham On Policy And Biography
CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Senator Thom Tillis last night joined Lara Trump for a virtual Team Trump event, where he discussed his new 18-point plan to hold China accountable, the importance of North Carolina as a 2020 battleground state, and the differences between him and Cal Cunningham when it comes to policy and biography.
Watch Tillis’ full discussion with Lara Trump HERE.
Below are some highlights from the discussion.
- “Absolutely. I first have to say this is not the president’s first effort to help North Carolina. When I called him up, within an hour, he declared an emergency declaration with one of our last hurricanes to make sure we were prepared for it, and it made a difference. Now that we have had COVID come after us, he’s been with us every step of the way. As we passed the first relief bill, the 8 billion dollars that immediately went out, then the CARES act and now almost 3 trillion dollars in support going down to help hospitals, to help state and local governments. The President has made sure that national stockpile got surged to the areas needing it the most: personal protective equipment, testing, ventilators. He has literally taken every step, bold steps I might add, when he was widely criticized for shutting down China travel, that was a good decision. It was a decision that bought us critical weeks. If only China had acted the way our President did to protect public health, we’d be a lot better off right now.”
- “Well the owners, the originators of Bitty & Beau have two children who have intellectual developmental disabilities and they knew first hand how many are out of work. As many as 80% of people who have intellectual or developmental disabilities can’t find a job. So they had this great idea of building a coffee shop and allowing people to come in and work. They had dozens of employees that they had to lay off. I met them first back in 2018 and I’ve been there a couple of times. Boy, it will recharge your battery when you go in there, a lot of joy. But they ended up applying for the Paycheck Protection Program and it got those young men and women back to work. It’s an extraordinary story and there are thousands of those stories in North Carolina. Over 8 billion dollars to 40,000 different businesses helping them stay in business as we combat the virus. It’s a wonderful story and anyone who goes to the Wilmington area would be happy if they went there.”
- “There was a report that said if China had just acted three weeks sooner, that 95% of the deaths that we’re experiencing with COVID could have been avoided. China lied to us, they destroyed test kits, they lied to their own people and I always try to make the point that this is not about the Chinese people. This is about the deceptive communist party leaders that are responsible for thousands of deaths, hundreds of thousands of deaths across the United States because they refused to provide the lab information they had, the gene sequencing on the virus. Things that are important for us to be able to fight the virus. They have to be held accountable on every front. First, I’ve asked the President to investigate China and the World Health Organization. We’ve got to get to the bottom of exactly where the virus came from and then we’ve got to think about things differently going forward. We have got to bring jobs back and manufacturing that right now we can be held hostage by China. They have to be held accountable. They need to be held accountable. Their leaders, I think, should be subject to sanctions – those who willfully mislead us. And all of those things are part of our 18-point plan and there’s a growing sentiment, but you’re absolutely right, not only do the Democrats seem to want to cast a blind eye toward China’s culpability, but they almost defend them. That is not what the American people want in a leader and that’s why Joe Biden is going to be beaten soundly by Donald Trump in November.”
- “If you remember, this is not a new thing for President Trump either. When he first ran in 2016 he said he was going to be tough on China and he has been. He was criticized for the moves that he made on trade, and it got us the phase one deal with China. He has criticized other leaders like Barack Obama and Joe Biden, who were allowing jobs just to move over there – letting them build their economies, and they are using that economy to build their military might against the United States. We saw Joe Biden when he was in office allowing the South China Sea to be taken over by China. Every step of the way, Joe Biden and the Democrats have turned a blind eye to the greatest economic and military threat that this country has ever seen. President Trump recognizes that farmers are suffering in North Carolina, textile manufacturers, even the pharmaceutical companies in North Carolina. He recognizes that a tough on China strategy is good for American jobs and it’s good for American national security.”
Senator Tillis on the importance of maintaining a Republican Senate Majority in November.
- “Because all the good work that’s been done under President Trump with the congressional – remember when we had the House and the Senate – think about all the things that we did. And my goodness, think about how much worse off we would be combatting this virus if we didn’t have the vibrant economy that came through the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act that the president signed and helped us get through Congress, cutting regulations. If we lose the White House and we lose the Senate, Chuck Schumer, Nancy Pelosi and Joe Biden will raise your taxes, they will regulate businesses out of business, they will turn a blind eye towards China’s malign actions, and this country will be forever changed. That’s why I’m fighting hard – and North Carolina, Lara I know you know North Carolina well – it’s going to be a battleground state for me and the president, and I am going to work every single day to get us both reelected.”
Senator Tillis on the policy and biographical contrasts between him and Cal Cunningham.
- “(North Carolinians) couldn’t have a starker contrast between two candidates for the U.S. Senate. My opponent has fully embraced Nancy Pelosi. He has embraced her first proposal – the Green New Deal being baked into a COVID response, really? My opponent has a very different perspective. He’s a trial lawyer that’s lived fairly well. I grew up in trailer parks and rental houses. I work every day for people who are struggling to make ends meet because I’ve been there, and we need somebody who does that. Every single day, working for the man and woman and business that’s just barely making payroll, just barely making ends meet. The way that he’s embraced Nancy Pelosi – Cal Cunningham is his name – the way he’s embraced their policies is an embrace of destroying economic opportunities and the freedom that I had that took me out of that trailer park and ultimately made me a partner at IBM. I want that potential for the American dream to be realized by everybody who is struggling today and even more so now that we’ve got a million people out of work in North Carolina. My job is fighting for their job and I’m going to continue to do it as long as I’m a U.S. Senator.”
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