Political Quotes

“Madam President, over the last few decades, globalization has completely reshaped the international economic order. Economies around the world have become interconnected, relying on one another from agricultural products to energy, to manufacturing capabilities. It seemed to be the rule of thumb that whoever could produce a product at the lowest price got the business and the jobs that went along with it. But we are increasingly seeing vulnerabilities that this interdependence creates with some of the clearest examples surfacing during the COVID-19 pandemic. The United States, for example, leans heavily on China for masks, gloves, and gowns, personal protective equipment, and for ventilators-- all of which were absolutely necessary during the beginning of the pandemic and continuing on until today. But for a long time, that wasn't a problem, until COVID-19 showed up. I still remember the phone call I had with the Governor of Texas, my friend Greg Abbott. At the beginning of the pandemic, I said, ``Governor, what do you need?'' He said, ``We need testing and we need PPE,'' personal protective equipment, almost all of which is made overseas in China. China, as it turns out, held on to most of the supply for its own hospitals and healthcare workers, leaving the rest of the world to compete for the limited supply that remained.…”