Trump Touts Tax Reform in Ohio

President Trump was in Ohio earlier this week to speak on his Tax reform and celebrate with the hard-working employees of the Sheffer Corporation in Cincinnati, Ohio. (No word on whether WKRP’s Les Nessman, 5 time winner of the Buckeye News HawkAward, was in attendance or not).

Here are some highlights from the speech.

The benefits of the tax reform:

And what I really want to do — and come here and give something very big back. And that’s tax cuts, I signed into law. Your paychecks are going way up. Your taxes are going way down. And right now, for the first time in a long time — and you’ve seen it — factories are coming back. Everything is coming back. They all want to be where the action is. America is once again open for business. We’ve already created nearly 2.6 million jobs since the election, including more than 200,000 new jobs in manufacturing. We love manufacturing. Those are real jobs, not the other kind where they talk but there’s nothing there.

We’re bringing back those four magnificent words: “Made in the USA.” We’ll count “USA” as one word. Is that okay? I just said — have to think about that one.

Unemployment claims have hit a 45-year low. Think of that. I mean, just think of that.

After years of wage stagnation, wages — you saw what happened two days ago and a month ago — wages are now, for the first time in many years, rising.

At the center of America’s resurgence are the massive tax cuts that we just passed before Christmas. Remember two things. Number one, I said, “We’re going to be saying ‘Christmas’ again.” And, number two, I said I was going to give you a Christmas present.

When I signed the tax cuts six weeks ago, it set off a tidal wave of good news that continues to grow every single day. Before the ink was dry, companies were announcing thousands and thousands of new jobs and enormous investments to their workers.

Apple announced a $350 billion investment in America. But I heard the number. I heard “350,” and I figured it was $350 million. That’s a big plant. You know, $350 [million] is big. So I figured they’re going to build a big, beautiful plant someplace. Then they came to me. They said, “Sir, it’s not $350 million. It’s $350 billion.” That’s a big number. I would have been happy with the $350 million, but you know, I like this number slightly better.

And right here in Cincinnati, on this very beautiful factory floor, the Sheffer Corporation announced that every single worker was getting a $1,000 tax cut bonus. You are so generous. Thank you. Congratulations, everybody. That’s good. That’s good.

Trump called some of the workers at this company on-stage to tell what they were going to do with their bonus – you know, the ones with the “crumbs” Pelosi talks about:

Mr. Berkshire: Thank you, Mr. President. And with the tax cut and the bonus, I will be trying to save up money to start a family and eventually get a bigger house. And I appreciate all your hard work that you’ve been putting in, and all your — Rob Portman, and everybody else. So I just want to say thank you.

Ms. Spoleti: When they asked me what this would mean to my family, really what it means to my family is the same that it means to all hardworking American families right now who are reaping the benefits of your tax cuts. It means that we’ll have money in the bank, more money to make ends meet.

Personally, for my family, my husband Tim and I are in the process of buying a home. And in the fall, both of kids, Katie and Matthew, will be going to college. So we’ll be using that money. That will be like a bonus we receive — thank you, Sheffer — a one-time bonus, but it will be an ongoing bonus in our paycheck every week. And it will just help us make ends meet. So thank you very much.

Benefits for managers/owners of companies:

Jeff Norris – President and CEO of Sheffer Corporation: Thank you. Well, first of all, welcome everybody here. And it’s such a blessing to have you here, President Trump. In all my years, you pray for a President like this that will take care of the working class and businesses, and we finally have one here. We need to make sure that we support President Trump, especially in 2018. And we need to vote out people that are an obstacle to him. In manufacturing, our job is to remove obstacles. This man can remove obstacles, and we need to clear the path for him.

Greg Carmichael – CEO of Fifth Third Bankcorp: Mr. President, thank you. Thank you for everything you’ve done for our nation. And we thank you for your efforts and your leadership in bringing tax reform to America. At Fifth Third Bank, we’re already feeling the effects of the tax benefit, and we’re working to pass those benefits onto our employees. Immediately upon the announcement of the passing of the legislation, Fifth Third Bank announced an investment in our employees that included raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour, and providing a $1,000 bonus for over 13,500 of our valuable employees. We’re investing in our employees because of the contribution they make to our bank, to their families, and the communities in which they serve.

Matt Schron – General Manager at Jergens Inc.: Mr. Trump, thank you very much for your leadership on this tax reform. I’m honored to be here today representing Jergens and the manufacturing community. Jergens was founded in 1914 during World War II, manufacturing airplane seat components. Today, we’re a worldwide leader in workholding, fixturing, and specialty fasteners. Last year was a record year for Jergens. And thanks to your tax cuts, we see continued success in the future. Jergens is going to be using your tax breaks to invest in our greatest asset: our employees. In April, during our annual performance reviews, we’re going to be doubling the annual rate increases that we will be providing our employees.

So, Mr. Trump, your tax break has three benefits: one, more money for our employees; two, we’re going to have more equipment for our facility; and three, we’re going to be able to hire more people.

Trump on the mid-term elections:

So what happens is, they sort of take it for granted. They sit back. And then they get clobbered because the other people are desperate. And they get out and they have more energy. But I think, because of what we’ve done, because of the tremendous success we’ve had, I have a feeling that we’re going to do incredibly well in ’18. And I have to say this: History is not on our side. But it’s not because of that word, “complacency.” You win the presidency and you take it easy, and then they come and surprise you in the midterms. They call them the “midterms.” We’ve got to get out there and win or they’re going to take — and I say it — a Nancy Pelosi, Chuck Schumer. They want to raise your taxes.

Trump calls out the Democrats on their opposition to tax reform and their snarky attitude at the SOTU address:

And we had, by the way, we had no Democrats. We had nobody. Not one. And if they ever got in, and if they ever took over, your taxes would go way up and you’d see some bad things happening. So, wouldn’t be good. That I can tell you. Would not be good.

So Nancy Pelosi, again, said that’s “crumbs.” Well, she’s a rich woman who lives in a big, beautiful house in California who wants to give all of your money away. And she talked about crumbs. She’s our secret weapon. No, she’s our secret — I just hope they don’t change her. There are a lot of people that want to run her out. She’s really out there.

But I said, we have the lowest black unemployment in the history of our country. It was like — it was a game. You know, they play games. They were told, “Don’t even make a facial movement.” And I’m talking about, you have the lowest Hispanic unemployment in the history of our country. This isn’t me saying — this is the charts, the polls. We have the lowest in the history of our country. Dead silence. Not a smile.

So that means they would rather see Trump do badly, okay, than our country do well. That’s what it means. It’s very selfish. And it got to a point where I really didn’t even want to look too much during the speech over to that side. Because, honestly, it was bad energy. That was bad energy. You’re up there, you’ve got half the room going totally crazy, wild — they loved everything, they want to do something great for our country. And you have the other side, even on positive news — really positive news, like that — they were like death and un-American. Un-American.

Trump acknowledges the fake media:

We’re also thrilled to have a lot of the fake news media in the back. Those cameras are rolling. Hi, folks. That’s what good about doing it live. They can’t cut you. A lot of fake news, but that’s okay. Hey, they’re doing their thing. Whatever — I don’t know what they’re thinking, but they’re doing their thing.

On illegal immigration, drugs and MS-13:

People form blue ribbon committees, they do everything they can. And, frankly, I have a different take on it. My take is, you have to get really, really tough — really mean — with the drug pushers and the drug dealers. We can do all the blue ribbon committees we want. We have to get a lot tougher than we are. And we have to stop drugs from pouring across our border.

AUDIENCE MEMBER: “You got to build that wall!”

Oh, we’re building the wall. Believe me. We’re building the wall. Don’t even think about it.

And the ones that don’t want security at the southern border or any other border, are the Democrats. They don’t care about the security of our country. They don’t care about MS-13 killers pouring into our country. And we bring them out almost as fast as they come in. But nobody was bringing them out before us. And these are killers. But our guys are tougher than them, and that’s what we need.

On the Nunes memo:

Oh, but did we catch them in the act, or what? You know what I’m talking — oh, did we catch them in the act? They are very embarrassed. They never thought they were going to get caught. We caught them. Hey, we caught them. It’s so much fun. We’re like the great sleuth.

But the best and most effective parts of the speech was Trump’s articulation of the greatness of America and the PEOPLE who made it great:

And when our workers win, who really wins? Our country wins because we’re all in this together. We’re one team, one people, and one family. And we’re saluting one great American flag.

Hardworking, patriotic Americans like you are what make this country run, and run like no other. It’s your grit, it’s your pride, and your determination to do the job right. It’s the foundation of American strength and the key to Americas future.

Good jobs are the cornerstone of a safe and a strong and a proud America. There is nothing more important than the sense of pride and accomplishment that comes at the end of a hard days work. And all of us — me, you, all of us in this room — we know that feeling. Just about every day, we know that feeling.

That’s why we want every American to know the dignity of work, the pride of a paycheck, and the satisfaction of the statement, “Job well done.”

There’s never been a better time to hire in America, to invest in America, and to start living the American Dream. There’s never been a better time than this. Because the future of America doesn’t belong to the privileged few, it belongs to all of the people — all of those people that I saw for two years now. It belongs to those people. The forgotten man and women. They worked hard. They paid taxes. That’s what they did. They worked; they worked; they worked. They paid; they paid; they paid. And then they were forgotten by the politicians. You’re not forgotten anymore. You’re not forgotten anymore. And that’s what happened on November 8th, they weren’t forgotten.

The fact is, the future belongs to you. You are the ones who raise America’s great and beautiful families, support America’s communities, and uphold our values, our principles, and the American way of life. Workers like you carve the steel into our skyscrapers — and I just got to see a lot of it — by great machinists, by great mechanics, by great people. You build the machines that power our cities and teach the next generation of children what it means to be a proud American.

You are the ones who are shaping our destiny. You are the ones who are restoring our prosperity. And you are the ones who are making America great again.