Pence Calls for USMCA Action with the NAM at Schott Facility

Vice President Mike Pence and Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross joined National Association of Manufacturers President and CEO Jay Timmons at SCHOTT North America’s Duryea, Pa., facility yesterday to call for the passage of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement and highlight the agreement’s critical importance to American manufacturers.

Today I’m headed to @schottusa’s Duryea, PA facility with @VP to discuss the importance of USMCA passage. This trade deal is critical to manufacturers in each and every state – we need certainty now. #USMCAnow https://t.co/Qa6rnaFdAY

— Jay Timmons (@JayTimmonsNAM) October 21, 2019

“A vote for the USMCA is a vote for America’s manufacturing workers,” Timmons said at the event. “Manufacturers are raising our voices in unison, calling on Congress to ratify this agreement and provide businesses with a level playing field and certainty to compete, grow and win in the global market.”

Canada and Mexico are critical partners for American manufacturers, purchasing one-fifth of the total value of U.S. manufacturing output and supporting about 2 million American manufacturing jobs.

"It's great to be back in the Keystone State!"@VP Mike Pence speaks to workers at SCHOTT North America Inc., a technology-based group of glass manufacturers and developers, in Duryea, PA. pic.twitter.com/OGJvWMT3be

— The Hill (@thehill) October 21, 2019

“The clock is ticking, so I want you to reach out,” Pence said. “Reach out to all of our elected officials in Washington, D.C. … and just tell them how important it is. Set politics aside and do what’s right for Pennsylvania and do what’s right for America.”

President Donald Trump also wrote a letter to SCHOTT, congratulating the glass manufacturer on its fiftieth anniversary. “Your products made here in the United States embody the industriousness of the American people and are a testament to the world-class quality of goods produced in our country,” Trump said.

Schott leaders provided a tour of their advanced optics production hub and research and development center for Pence, Ross and Timmons.

Honored to host @VP at our Duryea facility to highlight US manufacturing. High-precision optical glasses produced in #Duryea elevate America’s science, technology and defense industries. @ShopFloorNAM https://t.co/J0LP3UrXZB pic.twitter.com/nHolJaeuUm

— SCHOTT North America (@schottusa) October 22, 2019

Learn more about why USMCA matters to every state.

USMCA Passage is Critical for Manufacturers in Every State

Manufacturers Show Up to Push for Swift USMCA Passage

Manufacturing Leaders Meet with Vice President Pence to Push Passage of USMCA

Washington, D.C. – Ahead of the midterm elections, the National Association of Manufacturers released its policy roadmap, “Competing to Win,” a comprehensive blueprint featuring immediate solutions for bolstering manufacturers’ competitiveness. It is also a roadmap for policymakers on the laws and regulations needed to strengthen the manufacturing industry in the months and years ahead.

With the country facing rising prices, snarled supply chains and geopolitical turmoil, manufacturers are outlining an actionable competitiveness agenda that Americans across the political spectrum can support. “Competing to Win” includes the policies manufacturers in America will need in place to continue driving the country forward.

“‘Competing to Win’ offers a path for bringing our country together around policies, shared values and a unified purpose,” said NAM President and CEO Jay Timmons. “The NAM is putting forward a plan filled with ideas that policymakers could pursue immediately, including solutions to urgent problems, such as energy security, immigration reform, supply chain disruptions, the ongoing workforce shortage and more. Manufacturers have shown incredible resilience through difficult times, employing more workers now than before the pandemic, but continued resilience is not guaranteed without the policies that are critical to the state of manufacturing in America.”

The NAM and its members will leverage “Competing to Win” to shape policy debates ahead of the midterm elections, in the remainder of the 117th Congress and at the start of the 118th Congress—including in direct engagement with lawmakers, for grassroots activity, across traditional and digital media and through events in key states and districts as we did following the initial rollout of the roadmap in 2016.

The document focuses on 12 areas of action, and all policies are rooted in the values that have made America exceptional and keep manufacturing strong: free enterprise, competitiveness, individual liberty and equal opportunity.

Learn more about how manufacturers are leading and about the industry’s competitiveness agenda at nam.org/competing-to-win.

-NAM-

The National Association of Manufacturers is the largest manufacturing association in the United States, representing small and large manufacturers in every industrial sector and in all 50 states. Manufacturing employs more than 12.8 million men and women, contributes $2.77 trillion to the U.S. economy annually and accounts for 58% of private-sector research and development. The NAM is the powerful voice of the manufacturing community and the leading advocate for a policy agenda that helps manufacturers compete in the global economy and create jobs across the United States. For more information about the NAM or to follow us on Twitter and Facebook, please visit www.nam.org