PHILADELPHIA—President Joe Biden promoted his economic agenda and announced new investments in clean hydrogen hubs as part of his effort to achieve net-zero emissions by 2050, during a visit to Philadelphia on Oct. 13.
In a speech at the Tioga Marine Terminal, the city’s largest multipurpose cargo handling facility, the president highlighted the value his administration places on “clean manufacturing” initiatives and jobs.
“Today’s announcement is transformational,” President Biden said. “And as a result, I truly believe this country is about to take off.”
The Biden administration announced $7 billion in funding for seven hydrogen hubs as part of the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law of 2021 to help advance the development of the domestic hydrogen fuel market.
The initiative will raise the total public and private investment in hydrogen hubs to about $50 billion, making it “one of the largest investments in clean manufacturing ever,” according to the White House.
Seventeen states, including Pennsylvania, will benefit from the investment.
“Taken together, emission reductions from these hydrogen hubs will be the equivalent of taking 5.5 million gas-powered vehicles off the road,” President Biden said. “Hubs are just one example of what we’re doing to rebuild America for all Americans.”
He also compared his investment projects to President Franklin Roosevelt’s rural electrification effort and President Dwight Eisenhower’s effort to build the Interstate Highway System.
He lauded the investments made during his administration in more than 38,000 projects that span 4,500 communities across the nation.
It argued that Europe should avoid copying “Bidenomics” because these state handouts “will waste money and, over time, encourage firms to compete for subsidies rather than customers.”
During his speech, President Biden defended his policies, claiming that federal investments attract private-sector investment.
“It used to be an argument that you couldn’t have industrial policies dictated by the government,” he said. When the government “invests in America and the American people, guess what? The private sector jumps on really quick.”
Inflation and the Middle East
President Biden also touted his administration’s economic policies. However, inflation has been a persistent problem under the president’s watch, and his approval rating has remained poor as a result.The U.S. annual inflation rate came in higher than expected at 3.7 percent in September, according to government data released on Oct. 12. Monthly inflation rose by 0.4 percent, and rising shelter costs were the largest contributor, accounting for more than half of the increase.
The president’s visit to Philadelphia also comes as Israel is still reeling from the surprise attack on Oct. 7 by Hamas terrorists that killed more than 1,000 civilians, including 27 Americans.
“The more we learn about the attack, the more horrifying it becomes,” the president said at the start of his speech in Philadelphia. “They make al-Qaeda look pure. They’re pure evil.”
Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin have both visited Israel to show U.S. support, he said.
“It’s also a priority for me to urgently address the humanitarian crisis in Gaza,” President Biden said. “We can’t lose sight of the fact that the overwhelming majority of Palestinians have nothing to do with Hamas or Hamas’s attacks.”
According to the White House, 14 Americans are still unaccounted for.
President Biden said that he spent more than an hour on a Zoom call, speaking with the families of the Americans who are still missing.
“I assured them of my personal commitment to do everything possible” to bring them home.
