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THE WHITE HOUSE Office of the Press Secretary FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE August 9, 2017 President Donald J. Trump Approves New Hampshire Disaster Declaration Today, President Donald J. Trump declared that a major disaster exists in the State of New Hampshire and ordered Federal assistance to supplement State and local recovery efforts in the areas affected by severe storms and flooding from July 1 to July 2, 2017. Federal funding is available to State and eligible local governments and certain private nonprofit organizations on a cost-sharing basis for emergency work and the repair or replacement of facilities damaged by the severe storms and flooding in Grafton County. Federal funding is also available on a cost-sharing basis for hazard mitigation measures statewide. Brock Long, Administrator, Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), Department of Homeland Security, named Albert Lewis as the Federal Coordinating Officer for Federal recovery operations in the affected areas. Additional designations may be made at a later date if requested by the State and warranted by the results of further damage assessments. ### |
For Immediate Release
ICYMI: “The United States is rapidly becoming a net exporter of natural gas for the first time in 60 years.”
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THE WHITE HOUSE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE August 9, 2017
NEW DATA: “THE UNITED STATES IS RAPIDLY BECOMING A NET EXPORTER OF NATURAL GAS FOR THE FIRST TIME IN 60 YEARS.”
“New Census Bureau data show that, by value, the United States was again a net exporter in June 2017, selling about $593 million worth of natural gas to the world while importing $566 million via gas pipelines from Canada and as liquefied natural gas. … With new pipeline and LNG export capacity coming online soon, the United States should close out 2017 as a net exporter of natural gas, a situation that hasn’t been seen since 1957, according to EIA.”
U.S. emerging as powerful force in LNG trade By Nathanial Gronewold E&E News August 9, 2017
The United States is rapidly becoming a net exporter of natural gas for the first time in 60 years.
That’s according to data from the Census Bureau and the U.S. Energy Information Administration. While imports of gas are flat or falling, exports continue to rise, and the data give weight to government analysts’ conviction that the United States is on track to become a net energy exporter, possibly as soon as within a decade.
EIA noted in a report yesterday that during the first half of 2017, the United States exported more natural gas than it imported in three of the first five months.
New Census Bureau data show that, by value, the United States was again a net exporter in June 2017, selling about $593 million worth of natural gas to the world while importing $566 million via gas pipelines from Canada and as liquefied natural gas.
That means the United States sold more gas to foreign trade partners than it imported for four of the first six months of the year. With new pipeline and LNG export capacity coming online soon, the United States should close out 2017 as a net exporter of natural gas, a situation that hasn’t been seen since 1957, according to EIA.
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Cheniere Energy’s Sabine Pass became the first major LNG exporting hub to commence shipments since the shale gas boom. That facility is now poised to expand export capacity. Freeport LNG south of Houston expects to begin liquefaction and shipments in late 2018 or early 2019. Dominion Energy’s Cove Point LNG in Maryland will be in service by the end of this year, the company says. More projects are coming in Corpus Christi, Texas; elsewhere in the Gulf of Mexico region; and at Georgia’s Elba Island.
Proponents of these investments say LNG and other gas exports will help alleviate the United States’ gargantuan trade deficit.
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Remarks by President Trump Before a Briefing on the Opioid Crisis
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THE WHITE HOUSE
Office of the Press Secretary ________________________________________________________________ For Immediate Release August 8, 2017
REMARKS BY PRESIDENT TRUMP BEFORE A BRIEFING ON THE OPIOID CRISIS
Trump National Golf Club Bedminster, New Jersey
3:12 P.M. EDT
THE PRESIDENT: Thank you very much, Secretary Price, for your work to address the crisis of opioid, heroin, cocaine, and methamphetamines. It is a tremendous problem in our country, and we’re going to get it taken care of as well as it can be taken care of, which hopefully will be better than any other country which also has the same problems or similar problems.
Nobody is safe from this epidemic that threatens young and old, rich and poor, urban and rural communities. Everybody is threatened. Drug overdose is now the leading cause of accidental death in the United States, and opioid overdose deaths have nearly quadrupled since 1999. It is a problem the likes of which we have not seen.
Meanwhile, federal drug prosecutions have gone down in recent years. We’re going to be bringing them up and bringing them up rapidly. At the end of 2016, there were 23 percent fewer than in 2011. So they looked at this scourge and they let it go by, and we’re not letting it go by. The average sentence length for a convicted federal drug offender decreased 20 percent from 2009 to 2016.
During my campaign, I promised to fight this battle because, as President of the United States, my greatest responsibility is to protect the American people and to ensure their safety. Especially in some parts of our country, it is horrible what’s going on with opioid and other drugs. But the opioid is something that nobody has seen anything like it.
Today, I am pleased to receive a briefing from our team on ways we can help our communities combat this absolutely terrible epidemic and keep youth from going down this deadly path.
The best way to prevent drug addiction and overdose is to prevent people from abusing drugs in the first place. If they don’t start, they won’t have a problem. If they do start, it’s awfully tough to get off. So we can keep them from going on, and maybe by talking to youth and telling them, “No good; really bad for you” in every way. But if they don’t start, it will never be a problem.
We’re also working with law enforcement officers to protect innocent citizens from drug dealers that poison our communities. Strong law enforcement is absolutely vital to having a drug-free society. I have had the opportunity to hear from many on the front lines of the opioid epidemic, and I’m confident that by working with our healthcare and law enforcement experts, we will fight this deadly epidemic and the United States will win.
We’re also very, very tough on the southern border, where much of this comes in. And we’re talking to China, where certain forms of manmade drug comes in, and it is bad. And we’re speaking to other countries and we’re getting cooperation, but we’re being very, very strong on our southern border and, I would say, the likes of which this country certainly has never seen that kind of strength.
So we’re going to do our job. We’re going to get it going. We’ve got a tremendous team of experts and people that want to beat this horrible situation that’s happened to our country — and we will. We will win. We have no alternative. We have to win for our youth. We have to win for our young people. And, frankly, we have to win for a lot of other people, not necessarily young, that are totally addicted and have serious, serious problems.
So we thank you all for being here. And we’re going to get on with our meeting. Thank you very much. Thank you all.
Q Any comment on the reports about North Korea’s nuclear capabilities?
THE PRESIDENT: North Korea best not make any more threats to the United States. They will be met with fire and fury like the world has never seen. He has been very threatening beyond a normal state. And as I said, they will be met with fire, fury, and, frankly, power, the likes of which this world has never seen before.
Thank you.
END 3:17 P.M. EDT
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Sens. Cotton and Perdue: “Our immigration plan is pro-worker and pro-growth”
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THE WHITE HOUSE FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
SENATORS TOM COTTON AND DAVID PERDUE IN USA TODAY: “OUR IMMIGRATION PLAN IS PRO-WORKER AND PRO-GROWTH” “Our legislation would do just that by creating a skills-based points system similar to those used for decades in Canada and Australia. A points system identifies and attracts the world’s most-skilled immigrants. And by limiting the flood of low-skilled workers, it would encourage employers to hire, train and pay more to American workers already here.”
Our immigration plan is pro-worker and pro-growth President Trump got big applause last week during a speech in Ohio when he called for fixing our immigration system. Instead of a “terrible system where anybody comes in,” the president advocated for a “merit-based system, one that protects our workers” and “our economy.” According to polls, most Americans agree with him, but our outdated immigration laws do the opposite. The basic principles of those laws haven’t been changed in over half a century, making them divorced from the needs of our economy, while also depressing working-class wages. That’s why we’ve introduced the Reforming American Immigration for a Strong Economy Act, which updates our immigration laws to attract more ultra-high-skilled workers — and give working-class families the raise they deserve. The ideal immigration system should have three objectives. First, attract the young and highly skilled, since they provide the biggest boost to our economy. Second, seek out people who can integrate into American society most effectively. Third, give priority to uniting immediate families, since it’s better to give precious green cards to parents and their minor children rather than to fill out someone’s family tree with grown siblings and cousins. … Our legislation would do just that by creating a skills-based points system similar to those used for decades in Canada and Australia. A points system identifies and attracts the world’s most-skilled immigrants. And by limiting the flood of low-skilled workers, it would encourage employers to hire, train and pay more to American workers already here. … The new system would retain immigration preferences for the spouses and minor children of U.S. citizens and legal permanent residents, but not for most extended and adult family members. It would eliminate the so-called diversity visa lottery, which hands out green cards randomly without regard to skills or family connections, is plagued by fraud and doesn’t even promote diversity. It would also remove per-country caps on immigration, so that high-skilled applicants aren’t shut out of the process because of their country of origin. In addition, the bill would cap the number of refugees offered permanent residency to 50,000 per year, in line with a recent 13-year average. These changes are pro-worker, pro-growth and proven to work. They would ultimately reduce our annual immigration levels by half after ten years and reorient it toward high-skilled workers, which is just what our economy needs. Furthermore, these changes have widespread public support. They would raise wages for working Americans, create jobs, give immigrants a decent shot at moving up the economic ladder and make America more competitive. It makes no sense to stick with 50-year-old immigration laws. Let’s finally bring them into the 21st century. |
President Trump’s Statement on North Korea
North Korea best not make any more threats to the United states. They will be met with fire and fury like the world has never seen. He has been very threatening beyond a normal state, and as I said they will be met with fire, fury and frankly power, the likes of which this world has never seen before. Thank you.
Editorial: “Donald Trump and Nikki Haley chalk up a victory on North Korea and China”
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THE WHITE HOUSE Office of the Press Secretary FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE August 8, 2017 WASHINGTON EXAMINER EDITORIAL BOARD: “DONALD TRUMP AND NIKKI HALEY CHALK UP A VICTORY ON NORTH KOREA AND CHINA” “The United Nations imposed significant new sanctions on North Korea last weekend, in response to the dictatorship’s repeated ballistic missile tests. Kim Jong Un’s regime will be banned from exporting goods and services and cut off from foreign investors, at least to an extent. This combined effort to confront what is, among other things, the foremost national security threat to the United States, is a big win for President Trump.” Donald Trump and Nikki Haley chalk up a victory on North Korea and China Editorial Washington Examiner August 8, 2017 The United Nations imposed significant new sanctions on North Korea last weekend, in response to the dictatorship’s repeated ballistic missile tests. Kim Jong Un’s regime will be banned from exporting goods and services and cut off from foreign investors, at least to an extent. This combined effort to confront what is, among other things, the foremost national security threat to the United States, is a big win for President Trump. Deploying diplomacy backed by the credible use of force, he and his UN Ambassador, Nikki Haley, were able to rally the entire 15-member UN Security Council into concerted action. While these sanctions won’t alone bring Kim Jong Un to serious negotiations, they will cause him real pain. Analysts believe the sanctions will cost North Korea around a third of its $3 billion total export market. While North Korea’s transgressions — it’s evil, so let’s say it plainly — are undeniable, this sanctions vote was far from simple. It required China to change. Beijing would not have done so without believing that Trump might take military action against North Korea. Up until now, China’s actions against Kim have been limited. Allowing this vote to pass the United Nations Security Council, where it has a veto, however, demonstrates that when Trump makes a military threat, China takes him seriously. … Trump’s approach has changed everything and shown his ability to do what others have not. Supported by Nikki Haley, Trump has, on China and North Korea at least, strengthened the foundations of American diplomacy. The combination of hard and soft power is important. Authoritarian regimes such as China’s are unimpressed if international agreements don’t have teeth as well as smiles. This diplomatic success is also crucial in the precedent it sets. With Iran rapidly advancing its own ballistic missile program, Washington must ensure that hostile adversaries are aware that ballistic missiles offer only existential danger, not security. If North Korea’s ballistic missile program is allowed to rise unchallenged, Iran and others will pursue that technology as their first priority. Why wouldn’t they? If North Korea gains regime security from the possession of ballistic missiles, other regimes will seek the same safety. The stakes are high, considering Iran’s penchant for theologically rooted expansionism and the political sectarianism that defines Middle Eastern politics. … ### |
Editorial: “Someone Just Noticed That Trump Is Getting Stuff Done”
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THE WHITE HOUSE Office of the Press Secretary FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE August 7, 2017
INVESTOR’S BUSINESS DAILY EDITORIAL BOARD: “SOMEONE JUST NOTICED THAT TRUMP IS GETTING STUFF DONE”
“After weeks and months of fixating on tweets and Russia, someone in the press decided to have a look at what the Trump administration has been up to since January. Lo and behold, they discovered that it’s getting a lot done.”
Someone Just Noticed That Trump Is Getting Stuff Done Editorial Investor’s Business Daily August 5, 2017
Achievements: After weeks and months of fixating on tweets and Russia, someone in the press decided to have a look at what the Trump administration has been up to since January. Lo and behold, they discovered that it’s getting a lot done.
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Border crossings, for example, have plummeted, even though all Trump has done so far is promise to enforce existing laws.
The Supreme Court approved parts of Trump’s travel ban, a success made possible by Trump’s appointment of Neil Gorsuch to the bench.
Trump is busy filling lower court positions with conservative justices. Ron Klain, a White House aide to Bill Clinton and Barack Obama, said that Trump “is proving wildly successful in one respect: naming youthful conservative nominees to the federal bench in record-setting numbers.”
What else? Well, Trump pulled out of the Paris climate change deal, which as we noted in this space is a yuuuge win for the economy.
The EPA, meanwhile, is dismantling Obama’s coal-killing, growth-choking Clean Power Plan, and draining the heavy-handed Waters of the United States rule. When a veteran EPA official resigned this week, she complained in a letter to her former colleagues that “the new EPA Administrator already has repeals of 30 rules under consideration,” which the New York Times described as “a regulatory rollback larger in scope than any other over so short a time in the agency’s 47-year history.”
Trump promised to kill two regulations for every new one enacted, but in his first six months the ratio was 16-to-1.
Trump also approved the Keystone XL and other pipeline projects held up by Obama. He’s also rolled back a ban on coal mining on public lands.
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Readout of President Donald J. Trump’s Call with President Moon Jae-in of South Korea
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THE WHITE HOUSE Office of the Press Secretary FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE August 6, 2017 Readout of President Donald J. Trump’s Call with President Moon Jae-in of South Korea President Donald J. Trump spoke today with President Moon Jae-in of South Korea to discuss North Korea’s July 28 launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile. The two leaders affirmed that North Korea poses a grave and growing direct threat to the United States, South Korea, and Japan, as well as to most countries around the world. President Trump and President Moon welcomed the new United Nations Security Council resolution that unanimously passed 15-0. The leaders committed to fully implement all relevant resolutions and to urge the international community to do so as well. ### |
President Donald J. Trump Approves Wyoming Disaster Declaration
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THE WHITE HOUSE Office of the Press Secretary FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE August 6, 2017
President Donald J. Trump Approves Wyoming Disaster Declaration
Yesterday, President Donald J. Trump declared that a major disaster exists in the State of Wyoming and ordered Federal assistance to supplement State, tribal, and local recovery efforts in the areas affected by flooding from June 7 to June 22, 2017.
Federal funding is available to State, tribal, and eligible local governments and certain private nonprofit organizations on a cost-sharing basis for emergency work and the repair or replacement of facilities damaged by the flooding in the counties of Fremont and Park and the Wind River Reservation within Fremont County.
Federal funding is also available on a cost-sharing basis for hazard mitigation measures statewide.
Brock Long, Administrator, Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), Department of Homeland Security, named Thomas J. McCool as the Federal Coordinating Officer for Federal recovery operations in the affected areas.
Additional designations may be made at a later date if requested by the State and warranted by the results of further damage assessments.
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Statement from Vice President Mike Pence
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THE WHITE HOUSE Office of the Vice President FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE August 6, 2017 Statement from Vice President Mike Pence Today’s article in the New York Times is disgraceful and offensive to me, my family, and our entire team. The allegations in this article are categorically false and represent just the latest attempt by the media to divide this Administration. Thanks to the President’s leadership, we are rebuilding the military, ISIS is on the run, and we’ve seen more than 1 million jobs created while the stock market hits all-time highs. The American people know that I could not be more honored to be working side by side with a president who is making America great again. Whatever fake news may come our way, my entire team will continue to focus all our efforts to advance the President’s agenda and see him re-elected in 2020. Any suggestion otherwise is both laughable and absurd. ### |