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Hillary Clinton Delivers Economic Speech. Aired 2-2:30p ET

Aired August 11, 2016 - 14:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


[14:00:00]

CLINTON: ... your income so don't have to pay more than you can afford.

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It -- it is just not right that Donald Trump can ignore his debts but students and families can't refinance their debt.

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And here's something else that I really want to emphasize, I don't think anybody in America is talking about this enough and that is a four-year degree should not be the only path to a good job in America.

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You should be able to learn a skill, practice a trade, make a good living doing it. So many Americans have the talent and the will to succeed, whether they're kids right out of high school or older people displaced by automation and outsourcing.

And for too long, big promises about the power of training and re- training haven't delivered like they should. It doesn't help anybody to be trained for a job that doesn't exist. So here's what we're gonna do.

We will support high-quality union training programs, we will propose...

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We will propose new tax credits to encourage more companies to offer paid apprenticeships that lets you earn while you learn.

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We will do more, including a national campaign to dignify skills training across the board.

(APPLAUSE) I -- I think we gotta reverse what has become a kind of you know, common placed view which is everybody needs to go to college. Well, in fact, more than half of the jobs that are going to be available in 2020 do not require a college four-year degree. So for welders and machinists and tool and dye (ph) makers and health technicians and coders and so many others, let's get the word out. There are really good jobs for people right now and there will be more in the future if you get the skills in high school, at community college, in an apprenticeship or other training programs.

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And I -- I wanna acknowledge the great role that the community college here in Macomb County has played in working with companies like this one, to make sure people do have the skills.

Now, I imagine some of you might be thinking well, that all sounds good but what about trade? After all, Trump talks about it all the time. Well, lets start with this.

It is true that too often, past trade deals have been sold to the American people with rosy scenarios that did not pan out. Those promises now bring hollow in many communities across Michigan and our country that have seen factories close and jobs disappear.

Too many companies lobbied for trade deals so they could sell products abroad. But then, they instead moved abroad and sold back into the United States. It is also true that China and other countries have gamed the system for too long.

Enforcement, particularly during the Bush Administration, has been too lax. Investments at home that would make us more competitive have been completely blocked in Congress and American workers in communities have paid the price.

But the answer is not to rant and rave or cut ourselves off from the world. That would end up killing even more jobs. The answer is to finally make trade work for us, not against us.

So my message...

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My message to every worker in Michigan and across America is this. I will stop any trade deal that kills jobs or holds down wages including the Trans-Pacific Partnership.

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I oppose it now, I'll oppose it after the election and I'll oppose it as president. As a senator from New York, I fought to defend New York's manufacturers and steel makers from unfair Chinese trading practices.

CLINTON: And I opposed the only multi-lateral trade deal that came before the Senate while I was there because it didn't meet my high bar.

[14:05:00] And as secretary of state, I fought hard for American businesses to get a fair shot around the world and to stop underhanded trading practices like currency manipulation and the theft of intellectual property. So as president I will stand up to China and anyone else who tries to take advantage of American workers and companies.

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And I am going to ramp up enforcement by appointing for the first time, a cheap trade prosecutor. I will triple the number of enforcement officers. And when countries break the rules , we won't hesitate to impose targeted tariffs.

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Now, Mr. Trump may talk of big game on trade but his approach when it comes to trade is based on fear, not strength. Fear that we cannot compete with the rest of the world, even when rules are fair. Fear that our country has no choice but to hide behind walls.

If team USA was as fearful as Trump; Michael Phelps and Simone Biles would be cowering in the locker room, afraid to come out and compete. Instead, they are winning gold medals.

America isn't afraid to compete. Right now, thousands of Michigan companies are exporting billions of dollars of products around the world. We want them to sell even more, and create even more jobs here at home. But corporations should not abandon profitable operations in the United States to move abroad just to give shareholders a quicker return, CEOs a bigger bonus, and unions a weaker hand to play.

Now, before he tweets about how he is really the one who will put America first and trade, let's remember where Trump makes many of his own products, because it sure is not America.

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He has made Trump ties in China and Trump suits in Mexico, instead of here in Michigan. He keeps saying, it's not possible to make these things in America anymore, that's just wrong.

So we created a website: HillaryClinton.com/makeithere. On it, we list 100 places across the United States that are already producing similar goods. One positive thing Trump could do to make America great again is to actually make great things in America again.

Now let's look at the second question, which candidate will fight for fairness? And this is an urgent need, we need to grow the economy and make it fairer. The tide is not rising fast enough and certainly not lifting all boats.

Since the crash, too many of the gains have gone to the top one percent. The rules and incentives in our system reward corporations for putting short-term stock prices above long time investment in their worker's equipment and research. While corporate profits are at near record high, paychecks for most people have barely budged. Incomes aren't growing fast enough to keep up with the cost of living

for things like prescription drugs and child-care. I believe every employee from the CEO suite to the factory floor contributes to a business' success. So everyone should share in the rewards, especially those putting in long hours for little pay.

So I'm proposing a new tax credit to encourage more companies to share profits with more.

CLINTON: And more broadly, we will fight for a more progressive or patriotic tax code that puts American jobs first. Right now, when a corporation outsources jobs and production, it could write off the cost.

[14:10:00]

We must stop that and we must make them pay back any tax break they ever received them from any level of government in our country.

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And for those that move their headquarters overseas to avoid paying their fair share of taxes, they're going to have to pay a new exit tax. So if they want to go, they're going to have to pay to go.

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And Wall Street corporations and the super rich should finally pay their fair share of taxes. That's why I support the so-called Buffet Rule. Because multi-millionaires should not be able to pay a lower tax rate than their secretaries.

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We should also add a new tax on multi-millionaires. Crack down on tax gaming by corporations and close the carried interest loop holes, something I've advocated for years.

Now, compare what Trump says. Now there is a myth out there, that he will stick it to the rich and powerful because somehow he's really on the side of the little guy. Don't believe it.

Not when he pledges to rip up basic rules that hold corporations accountable. When he wants to scrap regulations that stop polluters from poisoning the air our children breathe and the water we drink.

Let insurance companies write their own rules again. Trump would roll back the tough rules that we have imposed on the financial industry. I'll do the opposite. I think we should strengthen those rules so Wall Street can never wreck main street again.

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Trump even wants to abolish the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. A new agency, that has already returned more than $11 billion to 25 million Americans, who were taken advantage of by corporations. Why would you get rid of that?

And then there is Trump's tax plan. He would give trillions in tax cuts to big corporations, millionaires and Wall Street money managers. That would explode our national debt and eventually lead to massive cuts in priorities like education, healthcare, and environmental protection.

In his speech on Monday, he called for a new tax loop hole. Let's talk it the Trump loop hole. Because it would allow him to pay less than half the current tax rate on income from many of his companies. He'd pay a lower rate than millions of middle class families.

One non partisan expert at the Tax Policy Center described this plan as and I quote "a really nice deal, for Donald Trump". Of course, it's hard to say how nice, because he refuses to do what every other Presidential candidate in decades has done and release his tax returns.

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But we do know that the 400 richest tax payers in America would get an average tax cut of more than $15 million a year from the Trump loop hole. And then there's the Estate Tax, which Trump wants to eliminate all together.

Now if you believe that he's as wealthy as he says, that alone would save the Trump family $4 billion. It would do nothing for 99.8 percent of Americans. So they'd get a $4 billion tax cut and 99.8 percent of Americans would get nothing.

Just think of what we could do with those $4 billion. We could pay for more than 47,000 veterans to get a four year college degree. We could provide a years worth of healthcare to nearly three million kids. Or we could fund a years worth of Federal assistance to state and local law enforcement.

CLINTON: I think there are a lot of better ways to spend the money. On Monday, I'm going to be in Scranton, Pennsylvania with Vice President Biden. And he has a saying, don't tell me what you value, show me your budget and I will tell you what you value. Well --

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[14:15:00]

Donald Trump wants to give trillions in tax breaks to people like himself. I want to invest it in veterans, our kids, our police officers and so much more. And you can then, draw your own conclusion about values.

Now, it's true that both of us have proposed to cut taxes for middle class families. He's making a big promise. But his advisers have said -- his own advisers have said he may not stand by them. Instead, the tax cuts he double-downs on in his speech in Detroit on Monday offered trillions to the richest Americans and corporations. And one of the differences between Donald Trump and me is I'm telling you what I will do. I'm laying out my plans and I will stand by them, and want you to hold me accountable for delivering results.

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You know, this all reminds me of that old saying, if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. And that brings us to the third question. Which candidate can you actually count on to go to bat for workers and working families? It is not enough to pay lip service to being on your side. We have to recognize how Americans actually live and work in the 21st century, and then offer real solutions that make your lives easier.

We know that women are now the sole or primary breadwinner in a growing number of families. We know more Americans are cobbling together part-time work or striking out on their own. So we have to make it easier to be good workers, good parents, and good caregivers, all at the same time.

That's why I've set out a bold vision to make quality, affordable childcare available to all Americans and limit the cost to 10 percent of family income.

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On Monday, Trump offered his first real ideas on this topic, because previously he had dismissed concerns about childcare. He said it was, quote, "not an expensive thing, because you just need some blocks and some swings." Now he says he wants to exclude childcare payments from taxation.

His plan was panned from the left, the right, the center, because it transparently is designed for rich people like him. He would give wealthy families 30 or 40 cents on the dollar for their nannies, and little or nothing for millions of hard-working families trying to afford childcare so that they can get to work and keep the job.

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I think instead we should expand the child tax credit to provide real relief to tens of millions of working families struggling with the cost of raising children -- the same families that his plan ignores. And that's just a start.

Because the more we do to help working families, the more our entire economy will benefit. For example, guaranteeing equal pay won't just increase paychecks for women, it will boost family budgets and get incomes rising across the board.

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And I don't understand why Trump is against that. Paid family leave will not only make life easier for moms and dads, it will also keep skilled, talented Americans in the workforce and grow our economy. That's why every other advanced country already has it. Again, he's against it. Raising the federal minimum wage won't just put more money in the pockets of low-income families, it also means they will spend more at the businesses in their neighborhoods.

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This is -- this is something that even the original automakers understood way back at the beginning of the 20th century, when they decided to pay the unbelievable sum of $5 a day to autoworkers. And when they were criticized by other businesses -- how can you pay that much? They had the best answer: We want people to be able to buy our cars.

This is economics 101. We need to get incomes and wages rising and it will help the whole economy grow and be fairer.

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And protecting and expanding Social Security doesn't just help older Americans retire with dignity. It helps to ease burdens on families and communities. And I also believe the same thing about comprehensive immigration reform.

[14:20:00]

We already have millions of people working in the economy and paying $12 billion a year to Social Security even though they are undocumented.

So by moving toward reform, we will unleash a lot of new income and growth. And we will level the playing field so that American workers cannot be taken advantage of because undocumented workers can be exploited by employers, which is one of the reasons we have this disconnect.

And finally, strengthening unions does not just serve members, it leads to better pay, and benefits, and working conditions for all employees.

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So I have also said, "I will defend and improve the Affordable Care Act." For me, that includes giving Americans in every state, the choice of a public option health insurance plan that will help everyone afford coverage. It will strengthen competition and drive down costs.

Now these are all causes I have worked on for decades, and I believe they point to a fundamental truth about the economy. It can seem like zero sum -- when you are competing for a job, promotion, or contract; if someone wins and someone loses.

But that is not the full picture, if you step back, you can see we are all in this together. If we grow together, we can all rise together. And you know what I like to say, "we are all stronger together."

The fourth question is key and it's this, who can bring people together to get any of this done? Right? Well , I believe I can because I think I can provide serious, steady leadership that can provide common ground to build on it based upon hard but respectful bargaining with the other side. Leadership that rises above personal attacks and name-calling, not revels in it.

I just do not think insults and bullying is how we are to get things done. I do not think that, that is the appropriate approach for us. I know it's hard to imagine, but there was a time when Democrats and Republicans actually worked together. I know that's true.

I did it as First Lady, senator, and Secretary of State. It is how we created the Children's Health Insurance Program, which covers eight million kids It is how we rebuilt New York after 9/11, and how we passed a treaty to reduce the threat from Russia's nuclear weapons. So I am convinced based on my experience that we can do this.

One of the reasons that I asked Senator Tim Kaine to be my running mate, is that he also has a record of working across the aisle to get things done as a Mayor, Governor, and a Senator. So we are going to make full use of the White House's power to convene. We are going to get everyone at the table, not just republicans and democrats, but businesses and labor unions, academics but most importantly Americans like all you.

I think there are a lot of great ideas out in America. And I want you to have a say. And that means, we've got to get unaccountable money out of politics, overturn Citizens United, and expand voting rights, not restrict them. I intend, starting even before the election to bring together leaders from across the economy, from a lot of different places to talk about jobs and competitiveness. I hope Mark and John can join me because we need the best ideas that are out there making a difference . We need to pull together.

The bottom-line is this. I am running for president to build an economy that works for everyone, not just those at the top.

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And based on what we know from the Trump campaign, he wants Americans to work for him and his friends at the expense of everyone else. He has offered no credible plans to address what working families are up against today, nothing on student loans, or the cost of description drugs, nothing for farmers or struggling rural communities.

CLINTON: Nothing to build a new future with clean energy and advance agriculture. Nothing for communities of color in our cities to overcome the barriers of systemic racism.

[14:25:03]

Nothing to create new opportunities for young all.

It is just a more extreme version of the failed theory of "trickle down" economics with his own addition of outlandish Trumpian ideas that even Republicans reject. And as we heard him say at his convention, he may believe that he alone can fix our country, but clearly he doesn't know the people of Michigan. He doesn't see the businesses and the labor unions, the local governments, the clergy coming together every single day to make things better.

So yeah, there is still a long road ahead, but Michigan is on the rise and everyone is contributing. That's America at its best.

So I hope you will stay active and engaged and working together to create jobs and to strengthen your own communities. And I hope you will work to get out the vote in November, because if we - if we are able to win then I want you all to work with me to build the kind of progress that America deserves to see.

We're going do this together. We are stronger together. Let's go out and build the future. Thank you all, God bless you.

BROOKE BALDWIN, CNN ANCHOR: All right, you've been listening to Hillary Clinton. Really this was her rebuttal of Donald Trump's economic speech from earlier this week in the same state not too far down the road in Detroit. She was laying out what she calls a striking contrast to her rival, to Mr. Trump. Hillary Clinton dedicated much of the time to contrasting her plan with that of Trump's, bringing his plan down as explained how her proposal would prop up specifically the middle class, the working class in this country. She wants to implement paid family leave, preschool for four-year-olds, a way for students to attend public universities debt free, not tuition-free but debt-free, an expansion of Social Security to some family members and increasing the minimum wage up to anywhere between $12 and $15 an hour. But, and she highlighted this again today as being the biggest plan since World War II, she's talking about her big idea, the $275 billion government investment to rebuild America's roads, infrastructure, you know, bridges, ports, airport, she said, and creates, she says, millions of jobs.

So, we have a full panel of political and economic experts to talk Hillary Clinton's economic plan. And I should also point out, we also have a reality check of some of the points she made. So we'll get to Tom Foreman momentarily for that.

But, Ali Velshi, global affairs and economic analyst, co-author of "How to Speak Money," I defer to you, sir, off the top. I mean she -- she -- there was a lot that was thrown out there.

ALI VELSHI, GLOBAL AFFAIRS AND ECONOMIC ANALYST: There was a lot. It was a lot. It's almost like she has advisors saying, their early criticisms of Donald Trump doesn't give enough detail about stuff, so she started detailing a lot of things. It -- you know, it was a pretty standard Democratic fare. A few things stood out to me.

She talked a lot about infrastructure. Donald Trump is also talking about infrastructure. But she gave a little more specificity about an infrastructure bank, putting $25 billion into it and ending up with ten times that in terms of, you know, private funding.

She talked about college debt. This is an interesting story because lots --

BALDWIN: A lot of ears perked with both of them, in fact.

VELSHI: Right, it's a popular policy. She's been influenced by Bernie Sanders on that. But it sometimes has a perverse effect, in the same way that everybody getting a loan in America caused housing prices to get to a place that didn't make sense. We're not addressing the underlying college cost increase problem. So it's hard to figure out how you're going to pay for that. You need states and you need Congress to do that. She said, interestingly enough, that not everyone needs to go to college. She's playing on that. Rick Santorum used to talk about that, that this college is a bit of an elitist thing. Don't let them tell you. I think she has to be careful. We are moving into a knowledge economy. So that's an interesting road to tread.

And she said she'll stop any trade deal that kills jobs or lowers wages. That's an interesting caveat there because that's hard to get your hands on. Which ones cause job losses, which ones increase -- I mean that's complicated stuff.

BALDWIN: Yes.

VELSHI: So she's leaving herself some road to maneuver there.

BALDWIN: Yes, and I think let -- on trade, and, David, I want to come to you next, David Malpass, Donald Trump's senior economic advisor, which I -- you're my next go-to guy. But on trade, it's interesting, though, when she's thinking of talking to rust belt, knowing that her -- it was her husband who signed the bill that became law, which is NAFTA, her back and forth on TPP. We heard her very clearly saying she -- you know, how she feels on TPP now and how she will feel on TPP once elected, how she feels on TPP when she's in the White House. What did you make of it?

[14:29:56] DAVID MALPASS, TRUMP'S SENIOR ECONOMIC ADVISER: Yes, it was a standard Democratic program, so she was offering bigger government, more taxes. There wasn't a lot that I could see that was going to give us more growth. She mischaracterized a lot of what Trump has been saying, did it directly, and yet I was struck -- I was surprised by