Biden Wows Attendees at Association of Counties Meeting

February 15, 2023 by Dan McCue
Biden Wows Attendees at Association of Counties Meeting
President Joe Biden addresses the National Association of Counties at the Washington Hilton. Feb. 14, 2023 (Photo by Dan McCue)

WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden put the punctuation mark on what by all accounts was a highly successful National Association of Counties Legislative Conference at the Washington Hilton.

In all, nearly 2,000 elected and appointed county officials registered for the five-day conference, which started Friday, and most appeared on hand Tuesday for the president’s appearance.

“We heard he might be coming, but that scheduling was touch and go,” one attendee told The Well News.

Lunch was served and the clock crept past the anticipated 1:15 p.m. start time of Biden’s remarks as the president raced through some last-minute items at the White House.

One was a celebratory conversation with Indian Prime Minister Narenda Modi in which the two leaders discussed Air India’s then just-announced purchase of 220 American-made Boeing aircraft.

The $34 billion purchase will support more than 1.4 million jobs in 44 states, Biden observed, and Air India has an option for additional purchases that could bring the total price tag up to $45.9 billion.

On a far more somber note, the president also released statements on Monday night’s mass shooting at Michigan State University and the fifth anniversary of the Parkland school shooting.

As the county officials waited, some attendees, with access to White House pool reports, cheered their colleagues with word that the in-town pool had been assembled to make the 1.5-mile drive to the hotel and, finally, that the president had emerged from the Oval Office, gotten in his waiting limousine and was en route.

Five minutes later, he bounded onto the Hilton ballroom’s stage.

Biden opened his remarks by recalling his start in politics as a county councilperson in New Castle County, Delaware.

“What I learned early on,” he said, “was that if you are in the county, you’ve got to go through someone else to get help. You’ve got to go to the governor. You’ve got to go to your state legislator. You’ve got to go to the state senators.

“Well, guess what, I stopped that,” he said to laughter and applause from the audience. 

“No kidding,” Biden continued. “Because people don’t know every detail of how government works. They just know that there’s a pothole on their side street and they want it fixed.

“They don’t know who is responsible, but they come to the county all the time — at least that was my experience in New Castle County — and one of the things I found out early on was, we always did better when there was direct funding for the things that related to the county,” he said.

By now stalking the stage with a microphone, Biden went on to recall the skepticism he and most county officials face when running for office.

“I really do think [being a county official] is one of the hardest jobs,” he said. “I really mean it. I’m not being solicitous. I think it’s one of the hardest jobs in politics.

“How many of you have knocked on a door and said, ‘My name is so and so and I’m running for county commissioner’? And the person at the door looks at you and goes, ‘Oh, um, uh-huh.’”

Many in the crowd laughed knowingly.

“And then you say, ‘You want to know what a county commissioner does, don’t you?’ And they say, ‘Well, yeah, okay …’”

More laughter.

“I sincerely mean it. I want to thank you. I ran for the United States Senate because being in the county council was too hard,” he said, to even more laughter and applause.

The remainder of Biden’s remarks revolved around his now well-honed campaign-style speech, ticking off the many accomplishments of the administration in the last Congress, and vowing to at least try to work successfully with the new, Republican-controlled chamber.

But time and again, he punctuated his remarks with references to how White House policies and bipartisanship have benefitted the nation’s counties.

“Only 120 counties in the United States of America got help from the CARES Act.  There was a lot of money but only 120 counties benefited,” he said.

“When I signed the American Rescue Plan, it sent $350 billion for the first time in history to every state, city and county in America,” he continued. “We made sure all of you, over 3,000 counties, got direct funding because I know when we empower you directly, you get the job done. Three thousand counties.

“We urged you to use the Rescue Plan money to make communities safer, invest in affordable housing, get small businesses back on their feet, train your workforce, and you did,” the president said.

“And we’re rebuilding the country through the bipartisan infrastructure law,” Biden said. “In your counties, we’re investing in your roads, bridges, airports, public transit, water systems, high-speed rail and so much more.

“This is the work we’re going to continue to do together, Democrats and Republicans,” he added.

Biden closed his remarks, as he almost always does, with a patriotic flourish.

“We’re proving, in every county in America, our best days are ahead of us. They’re not behind us,” he said.

“This is the United States of America, for God’s sake. There’s nothing — I mean this sincerely — there’s nothing we can’t do,” he continued.

“We’re the only nation in the world that’s come out of every crisis we’ve ever met stronger than we went into it — the only nation that’s ever done that. Because we have a resilient population.

“America never gives up, never steps down, never backs away, never stops,” he said, adding, “We have an incredible country, and there’s nothing beyond our capacity if we do it together.  And we’re looking to the counties to being the key to getting it done.”

Dan can be reached at [email protected] and @DanMcCue

A+
a-
  • Joe Biden
  • National Association of Counties
  • Washington Hilton
  • In The News

    Health

    Voting

    Local Government

    Tuesday's Primaries Include Key Senate Race in Ohio and Clues for Biden-Trump Rematch

    NEW YORK (AP) — Five states will hold presidential primaries on Tuesday as President Joe Biden and former President Donald... Read More

    NEW YORK (AP) — Five states will hold presidential primaries on Tuesday as President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump continue to lock up support around the country after becoming their parties’ presumptive nominees. Trump is expected to easily win GOP primaries in Arizona, Florida, Illinois,... Read More

    Mississippi to Allow Quicker Medicaid Coverage During Pregnancy to Try to Help Women and Babies

    JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — A new Mississippi law will allow earlier Medicaid coverage for pregnant women in an effort to... Read More

    JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — A new Mississippi law will allow earlier Medicaid coverage for pregnant women in an effort to improve health outcomes for mothers and babies in a poor state with the nation’s worst rate of infant mortality. The “presumptive eligibility” legislation signed Tuesday by Republican... Read More

    Top Virginia Senate Negotiator Vows to Keep Alexandria Arena Out of the Budget

    RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — A top Democratic Virginia lawmaker vowed Wednesday to keep language enabling a proposed relocation by the... Read More

    RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — A top Democratic Virginia lawmaker vowed Wednesday to keep language enabling a proposed relocation by the NBA’s Washington Wizards and NHL’s Washington Capitals to Alexandria out of the state budget lawmakers will take up later this week. Sen. L. Louise Lucas, who... Read More

    Florida Lawmakers Prepare for Gov. DeSantis to Veto Social Media Ban on Children Under 16

    TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Florida lawmakers were bracing for Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis to veto a bill banning social media... Read More

    TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) — Florida lawmakers were bracing for Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis to veto a bill banning social media for children under 16 on Friday and finding a way to make him more comfortable with its language before their session ends next week. DeSantis supports... Read More

    Steady Ascent or Sudden Splash? North Carolina Governor's Race Features Men Who Took Different Paths

    ROXBORO, N.C. (AP) — One candidate is an Ivy League-educated attorney who over 25 years amassed allies as he climbed... Read More

    ROXBORO, N.C. (AP) — One candidate is an Ivy League-educated attorney who over 25 years amassed allies as he climbed North Carolina's Democratic ladder. The other is a former furniture factory worker with a history of blunt commentary who plowed into Republican politics four years ago... Read More

    Democrats in SC Must Work Harder to Survive in an Era of Republican Domination

    FORT LAWN, S.C. (AP) — South Carolina state Sen. Mike Fanning likes to talk to people. He will talk about... Read More

    FORT LAWN, S.C. (AP) — South Carolina state Sen. Mike Fanning likes to talk to people. He will talk about anything, but if the Democrat from Great Falls is able to steer the conversation, he's not likely to say much about Washington. Fanning believes deeply that... Read More

    News From The Well
    scroll top