In a visit to a Volvo factory in Maryland Friday, President Joe Biden highlighted a post-pandemic manufacturing growth spurt across the country, which the president has sought to galvanize by boosting industries like computer chip manufacturing and clean energy.

"Let me start off with two words. Made in America," Biden said as he kicked off his speech. "Made in America. That's not hyperbole. I'm not joking about that."

What You Need To Know

  • In a visit to a Volvo factory in Maryland Friday, President Joe Biden highlighted a post-pandemic manufacturing growth spurt across the country

  • The president has sought to galvanize domestic manufacturing even more by boosting industries like computer chip manufacturing and clean energy

  • It came one day after the president made a similar stop in New York to highlight a new $20 billion investment from IBM to develop semiconductor chips, quantum computing and artificial intelligence in the Hudson Valley

  • Volvo’s facility in Maryland spans 280 acres and employs more than 1,700 people

Biden took a short trip outside Washington to Hagerstown, Maryland to visit Volvo’s facility, which spans 280 acres and employs more than 1,700 people. The trip coincided with National Manufacturing Day, which Biden said commemorates "workers who are the backbone of the economy of this country."

Biden on Friday highlighted his effort to create a domestic manufacturing boom here in the United States, creating jobs and boosting local economies. More than 670,000 manufacturing jobs have been added since he took office.

"Where's it written that says America can't be the leading manufacturer in the world again?" Biden asked. "Where is that written? I'm here at this Volvo plant to thank the workers and management for building heavy duty engine transmissions, axles for trucks and buses and parts of electric vehicles of the future."

"All across America, we're proving 'Made in America' isn't just a slogan, it's reality," Biden said. "We're proving that our best days are ahead of us, not behind us."

Biden in Maryland again highlighted his effort to create a domestic manufacturing boom here in the United States, creating jobs and boosting local economies. More than 670,000 manufacturing jobs have been added since he took office.

About 1.36 million factory jobs were cut in the first three months of the pandemic, but that steadily resurged later that summer under former President Donald Trump and through 2021, and now the number of jobs surpass pre-pandemic levels.

The president is looking to grow that number even more through recently passed legislation. The bipartisan CHIPS and Science Act passed over the summer invests more than $52 billion in critical semiconductor manufacturing and seeks to boost U.S. competitiveness in new technologies. 

The event came one day after the president made a similarly themed stop in New York to highlight a new $20 billion investment from IBM to develop semiconductor chips, quantum computing and artificial intelligence in the Hudson Valley over the next decade. And earlier this week, Micron announced it will invest up to $100 billion over the next 20 years to build a chip manufacturing facility in Clay, a suburb of Syracuse, New York.

"We made historic government investment in America, spurring incredible private sector investment in America," Biden said, cheering the passage of the bill.

Biden also cheered the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act, the sweeping climate, tax and health care bill passed by Democrats this fall, which makes the largest investment in climate in U.S. history. It includes $60 billion for clean manufacturing, including decarbonization and revitalization in industries like steel, cement, and aluminum, plus support for domestic manufacturing of clean energy technologies.

The president also said that the provisions of the bill, which include prescription drug savings, were intended to "give families a little bit of breathing room."

The event came on the heels of the release of September's jobs report, which saw U.S. employers add a solid 263,000 jobs.

"Ten million jobs since I've come into office," Biden cheered. "That's the fastest job growth at any point of any president in all American history. Historic progress."

Biden touted the unemployment rate of 3.5%, which "includes the lowest unemployment among Hispanic Americans ever in the history of this country, the second-lowest employment of Black teenagers ever."

"And this recovery has been the fastest increase of people reentering the workforce of any modern economic recovery," he added. 'But there's something else: Our job market continues to show resilience as we navigate through this economic transition we're in."

“For some time, I’ve been saying what we need to do in this transition is we have to move from historically strong economic recovery to a more steady, stable recovery," Biden said, adding: "We need to bring inflation down without giving up all of the historic economic progress that working-class and middle-class people have made."

With November's midterms rapidly approaching, the president sought to use the campaign-style event to contrast his policies with that of Republicans seeking to retake the Congressional majorities and urged voters to keep Democrats in power.

"Many of my Republican friends are basically arguing that good news for the economy is bad news for America, as if they're rooting for fewer jobs and lower wages," Biden said. "It's all part of this trickle-down mentality that says 'it doesn't matter what's happening in the mainstream, what really matters is what's happening on Wall Street.'"

"It's not my plan," Biden said. "We can continue to grow our economy in a stable and sustainable way. We can build on an economy that works for everyone.