Transcript - Interview: Kyle Inskeep of WKRC Local 12 Cincinnati Interviews Joe Biden - November 8, 2021 | Factba.se

Kyle Inskeep

00:00:00 - 00:00:01 ()

How are you doing President Biden?

Joe Biden

00:00:01 - 00:00:04 ()

Hey, Kyle. I am sorry to keep you waiting, I really am.

Kyle Inskeep

00:00:04 - 00:00:21 ()

Hey, you're a busy man. We completely understand. We will get right down to business 'cause I know, uh, you don't have a lot of time here today. Uh, so here in Cincinnati, and the Cincinnati Northern Kentucky area, when we saw that this infrastructure bill passed a lot of us immediately thought, "What does this mean for the Brent Spence Bridge," right.

Kyle Inskeep

00:00:21 - 00:00:27 ()

Uh, it's been considered functionally obsolete for years now. You spoke about when you were here for that town hall --

Joe Biden

00:00:27 - 00:00:27 ()

Kyle Inskeep

00:00:27 - 00:00:41 ()

-- in July. Can you go on record here, right now, and guarantee people who drive across that span each and every day that a better option for this bridge will be funded, significantly as a result, uh, of this massive infrastructure bill that just passed?

Joe Biden

00:00:41 - 00:01:02 ()

[Laughs] The answer is yes. There, you all are going to get in, in the state of Kentucky, well over $10 billion. And, uh, for highways, for example, uh, $9.2 billion for highways and four, half a billion dollars for bridges. And, uh, it's, uh, been listed as one of the most notorious bridges in the country.

Joe Biden

00:01:02 - 00:01:11 ()

And, uh, and so my guess is that, uh, that's gonna be the choice that your governors are gonna make and want to get done. And, uh, we can get it done now.

Kyle Inskeep

00:01:11 - 00:01:21 ()

Uh, when do you expect these widespread infrastructure projects to begin across the country? They're obviously gonna be impacted in some way by these global supply chain issues that all of us are being impacted by.

Joe Biden

00:01:21 - 00:01:21 ()

Kyle Inskeep

00:01:21 - 00:01:28 ()

And what is your administration doing on the front end, uh, to really mitigate or lessen those impacts?

Joe Biden

00:01:28 - 00:01:32 ()

Which one may I ask? Wh -- what do you want me to answer first [Laughs]?

Kyle Inskeep

00:01:32 - 00:01:33 ()

Uh, your choice.

Joe Biden

00:01:33 - 00:01:59 ()

Oh, le -- lets start off talking about supply chain. One of the problems of the supply chain is that because of COVID we've had, uh, a -- a, uh, uh, a real shortage of mat, of materials. I mean everything from food stuffs to, to, uh, um, semi conductors. And, uh, and a lot of the supply chain is brought into the country, uh, through, um, uh, oh, through our ports.

Joe Biden

00:01:59 - 00:02:35 ()

Part of, so one of the things I did, I, uh, I went out to Los Angeles and, uh, uh, for -- forty percent of all the goods come in the west coast, come in through two ports. Uh, in, uh, in the Los Angeles area. And, uh, they're privately owned but I got the longshoremen together and the privately owned operators and we got them to go from being open 40 hours a week, to be open 24/7. 24 hours a day, seven days a week, to speed up because we had over, I think it was 700, or, 74 cargo ships were lined up, couldn't get in.

Joe Biden

00:02:35 - 00:02:45 ()

But it's that way all over the country, that's one of the reasons why we put so much money in here for bridges and ports and airports, so we could speed up supply chains. Not just now, but in the future.

Joe Biden

00:02:45 - 00:02:51 ()

And the first part of your question was whether or not we could, when we start to see this happen --

Kyle Inskeep

00:02:51 - 00:02:51 ()

Joe Biden

00:02:51 - 00:03:11 ()

Wh -- what with the money. I think you'll start to see it happen, literally, in a matter of weeks. For example, in your state, um, in the state of Ohio, there are a number of people, a number of people who do not have high speed internet. 14% of the people of Ohio have no internet, a lot of them in rural areas.

Joe Biden

00:03:11 - 00:03:29 ()

And then you have 28% of the people who have internet, but can't afford it. So if there's money in here to provide for all, ev -- everyone in the state to have internet and affordable internet, that ought to be starting fairly s, quickly. Putting a lot of people to work by the way. A lot of electricians to work.

Joe Biden

00:03:29 - 00:03:52 ()

It's also gonna be, there's, uh, there's money in here for significant amount of money for, uh, $140 million for electric charging stations. You put on the highways throughout your state. There's a whole range of things that could go quickly. Now, how long it takes to, uh, for, to get for example, there's a, uh, 10 million American households our drinking bad water.

Joe Biden

00:03:52 - 00:04:04 ()

Well, in Ohio you expect to, you're gonna receive $1.4 billion dollars, statewide, to fix your water pipes -- a lot of lead pipes, so that you no longer have the -- the safety hazards.

Kyle Inskeep

00:04:04 - 00:04:04 ()

So [Crosstalk] --

Joe Biden

00:04:04 - 00:04:07 ()

So, all of this stuff, you're gonna start relatively quickly.

Kyle Inskeep

00:04:07 - 00:04:21 ()

All right, that's good new there, President Biden. I wanna turn to your polling really quickly, here. The latest polling from USA Today has your approval rating, uh, at 38 percent. A new CNN poll shows 58 percent of Americans believe that you aren't paying enough attention to the nation's most important issues.

Kyle Inskeep

00:04:21 - 00:04:34 ()

So, I'm wondering, when you combine that with the election results that we saw last week, um, is -- is -- is this giving you kind of a sign that maybe you need to recalibrate some of your administration's priorities as you approach that one year mark in office?

Joe Biden

00:04:34 - 00:04:57 ()

Well look, I, uh, the poll I saw just before I walked in, on another station, was my polling number is down but it's 48 percent to 52 percent. But look, the -- the -- the point is, I didn't run because of the polls. I think what you're gonna see is the combination of what I did in the beginning, in terms of Recovery Act, and then -- then, the -- the, and this legislation.

Joe Biden

00:04:57 - 00:05:23 ()

As well as a legislation that we're about to pass, God willing, on infra, on, excuse me, on what's called Build Back Better, everything from childcare to pro, funding three and four year olds in school, et cetera. I think all that's gonna have a -- a significant impact on ordinary Americans. They're like the households that I came from, that in fact are gonna change their circumstance and result in, essentially tax cuts for the childcare they'll get.

Joe Biden

00:05:23 - 00:05:28 ()

Tax cuts for being able to send their kids to, the three and four years old to school that they otherwise have to pay for it.

Joe Biden

00:05:28 - 00:05:57 ()

So there's a whole lotta things that are gonna be happening. I think this is an up and down, you know, proposal, oh, excuse me, an -- an -- up and down circumstance. And as I looked at the polling data, literally as I was walking outta the office after doing another thing I had to do, is my polling numbers are the same, essentially what, uh, everyone from, uh, Bush to, uh, uh, to, uh, to, um, Clinton, to, you know, all -- all the, uh, Obama, were at the same time.

Joe Biden

00:05:57 - 00:06:22 ()

But again, I don't think, I don't think presidents should be deciding what to do about, look, a lot of people are worried. Think about this. Look what, 750,000 people have died because of COVID. 750,000 people. Now, the -- the -- psychological scars that has put on so many people. Schools have not been open because of COVID, and they're just getting open again.

Joe Biden

00:06:22 - 00:06:43 ()

We're in a situation where there's a lot of, a lot of anxiety. Gas prices are up exceedingly high, they've been up this high before but not -- not recently. Gas price, that, that's why I have the attorney general taking a look at whether or not these gas companies are gouging people because although the price of oil is coming down some, the price of gas hadn't come down some.

Joe Biden

00:06:43 - 00:07:03 ()

So there's a lot of things that have people, that are really a great deal of anxiety, a great deal of concern. And uh, and they all relate to, even though we've created almost six million jobs since I came into office, we're in a situation where people don't, I mean, they don't feel it right now. They don't feel it.

Kyle Inskeep

00:07:03 - 00:07:11 ()

President Biden, I'm being told that is the last question we have time for, uh, to ask you today. Thank you so much for taking the time to speak with us here, in the Cincinnati area.

Joe Biden

00:07:11 - 00:07:17 ()

I'm sorry to be late. I hope I can see you again. I apologize for -- a little foreign policy issues. I apologize.

Kyle Inskeep

00:07:17 - 00:07:18 ()

No problem at all.

Joe Biden

00:07:18 - 00:07:18 ()

Kyle Inskeep

00:07:18 - 00:07:19 ()

Have a good day, President Biden.