Vice President-Elect Mike Pence appeared on NBC’s Meet the Press on Sunday to discuss Donald Trump’s fast approaching presidency. What he got, at one point, was moderator Chuck Todd grilling him on why Trump couldn’t save some 700 jobs Carrier still sent to Mexico. “You gave a tax break -- some people could say you gave a tax break to Carrier so that they would only send 700 jobs overseas,” he told Pence.
The Indiana governor explained to Todd that Carrier originally declined to talk about incentive packages to remain in the state. “Make no mistake about it, the only reason Carrier is staying in the United States is because Donald Trump was elected president of the United States. The leadership at United Technologies and Carrier –,” he began to say before Todd interjected.
TODD: This isn’t government intervening in the private sector?
PENCE: No, what happened is--
TODD: Why is this not government intervening in the private sector?
Pence tried to tell Todd that right now was a time to be happy 1,000 jobs were managed to be saved by Trump’s phone calls. “I couldn't be more grateful for that… And the people of Indiana couldn’t be more grateful for that,” he emoted, while Todd was speaking over him and hounding that 700 jobs were not able to be saved.
Todd and the liberal media were called out by Pence for always having a “glass half empty” mentality with Trump and Republicans. Todd immediately cut Pence off arguing, “Well, it's not about the media sir… hitting the media is always a crutch for you guys. It's not about the media.”
The vice president-elect was correct in his description that the media treats Republican victories as a “glass half full,” while praising every little thing Democrats achieve. Todd’s badgering on government intervention and the jobs still lost demonstrates the media’s desire to find any negative aspect and drive it home against Republicans. Without out Trump’s negotiation over 1,700 jobs would have been lost, which exposed Todd’s focus on those 700 jobs as his liberal bias.
Where was the media’s concern over government intervention when President Barack Obama bailed out the auto industry, or any one of his economic schemes? They didn’t seem to care when the government was dealing out millions to green energy companies who inevitably went bankrupt. They even touted the government’s power grab of the internet in net neutrality. It’s a ridiculous liberal double standard.
Transcript below:
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NBC
Meet the Press
December 4, 2016
10:47:24 AM EasternCHUCK TODD: On Carrier, why isn't this pay to play politics? You gave a tax break -- some people could say you gave a tax break to Carrier so that they would only send 700 jobs overseas. Sarah Palin called it crony capitalism. Why isn't it?
MIKE PENCE: Look, we were heartbroken in February when carrier announced they were pulling up stakes and taking all of their jobs south of the border to Mexico, closing factories in a couple locations in Indiana. I asked them at that time whether or not the state of Indiana could offer any incentives that are very routine in the competition for jobs in the country. They said, don't bother. We don't want to look at incentives. Make no mistake about it, the only reason Carrier is staying in the United States is because Donald Trump was elected president of the United States. The leadership at United Technologies and Carrier –
TODD: This isn’t government intervening in the private sector?
PENCE: No, what happened is--
TODD: Why is this not government intervening in the private sector?
PENCE: Well first off, let’s remember now, more than 1,000 Hoosiers have certainty in their jobs and in their futures going into this Christmas season because of the leadership of Donald Trump.
TODD: 700 don't.
PENCE: I couldn't be more grateful for that.
TODD: 700 don’t.
PENCE: And the people of Indiana couldn’t be more grateful for that. Well look, I know the glass is half empty tendency of many in the media—
TODD: Well, it's not about the media sir.
PENCE: What you saw happen here—
TODD: The media -- hitting the media is always a crutch for you guys. It's not about the media.
PENCE: It’s not a crutch.
TODD: There is seven— what do you say to that.
PENCE: Here is the bottom line. I was in the room when he made the call. What the American people have—and they have now in President-Elect Donald Trump is someone who’s going to be a champion for the American economy. He picked up the phone and he said to the leadership of this company, “Look, we're going to cut taxes. We're going to roll back the regulations that are driving companies just like yours out of the country. We're going to renegotiate trade deals so that they put American jobs and American workers first.” He just asked them very respectfully to reconsider their decision to leave. And as governor of Indiana, and as a fellow American, I couldn't be more proud and couldn’t be more grateful that now more than 1,000 Americans have certainty in their economic future. More than 1,000 jobs even before he becomes president of the United States. But I think it's just the beginning. Stay tuned. Be ready. Donald Trump's going to be fighting for American jobs, and be a champion for the American economy.
