Jay Timmons, the National Association of Manufacturers President and CEO, has joined Yahoo Finance to discuss manufacturing prospects under President Biden.
Video transcription
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SEANA SMITH: President Biden outlined plans for using the Defense Production Act to combat the pandemic. It will help with the application of masks, with testing, help with vaccination. For more information on this we would like to bring in Jay Timmons. He is the president and CEO of the National Association of Manufacturers.
And Jay, it’s great to talk to you again. I want to read a piece from your most recent statement you sent. And you said: a smart, focused approach between the administration and manufacturers can shape the use of the Defense Production Act. I think, talk to me about what that partnership might look like and how you think your association can better help the Biden administration at this point.
JAY TIMMONS: Sure, and that’s a great question. Look, the Defense Production Act is designed to help our country get through the most difficult times, usually during wartime. And this, of course, is a new kind of war. This is a war on the health and economy of the United States, the pandemic. Thus, the Defense Production Act has been used several times in the previous government in the past few months.
What we would like to see and I think what President Biden and his government want to do is to form a partnership with manufacturers based on incentives, and basically look at manufacturers who are willing to improve their operations and their lines around switch to make PPE. medical supplies. All sorts of things can be provided in the vaccine supply chain through the use of the Defense Production Act.
ADAM SHAPIRO: What kind of discussions did you have with the new government to do this? Because I would think that you would be some kind of organization to then reach those who do something.
JAY TIMMONS: Well yes, you know, yes, it has been an interesting ten or eleven months that we have worked with many of our member companies to manufacture the PBT and medical supplies and now the vaccine. It was an insane exercise, as you would guess, because we were trying to meet the huge demand for the products. We have had numerous discussions with the administration.
We can no longer rejoice in the fact that Jeff Zients is increasing the pandemic response. I can not think of a better leader for our time for that purpose. We’ve had a lot of conversations since President Biden was named the winner of the presidential contest. And what we have offered is that we have offered our perspective of what has worked over the past ten months and what has not worked.
We talked about exactly what you just mentioned, the Defense Production Act, how it can be used as an incentive rather than a weapon for manufacturers, and how we can work in partnership to develop these essential goods and supplies that needed to get. us over the hump, to get us over the finish line to actually solve the problem of the pandemic and end it once and for all.
SEANA SMITH: Jay, from the conversations you have, I think, which regions do you think are in the best shape towards those who currently need the most help?
JAY TIMMONS: Are you talking about this in relation to the pandemic?
SEANA SMITH: Yes, as far as the pandemic is concerned, and just as far as supply is concerned, what they need only in terms of masks, fans, and everything the manufacturers can help with. Are there certain areas in the US that need the most help at this point?
JAY TIMMONS: Yes, you know, it’s a great question because it’s declining and it’s flowing depending on where you are in the country. So look, I’m from the Middle East of a small rural community in southern Ohio. It was basically not affected during the first few months of the pandemic. But as more activity began to take place in my home area because there was less focus on federal government leadership encouraging people to wear masks and social distances and stay away from crowds, you saw the virus take hold in smaller communities .
The initial reaction that manufacturers had to take, for example, had to deal with big cities like New York and Detroit. Then we saw Chicago, others. Today we still have the problem in the big urban areas. Los Angeles is a clear example of this. But you start to see that it is spread everywhere. It really does not matter. It does not matter if it is a red or a blue condition. It does not matter if it is rural or urban or suburban. You see it everywhere.
My own father conceded to COVID. And he was very, very careful, always wore a mask and always distanced himself. He only went to the grocery store once a week. This thing is very, very dangerous. And manufacturers understand that this is why we worked from day one to get it under control, to stop the spread. We now believe that everyone in America should roll up their sleeves and get the chance.
ADAM SHAPIRO: Jay, does it help a manufacturer that might be appointed to pay for the transition to the product that should then be produced, if you talk about incentives for manufacturers, if the government does use the DPA?
JAY TIMMONS: It is definitely one of the benefits of using it the right way. Absolutely. I mean, when you think of a manufacturer that makes everything they make, right and there – and they hold up their hand, which many of them have done over the last few months, and say, look, we are willing to shut down our product range and recharge it to make masks. There must be a financial amount – or there is a financial cost involved. And most of them can not just absorb it themselves. This is exactly why DPA was created.
It was also created to allow the federal government to reorder certain contracts. We prefer not to see it. We would rather drive up production and not interfere with the contracts that many manufacturers have already entered into for many of these goods, many of these medical supplies. And we would like to see that we can build up American production of more of the PBT and more of these medical supplies here at home.
SEANA SMITH: Jay, before we let you go, I just want to think fast because you issued some statements. You spoke on Twitter about the riots we saw on Capitol Hill a few weeks ago, and also about the delay and the transfer of power initially from the Trump administration. You tweeted back on January 7 and just briefly said that this is not the vision of America in which manufacturers believe and work so hard to defend.
I’m curious just what you’re hoping to hear from President Biden during his first 100 days, just to help unite the country and bring both sides together so we can get past some of the events that last during those few weeks.
JAY TIMMONS: Well, look, I think you’ve seen it all these last two days. I thought the inauguration ceremonies and the activity throughout the day were absolutely beautiful. And they represented the best of America. They represented an America that wanted to come together, heal and move forward. And when we talk about healing, we are not only talking about physical healing and our health healing due to the pandemic, we are also talking about the healing of the soul of this country, a very divided time for us. And I think most people are just tired of it.
I can tell manufacturers that we want to be part of the solution. We want to move forward, we want to ensure that America can continue to prosper, continue to grow and be the prime example of what democracy and our constitutional form of government are all about. And we want it to be an excellent example for the whole world. So I think that’s what we’re looking for.
We are not going to agree with everything with this administration. We did not agree with everything with the previous government or with the previous one. But there are so many things we can agree on: immigration reform, infrastructure investment, trade agreements, labor force development. There are so many things that have been put on the table that give us a way forward to work together to strengthen our country.
SEANA SMITH: Jay Timmons, always great to have you with, President and CEO of the National Association of Manufacturers. Thank you for joining us.
JAY TIMMONS: Thank you for having me.