Jennifer Rene Psaki

“ I think that when we talk about housing needs, we can’t, at this point, come up with enough money to take care of all of the homeless people in this country. We cannot, through this package alone, repair and restore 50-year-old housing authorities across this country which are crumbling every day. We cannot abate lead in every single building we need to with these resources. ”

“ We also urge Congress to reform other aspects of our immigration system by passing President Biden’s Build the U.S. Citizenship Act — a package, a bill that he proposed on his first day in office — which would establish a new system to responsibly manage and secure our border, bring long-overdue visa reforms to keep families together and grow our economy, and address the root causes of migration from Central America. ”

“ And I think the President is eager to hear from them on how the conversation goes and work with them to determine what the next right step is.
I will say that, in his mind and in the minds of National Security Advisor Sullivan and Secretary of State Blinken, a big part of the strategy is approaching our relationship with China from a place of strength and strengthening our own economy at home, investing in the middle class, looking at it through the prism of competition, not conflict. And that means there’s also more work we have to do here. ”

“ But no commitment at this point to share, specifically, the AstraZeneca vaccine with others? MS. PSAKI: Well, I will say, broadly speaking, we also anticipate having additional doses of Moderna, of Pfizer, of a range of vaccines, even as we focus on vaccinating, ensuring every American — every adult American has access to the vaccine. It’s just a matter of timeline. So I just don’t have a — an update or a preview on that, but certainly we’ll have those conversations, and we are open to receiving those requests and, obviously, making considerations. ”

“ Does the President have any response to that kind of language? MS. PSAKI: Well, the President believes that one of the greatest attributes of the United States is our honest self-reflection and our constant striving for progress. And there’s always more work to do, as he’s stated himself.So, I can’t — I’ve been doing this long enough not to try to get in the mind of President Putin, but I can assure you that President Biden still believes there’s more work we can do here in our own country. ”

“ We are — we have more programs in place to assist people who are already in public housing to find a way to buy housing.
We know that affordable housing is a problem all across this country. I don’t know where my Republican colleagues live that don’t think that it — there is a problem, but there is. So many of us just choose to ignore it. ”

“ We are going to make sure that people who qualify have access to credit.
We all know that there have been problems across this country for many, many years. That is why I’m so pleased that President Biden talks about equity. He talks about equality — closing the racial wealth gap, which is bigger today than it was 50 years ago. ”

“ Under the Biden-Harris administration, HUD is making greater efforts to keep Americans safe from COVID-19. We’re strengthening partnerships between recipients of HUD assistance and public health agencies and healthcare providers. Many of the people living in — living in federally assisted housing have risk factors that make them particularly vulnerable to COVID. These factors include disability, race, and low income — along with racial and ethnic disparities in access to response, care, and treatment. ”

“ These bills would provide a path to citizenship for DREAMers, individuals with temporary protected status, and farmworkers. Both pieces of legislation passed the House last Congress with bipartisan support and have broad support from the American public.
These bills, in his view and our view, are critical milestones toward much-needed relief for the millions of individuals who call the United States home, and an acknowledgement that a path to citizenship for these essential workers is critically important to our economy and our nation’s food and agricultural sectors. ”

“ But we are working, and we are very committed here from the White House and from the government in finding a way soon — very soon — to ensure that there’s access by the media — not by us providing you with what we see, but by the media to these shelter facilities. We believe it’s important and vital, and we’re committed to it. ”

“ This week, there’s a group of college basketball players, ahead of the NCAA Tournament, who started a protest on social media with the hashtag #NotNCAAProperty. And they’re looking for more financial freedom and personal protections from the NCAA.I wondered: One of the things they’re asking for is a meeting with federal officials, and potentially the Biden administration, to talk about legislation on this. So does the President support college athletes being able to profit off their name and likeness? ”

“ One, does the Biden administration have any plans to restore or tweak that Obama-era fair housing regulation, which the Trump administration weakened in the summer of 2020? SECRETARY FUDGE: We are looking at it. Certainly we know that fair housing is, in fact, the law of the land, and we want to use every tool that we have. I think that the prior administration did roll back some fair housing tools that we have. ”

“ I would say, as I noted in response to a question — or two questions that were asked earlier that were very similar, our big concern has been the pandemic and COVID and safety. Of course, there are privacy concerns that anyone takes into account — or, I would say, any administration should take into account, as it relates to members of the media visiting a facility where there are children, as I’m sure you would certainly agree on.I can’t speak to what the approach was of the prior administration who was ripping children from the arms of their parents. ”

“ How is calling Vladimir Putin a killer constructive to that relationship? MS. PSAKI: Well, President Biden has known President Putin for a long time. They’ve both been on the global stage for a long time, worked through many iterations of a relationship between the United States and Russia, and he believes we can continue to do that. Q Does the President believe that the leaders of — Mohammed Bin Salman, the — one of the — the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia — does he view him as a killer? MS. PSAKI: I don’t think I need to add more “killer” names from the podium just today. ”

“ Q On these vaccines going to Mexico: This comes, of course, as the United States is talking to Mexico about this border situation. Were there any strings attached regarding the situation on the border with this decision to give AstraZeneca doses to Mexico? MS. PSAKI: There are several diplomatic conversations, parallel conversations, many layers of conversations with any — every country — Mexico, Canada, Europe, Asia, around the world. And certainly, being part of contributing to preventing the spread of a global pandemic is part of — one of our diplomatic objectives. ”

“ Because rhetoric, certainly from the massive megaphone you have from the White House, is something that is heard across the country, and it’s important to then be thoughtful about the words you use and how you convey opposition to discrimination of any kind. ”

“ Homelessness was at the top of the list. One was expanding vouchers. Thirdly, he wanted us to find ways to expand and put in the market new, affordable housing.{{pgraph|So with the $40 billion that has come that we have now, what we expect is this: We have $5 billion set aside to do nothing but address homeless issues. So we know that, with those resources, over the next probably 12 to 18 months, we know for a fact that we can get as many as 130,000 people off the streets.We also know that our local partners are going to assist us in finding other rental opportunities. ”

“ There have been ex- — there have been expectations set outside of — unrelated — to any vaccine doses or request for them that they would be partners in dealing with the crisis on the border. And there have been requests, unrelated, that they — for doses of these vaccines. Every relationship has multiple layers of conversations that are happening at the same time. Q So we shouldn’t rule out — or the United States isn’t ruling out using our vaccine stockpile in terms of, sort of, to effect diplomacy? ”

“ As we await FDA approval here in the U.S., many countries, as you know, have already requested — have requested the — have already approved AstraZeneca and also have requested our doses from the United States. That includes Canada and Mexico, but it’s certainly not limited to Canada and Mexico.
And balancing the need to let the approval process play out of the AstraZeneca vaccine as it’s taking place in the U.S. with the importance of helping stop the spread of the — of — in other countries — we are assessing how we can loan doses. It’s not — it’s — we are — that is our aim. ”

“ But it will just be additional guidance, which a lot of schools are looking for, from health and medical experts on how to safely reopen schools and ensure that the parents in the community, the teachers in the community, the students feel safe going to school.And this just — as they’re considering options, this is one of the options that will — that — one of the mitigation steps a school can take. ”

“ I don’t know that Reuters calls it “scooplets,” but — Q If you could confirm that the U.S. plans to loan 4 million AstraZeneca vaccines to Mexico and Canada. What’s the timeline for when that transaction would take place? And why only 4 million of a stockpile that is several times that when — for a vaccine that isn’t authorized here? MS. PSAKI: Absolutely. So, as I’ve noted here before, but worth noting again: Our first priority remains vaccinating the U.S. population. The reality is that — but the reality is the border knows no — the pandemic knows no borders. ”

“ Part of this is that — part of the reasoning is that, of course, we’ve closed Matamoros and some — there has been some less participation in keeping some of these families in Mexico than in the past. And many of these policies we have supported.
But the vast majority of people — vast, vast majority — who come to the border are turned away. The border is not open. ”

“ I mean, history — you’ve written many stories about it, about the role sanctions have played in moving global diplomacy forward, and we certainly are a believer in that.But as you also know, there are a range of tools at any — at the disposal of any President, seen and unseen. ”

“ If you look at places like a Los Angeles, where they have actually purchased hotels and motels, et cetera, to give people an immediate place to go, there’s re- — there are resources in the plan to do that.The other thing that we find is that part of the problem with the market is that credit is not available and accessible to people who actually do qualify. ”

“ And specifically for some of the blue parts of the country that some Republicans have criticized — San Francisco, New York, where the homeless numbers have been high — what specific advice and what you can spe- — specifically do to target those communities to alleviate those — those high numbers? ”

“ And as I noted yesterday, also from here, he’s asked Cedric Richmond — who, of course, we’ve all heard of; former congressman — and Susan Rice to lead an effort to engage with the community as well.
Last piece: Today, the House will also be voting on the American Dream and Promise Act and the Farm Workforce Modernization Act. President Biden and this administration support passage of both pieces of legislation. ”

“ Q Thank you, Jen.Questions on U.S.-China meeting. China has a poor record of keeping promises. So how would you characterize the level of trust that the current administration has with regard to China? And also, for the Chi- — for the bilateral meeting between President Biden and President Xi, what are the conditions that has to happen — what are the conditions for the meeting to happen? ”

“ So hopefully I’ll have an update soon.
Thanks, everyone.
Q And one question from a colleague who can’t be here because of social distancing — speaking of. MS. PSAKI: Yep. Q The President said in the interview when he was discussing — going back to, you know, the talking filibuster — that the filibuster is (inaudible) because, quote, we’re almost “getting to a point where...democracy is having a hard time functioning.”But my colleague points out that that dynamic has been true, specifically in the Senate, for a very long time — years, even. ”

“ Your new U.S. Trade Representative will be ceremonially sworn in later today. MS. PSAKI: Yes. Ninety-seven [Ninety-eight] to zero — Q That’s a big number. MS. PSAKI: — I think was her vote. It’s pretty solid. Q What — how soon will she start leading trade talks with the UK? MS. PSAKI: I don’t have anything to preview. Obviously, that’s driven by the policies and the agenda of the President and the overall economic team. I’m sure we will be integrating her into all of the policy discussions as soon as she’s sworn in.Let me just go to the — get to the folks in the back. Go ahead. ”