March 4, 2016

Hillary Clinton Calls for 'New Bargain' To Create More Good-Paying Jobs in America

~Proposes ‘Clawback’ of Tax Benefits from Corporations that Ship Jobs Overseas~

In a speech today at Detroit Manufacturing Systems, Hillary Clinton said that there has been a breakdown of America's basic bargain – that fundamental idea that if you work hard and do your part, you'll be able to get ahead and stay ahead -- and outlined her plans for a "new bargain" to create more, good-paying jobs in America.

Clinton’s “new bargain” is built on three principles: (1) corporations have to do right by their communities and our country; (2) employers should treat workers like assets to be invested in, rather than costs to be cut, and; (3) government should stop rewarding greed and special interests, and instead invest in the sources of the good jobs of the future. 
 
Hillary Clinton said, “Throughout this campaign, I’ve said that creating good-paying jobs and raising incomes is the defining economic challenge of our time, and that in order to get where I want us to go, we need growth that is strong, fair, and long-term.  That’s why we need a new bargain for the new economy.  A new bargain to ensure that the jobs of the future are good-paying American jobs.  The kind that provide both good incomes and the dignity, pride and sense of purpose.”
 
Clinton specifically offered a new “clawback” proposal that would rescind tax relief and other incentives for corporations if they move overseas any jobs, facilities or production that had benefitted from the tax breaks. The revenue raised by the clawback would be used to encourage investment in the U.S. – including in the communities that had seen jobs or production depart. 
 
Hillary Clinton said, “Corporations benefit in so many ways from being right here in the United States.  But too often, this relationship feels like a one-way street.  Too many are not holding up their end of the bargain.  They don’t recognize that one of the biggest assets on their balance sheet in America.”

Clinton has been working on this proposal with economic advisors in recent months as she has sought new ways to confront the problem of reduced economic patriotism.

The “clawback” is now the third in a series of tax proposals she has put forward to confront corporations that walk out on America. In December, she called for an exit tax on companies that use the tax gimmick of an “inversion” to move their officially listed headquarters location abroad in order to reduce their tax bill here in the U.S. Later that same month, she outlined a plan to crack down on the practice of corporate "earnings stripping," through which large, multinational corporations systematically shift profits overseas to avoid U.S. taxation.
 
Please see a full transcript of the remarks below:
 
“Thank you.  Wow.  I am so excited to be here.  And I appreciate the short tour that I just had and the information that I was given.  I want to thank Detroit Manufacturing Services for welcoming us here today, and I want to thank them especially for giving so many hardworking people the chance to make a good living with a good job with benefits and union representation.  It all adds up.   
 
I want to thank Andra Rush, the CEO of DMS.  I want to acknowledge this is the largest woman-owned business in Michigan and one of the largest Native American-owned businesses in America.     It's also great to be here with so many of my friends, my former colleagues.  I'm thrilled to be in Detroit.  I want to thank the mayor.  Where is the mayor?  Mayor.  Thank you, Mayor Duggan, for everything you're doing.  I want to thank Senator Debbie Stabenow, my friend and colleague Congressman John Conyers he's got that red jacket on, you can see him.  Congresswoman Brenda Lawrence, thank you.     My long-time friend, Congresswoman Debbie Dingell.    
 
And of course, I want to recognize a legend.  Now you may think I'm talking about his storied career in the Congress, and of course I am.  But I want you to know that former Congressman John Dingell is a social media sensation.     He is the king of Twitter.     And I'm so pleased he's here today.  I want to hank former Governor Jim Blanchard and Janet Blanchard.     And we have some great union leaders here.  We have the former president of the UAW, Bob King.  Thank you, Bob, for being here.     We have the president of SCIU here in the state, Marge Robinson.     And the president of AFSCME, Council 25, Al Garrett, thank you all for being with me.    
 
Now, I deliberately chose to come to Detroit and to come to this company to talk about jobs.  Because I want more people to see what's happening in southwest Detroit and Midtown and Eastern Market.  New businesses are opening, families are moving in, the street lights are on again, the buses are running, there is a palpable feeling of pride and community.  And we have to spread the economic revitalization to all of Detroit's neighborhoods.  And you can do it, because look how far you've come.  Thanks to your hard work, the auto industry just had its best year ever.   
 
Innovation is on the rise.  Between the car makers and suppliers, the clean energy sector, the defense corridor, high tech firms in Ann Arbor, cutting edge design happening in Grand Rapids, the next generation of engineers getting trained up in Houghton and so much else, your hard work, doing what you've always done, making and designing things that America needs and the world wants is once again going strong, and I am so grateful to everybody who played a part in that.
 
Now last night, Detroit played a different role, didn't it?  Hosting the Republican presidential -- I don’t know what to call it, I guess debate.  There were so many insults flying back and forth, it was hard to keep track.  But the biggest insult of all was to the American people.     The economy, which should be at the top of any list that anybody running for president has was basically an afterthought.  Maybe that's because all the Republican candidates support the same failed policies:  cut taxes for the rich, get out of the way of corporations, don't raise the minimum wage -- in fact, the frontrunner says he thinks wages are too high in our country -- and slash government to the bone.  Now surprise they've all criticized or opposed the auto rescue.  What was missing last night is an honest reckoning with the most important economic challenge we face.  How do we raise incomes and create the good jobs of the future?
 
Now on the Democratic side, we agree on a number of things.  But I don’t think we can answer that question by refighting battles from 20 years ago.  Anyone running for president owes it to you to come up with real ideas, not an ideology, not an old set of talking points, but a credible strategy designed for the world we live in now.     And that's exactly what I'm here today to do. 
 
In America, if you work hard and you do your part, you're supposed to be able to get ahead and stay ahead no matter who you are or where you started out.  That's the basic bargain that made this country great.  But for many Americans, that no longer holds true.  Too many barriers hold back our families, our economy, and because of that, our country.  Instead of good paying jobs, millions of Americans are stuck in low-wage work.  Now corporate profits and CEO pay keeps rising, but paychecks for working families have barely budged.  And instead of affordable college, we have skyrocketing tuition and millions of people weighed down by student debt. 
 
More women than ever are the main breadwinners or co-breadwinners, but they still don’t get equal pay.     And the unions that helped build our country and the middle class are under concerted attack.  And it's no surprise that Americans are angry, is it?  Folks work hard all day, then lie awake all night trying to figure out how in the world they’re going to pay for their kids’ college, or a new roof, or making sure mom gets the care she needs.  And for some parents, it’s even worse.  They have to worry about whether the water their kids drink is poisonous, like the families in Flint.     Or about their kids’ schools that are crumbling and rodent-infested, like too many here in Detroit.  That is not the way it is supposed to be in America.   
 
Now, some of the blame for these changes in the economy rest with big, historic forces, like trade and technology.  Wall Street and some of our corporations also, however, bear a lot of responsibility.  Too many in the financial industry forgot that the purpose of banking is to get capital to main street to invest in new businesses or expand successful ones like this of any size, and to increase the opportunity for home ownership and community development.
 
It is not to create huge riches for a select few at the expense of everyone else.  And meanwhile, too many leaders in corporate America are prioritizing their short-term stock price over their workers and their communities.  And we can’t forget the damage caused by trickle-down economics and right-wing ideologues who believe in weakening government oversight, massive tax cuts for the rich, ripping away the safety net, and breaking the backs of unions. 
But as Detroit proves every day, what has been broken can be rebuilt, stronger than before.     
 
Throughout this campaign, I’ve said that creating good-paying jobs and raising incomes is the defining economic challenge of our time, and that in order to get where I want us to go, we need growth that is strong, fair, and long-term.  That’s why we need a new bargain for the new economy.  A new bargain to ensure that the jobs of the future are good-paying American jobs.  The kind that provide both good incomes and the dignity, pride and sense of purpose that come when you have something to look forward to when you get up in the morning.  And the people that I met as I was walking here with Ed were all people who fit that description, proud of what they’re doing, grateful for the opportunity to be part of a team that respects one another, looking to continue the growth that this company has enjoyed.  So that’s the kind of jobs we want, and you’re creating them again in Michigan.
 
Some of the most exciting technological breakthroughs are happening right here – not in China, not in Germany, but in Michigan.     You used to make B-24 bombers at Willow Run.  Now you’re developing driverless cars there.  At Ventower in Monroe, you’re making the towers that make wind turbines possible.  Chevy is making electric cars in Hamtramck and using clean energy to do it.  Shinola has created more than 500 jobs, and they’ve cornered the market on watches for presidents.  Both my husband and President Obama love their Shinolas.     
 
So Michigan proves every day that American workers are the best in the world.  All they need is a fair chance on a fair playing field.  That’s why we need this new bargain, and here’s what it should be.     
 
First, corporations have to do right by their communities and our country.  Corporations benefit in so many ways from being right here in the United States.  But too often, this relationship feels like a one-way street.  Too many are not holding up their end of the bargain.  They don’t recognize that one of the biggest assets on their balance sheet in America.  And part of the problem is a casino culture on Wall Street that for too long puts short-term speculation ahead of long-term strength, and asks taxpayers to hold the bag when they bets go bad.  We need to make sure Wall Street never threatens Main Street again.     And as I have said may times, no bank can be too big to fail and no executive too powerful to jail.     
 
But we also have to understand how bad behavior on Wall Street and pressure to meet quarterly earnings expectations contributes to bad behavior across corporate America.  Look at companies like Nabisco, laying off 600 workers in Chicago and moving their production line to Mexico, even though the company has long received tax breaks from the state of Illinois.  They have no problem taking taxpayer dollars with one hand and giving out pink slips with the other.  Look at the growing number of companies moving their headquarters overseas just so they can avoid paying their fair share of taxes here at home.
 
Now, one company doing that right now is called Johnson Controls, which makes car parts.  It actually lobbied for and benefitted from the auto rescue in 2008.  They went to Washington, along with everybody else, and they asked for help.  The Republicans said, “No.  We’re not going to help.”  President Obama and the Democrats said, “Yes.  We will help.  Millions of jobs and families are at stake.”  So everybody here, all of us taxpayers, we helped save Johnson Controls.  And on their website, they talk about their contracts with the federal government.  And they say that keeping the country safe and prosperous is, and I quote, “The patriotic thing to do.”  Well, I hope they do the patriotic thing and stay in America and pay the taxes that they owe for everything we’ve done for them.     
 
Now, look.  I’m not interested in condemning whole categories of businesses or the entire private sector.  Of course not.  But I do want to send a clear message to every board room and executive suite.  If you cheat your employees, you exploit your customers, you pollute our environment or rip off the taxpayers, we will hold you accountable.     This country has given you so much.  If you desert America, you’ll pay a price.     But do the right thing, invest in your workers and your country’s future, and we will stand with you.  And here’s how it should work.
 
To discourage bad behavior, we’ll make companies pay for what are called inversions under the tax code, which means they pretend to sell themselves to a company overseas.  And then they pretend to move their headquarters overseas.  I call it a perversion, but under the tax code it’s called an inversion.  And we will make you pay for that with a new exit tax.  And if a company like Nabisco outsources and ships jobs overseas, we’ll make you give back the tax breaks you received here in America.     If you aren’t going to invest in us, why should taxpayers invest in you?     
 
Let’s take that money and put it to work in the communities that are being left behind.  And to encourage good behavior, let’s enact policies that promote long-term investment, like capital gains taxes that only scale downward for truly multi-year investments but are higher for short-term trading.  Let’s promote in-shoring, innovation, and investment with new tax credits that make it profitable to take the high road rather than the low, like Michigan Ladder Company, which has been operating in Ypsilanti for over a century.  They have stopped buying fiberglass ladders from suppliers in China and started making them here in Michigan.     I know it would make more financial sense, and we’ve got to help other companies discover what they can do as well.
 
Now, I’m not asking corporations to be charitable, although that’s important.  I’m asking corporations to realize that when Americans prosper, they prosper, too.  The idea of corporate patriotism might sound quaint in an era of vast multinationals, but it’s the right thing to do and, I argue, the smart thing to do as well.
 
And that leads directly to the second part of the new bargain.  Companies have to start treating workers like assets to be investing in, not costs to be cut.     Look at what’s happening.  These days, our biggest companies return eight or nine out of every ten dollars they earn directly back to shareholders, either in the form of dividends or stock buybacks.  And they’re also, many of them, sitting on huge cash reserves, often stashed in foreign tax havens.  That’s money they’re not using to train their workers or give them a raise.
 
Even worse, the link between rising productivity and rising pay has snapped.  Productivity goes up still.  Profits go up.  Executive pay goes up.  Stock prices go up.  But workers are being left behind.  And in an economy that’s 70 percent consumption, that’s a big problem.  And it doesn’t have to be that way.  In the 1990s, when we had another Democratic President that I think did a good job  , in the 1990s, when productivity rose, the typical family’s income also rose by $10,000.     Some of you remember that.  And in fact, African American family income went up as a higher percentage because there were so many jobs and people really making progress.  It’s good for everyone when workers’ incomes go up.  America grows when your paycheck grows.     
 
This is like fundamental Economics 101.  More money in the hands of wealthy people just helps wealthy people.  More money in the hands of working people helps everyone, including businesses.  And that’s why we should raise the federal minimum wage   and fight for even higher minimum wages in places where that makes sense.  It’s why we should provide incentives for companies that invest in high quality training for employees, which can lead to higher-paying jobs.  And we should create a tax credit for employers that share profits with their workers.  Auto makers here in Detroit know the value of transparent profit-sharing plans that come on top of good wages.
 
Now, we also have to take on a big reason why paychecks haven’t moved and good jobs are still too scarce, and that is the diminishing power of labor unions.     As you know well, unions helped bring back the auto industry.     No one gave more to Detroit and Michigan during these past few years.  Union members build our cities, keep our lights on, educate our children, and care for our loved ones.  And the relentless assault on labor and the erosion of workers’ bargaining power has not only affected worker pay, it’s also a key reason why overtime rules haven’t been updated in decades and why family-friendly policies like paid leave, earned sick days, and fair scheduling haven’t been widely embraced.     
 
And inequality, inequality has been widened by the decline of unions, too.  We need to stand up to Republicans in Washington and in state houses like here in Michigan who do everything they can   to reduce unions’ power.  And we need to stand up for workers because when unions are strong, families are strong and America is strong.     
 
The third part of the new bargain is government stepping up, too.  Too often Washington only works for the wealthy and the well-connected.  You know it.  I know it.  Everyone knows it.  Like what Republicans in Congress did when they cut off unemployment benefits for people laid off in the Great Recession who were still working, looking for work or when candidates promise trillions of dollars in tax cuts that go mostly to the rich.  This needs to change.  American interests have to come before special interests.  And the American worker and American jobs have to come first.  And one area where we've gotten this balance wrong over the years is trade.
 
The good news is America's exports are up 40 percent under President Obama.     I was proud to work with him on that when I was secretary of state.  Because export jobs tend to pay better than non-export jobs, so there are real benefits there. 
 
But looking back over the past decades as globalization picked up steam, there's no doubt that the benefits of trade have not been as widely enjoyed as many predicted, especially when the Bush Administration failed to enforce our trade laws or stand up to China.  Corporations may have won, but many workers lost.  They lost their jobs, they lost their sense of purpose.  Cheaper goods are no substitute for that.  So America has to do better. 
 
There are people in both parties who think we can somehow shut ourselves off from the world.  But even if the United States never signs another trade deal, globalization isn't going away.  Our challenge is to establish and enforce fair rules so that our workers compete on a level playing field and countries don’t race to the bottom on labor, the environment and so much else. 
 
The way we enforce trade rules right now is completely backward.  We've put the burden of initiating trade cases on workers and unions.  And we don’t take action until after the damage is done, which often means after workers is laid off.  That is ridiculous.  The government should be enforcing the law from the beginning so workers can focus on doing their jobs.   
 
And enforcing trade laws means dealing with one country above all, China.  Now when it comes to trade, China is, by far, the worst rule breaker in the world.  It dumps cheap products in our markets, subsidizes state-owned enterprises who undersell in the global market to hurt our companies, and it discriminates against American companies.  But now that China's economy is slowing down, we can expect even more bad acts from them.  It will look to dump products overseas to make up for lost demand at home.  So we have to stop that right now, and we have to prevent not just China but other countries from manipulating their currencies to gain an unfair price advantage.   
 
So I will do this.  I will expand the ways we respond to currency manipulation to include effective new remedies like duties and tariffs.  Now I know something about dealing with China.  I've sat across a lot of tables from Chinese leaders, discussing and negotiating, even arguing about some of the toughest issues we face:  nuclear weapons, cyberwarfare, human rights, currency, climate change and much more.  So I know firsthand that the relationship between our countries is the most complex and consequential in the world.  And the next president is going to need the judgment and experience to steer that relationship in the right direction on trade and everything else.
 
When it comes to trade deals, here's my standard:  I won't support any agreement unless  it helps create good jobs and higher wages for American workers and protects our national security.     I need to be able to look into the eyes of any hardworking American anywhere in our country and say this deal will help raise your income.  That's why I voted against the big -- last big, multinational trade deal called CAFTA.  It's why I don’t support the Transpacific Partnership trade deal. 
 
But our policies --   -- can't just be about stopping trade abuses and outsourcing; they also have to be about creating jobs and higher wages here at home.  And I agree with my esteemed opponent, Senator Sanders.  We need major new investments in infrastructure, and I put forth a $275 billion plan that would put millions of Americans to work modernizing our roads and bridges and railways and ports, finish the job of connecting all of our homes to high-speed internet.   
 
And we will also rebuild our crumbling water systems in Flint and around the country.     I also want to create a national infrastructure bank to put private capital to work alongside taxpayer dollars.  We have so much work to be done in this country, we need everybody contributing. 
 
And I also have a vision for a clean energy future.  The longer we wait to deal with climate change, the more expensive it gets.     But if we start today, we can create good paying jobs that can’t be outsourced.  We can become the clean energy superpower of the 21st century.  And we can protect our kids’ health and futures in the bargain.  So far, so good, but that’s not enough.  We need to invest in dynamic sources of growth, like small businesses, manufacturing, and technology.  And I’m the only candidate on either side in this race who has actually put forward a plan to support entrepreneurs and remove the barriers that stand in their way.     
 
You see the power of small businesses right here in Michigan, with companies like Detroit Bikes and McClure’s Pickles.  They create jobs; they make the city a more dynamic, attractive place.  But the sad truth is more dreams die in the parking lots of banks than anywhere else in America.  People come with a good idea, and they get turned away.  So we have to increase access to startup capital, give more help to community banks, so more entrepreneurs can get their dreams off the ground and compete for your business. 
 
And one important tool to support both small and big business is the Export-Import Bank, which helps businesses reach new markets and compete for new customers.  Now, unfortunately, Republicans in Congress, along with Senator Sanders, have tried to kill it repeatedly.  He also stood with Republicans against another important job-creating tool, the New Market Tax Credit, which has helped steer investments into neglected communities.  Now that doesn’t make sense to me.  We should never let ideology get in the way of helping Americans find the good jobs they need and deserve.    
 
So I think your next president has to offer a serious proposal to jumpstart manufacturing.  With the right policies and investments, we can ensure America continues to have the world’s most competitive auto and auto parts industries.  Now this is not a new fight for me.  In the Senate, where I represented New York, I also represented some great manufacturing towns like Rochester and Buffalo.  I worked closely with likeminded senators, like Debbie Stabenow.  We reached across the aisle to start the bipartisan Manufacturing Caucus.  This is a priority for me, to help our manufacturers use all the latest science to forge stronger steel and weave tougher fabrics and make thinner, stronger glass, like they do at Corning Glass in upstate New York.
 
Now I remember how hard I had to work to protect jobs in Corning against China.  We had to battle the Chinese over intellectual property and fair competition.  We had to battle the Bush administration to actually go to bat for a blue chip American company.  But it was worth it, because good American jobs were at stake.  So companies like Corning show how technology can transform our economy for the better.  That creates entirely new industries, and it’s a powerful force for prosperity and improved quality of life.
 
The next 20 years are poised to be even more transformative than the last.  I think it’s exciting, and you can see that all over Michigan, in Ann Arbor and other places.  But you can’t have a candid conversation about the jobs of the future without also talking about the challenges posed by technology automation and mechanization.  We’ve got to harness technology as a force for good for all of us. 
 
And as we lay the foundation for a brighter future, we have to deal with the legacy of the past.  There are still too many economic barriers that disproportionately hold back communities of color – redlining in housing, segregation in schools, a huge opportunity gap.  We need a comprehensive commitment to invest in all communities, anywhere they have, that have too long been neglected.     
 
And let’s work to replace the school-to-prison pipeline with a cradle-to-college pipeline.      And let’s help the millions of people coming home from prison every year find new jobs, not closed doors.     I want to work across our country, not only in urban communities, but in coal country, in Indian country.  I want to do everything I can to help immigrants who are forced to live in the shadows.
 
But here’s the bottom line – creating good paying jobs has got to be a top priority.  We’ve got to build on the progress we’ve made under President Obama, over 70 straight months of private sector job creation, and as we learned this morning, more than 240,000 jobs just last month.     But you know what?  I’m not taking that for granted.  We’ve got to make sure we have much more in the pipeline, so that every American has a chance to get ahead and stay ahead. 
 
And don’t let anyone tell you we can’t do this.  As I said, in the ’90s, we made incomes rise for everyone.  We’ve seen the auto industry pull together and recover from the brink of collapse to record sales.  We’ve done this before.  And I’ll tell you, when I hear people running for president who spend all their time badmouthing America, it really upsets me.     You know what?  We’ve got work to do.  Instead of complaining, let’s join hands.  Let’s lift ourselves up.  Let’s get going together.  Let’s make a difference.     
 
Let’s build tomorrow.  Let’s make sure every American has the same chance to live up to his or her God-given potential.  Thank you all so much.” 
 
 
###
 
For Immediate Release, March 4, 2016

December 9, 2016

In Remarks, Clinton Outlines Plan To Crack Down On Corporations Abusing Tax Loopholes

Continuing her month-long focus on the economy, Hillary Clinton today announced tough new reforms to crack down on companies that exploit loopholes by moving their profits overseas to lower their tax bills - and said she would seek to use regulatory authority if Congress won't act. 
 
This announcement, made during a town hall meeting in Waterloo, Iowa, comes just weeks after Pfizer announced plans to merge with a foreign-based company mainly to avoid paying its fair share of U.S. corporate taxes. Clinton remains committed to using the proceeds from closing these loopholes to provide incentives to bring jobs back to America and support manufacturing, research and small businesses.
 
This push continues her month-long focus on job creation and reinvestment in the U.S. that raises incomes for families – following announcements of her $275 billion plan to invest in U.S. infrastructure last week and her comprehensive plan to win the global competition for advanced manufacturing jobs yesterday.
 
Please see below for a full transcript of the remarks:
 
“Thank you so much. Boy! I've got to tell you I am thrilled to be back here and I am delighted to have been introduced by [inaudible]. She is just one of the many extraordinary people who are helping me organize for the caucus on February 1st. So I am grateful to her and I am grateful to all of you.
 
“We've got some precinct captains and leaders here who are part of my campaign team and I thank each and every one of you. Now I want to say just a few words and then I want to answer your questions, because that's the most important part of what we're doing here today.
 
“But it was exciting for me — and I wanted to tell you, I went to Cedar Valley TechWorks today. Wow, that was impressive and it was exciting to see what is happening right here in this area because of the great partnership between the University of Northern Iowa and Hawkeye Community College.
 
“And I met young people, students, some of them seniors, a couple of them freshmen, everything in between who are learning the skills that will not only get them good jobs but will help to make this part of Iowa an advanced manufacturing center for the country and the world.
 
“And I can't tell you how important that is. I went with Senator Bill Dotzler. Bill is, I think, still here. Thank you Bill and also with Representative Bob Kressig. They were both great tour guides for me.
 
“And it gave me the chance to ask a lot of questions and get to what I want to do to make it possible not only for TechWorks to be an even bigger success but how we do more of that in Iowa and across America.
 
“I want to start though with just a few remarks about the recent event in California. We're all working to make sense if there is such a thing to be made out of this terrorist attack. And I know that our local law enforcement, the FBI, our intelligence community, are working overtime as hard as they can to piece together what happened, what we can do to prevent it in the future.
 
“I have been laying out my plans for how we defeat ISIS and how we protect ourselves from homegrown terrorist attacks and I will keep talking about that. I will answer your questions because this election is not only about choosing a President, it is about choosing a commander-in-chief and we have to be really focused on what we need to do to show leadership and to act in accordance with our values.
 
“This convention center, this conference center, is named, as you all know here in Waterloo for the five Sullivan brothers. It's hard to imagine a greater sacrifice by any family, all five of them going down on the USS Juneau, the same attack after they had said they all wanted to serve together.
 
“When they joined the Navy, that's what they requested. So every time any of you drive by here or walk in here, you just have to be reminded of the courage and the sacrifice of generations of Americans before us, who acted with resolve, not fear. It is ok to be afraid. There is no reason not to be afraid. When bad things happen, it does cause anxiety and fear. But then you pull yourself together, and especially if you want to be a leader of our country, and you say, "Ok, what are we going to do about it?
 
“You say, "Ok, what are we going to do about it? How are we going to be prepared? What is your plan?" But instead of showing leadership, some of the candidates in this presidential campaign are resorting to really ugly, hateful rhetoric.
 
“Donald Trump — you know he does traffic in prejudice and paranoia. It's not only shameful, it's dangerous. So when he says he wants to stop all Muslims from entering the United States, that runs counter to what I and others who have actually been in the Situation Room, making hard choices, know we have to do.
 
“We have to enlist help from American Muslims, Muslims around the world in defeating the radical jihadists and the hateful ideology that they represent. Instead Donald Trump is supplying them with new propaganda. He is playing right into their hands. Now some of the other Republican candidates have finally said that these latest comments have gone too far, but the truth is a lot of them have said some pretty extreme things too.
 
“Their language may be more veiled, less dramatic but their ideas aren't so different. And they are also undermining our ability to pull the world together against these terrorists. This a fight we have to win and I intend to do everything I can because it is a fight against a brutal enemy who twists a religion, Islam, to justify mass murder.
 
“The vast majority of Muslims, here and abroad, are on our side in this fight and remind us all the time that they are the primary victims of the attacks and the brutality coming from these terrorist organizations. A lot of them are working to try to make common cause with us to prevent radicalization.
 
“So now is the time for all of us. I don't care what party we are. It's time for all of us to be united. That's what we're supposed to do as Americans.
 
“Come together, defend ourselves, take on this struggle. So I will continue to speak out and I will continue to lay out my plans. I've laid about the most specific plans about how we take them on and defeat them — from the air, on the ground and in cyberspace. And I will keep advocating for what I think are strong, smart strategies.
 
“But I'm also here today to talk about something else we must do and that is: continue to rebuild our economy to create more good-paying jobs with rising incomes for hardworking Americans. I know that our Republican friends want us to forget about the Great Recession, don't they?
 
“Well I'm not going to let them forget it. It is a fact; the economy does better when we have a Democrat in the White House.
 
“That is just a fact.
 
“Unemployment is lower, incomes are higher and you are four times as likely to have a recession when there is a Republican in the White House. Now I'm not asking people to go back to ancient history; just go back the last 35 years. We've had five presidents —three Republicans and two Democrats.
 
“Now I know both of those Democrats. And I know both of them inherited economic problems from their Republican predecessors. I remember shortly after the '92 election, my husband saying to me "It is so much worse than they told us."
 
“And it was, we were heading into a recession. Republicans had quadrupled the national debt of our country in the prior 12 years, under their stewardship. So Bill got to work. At the end of eight years, we had 23 million new jobs, incomes went up for everybody — the top, the middle, working folks and more people were lifted out of poverty than at any time in recent American history.
 
“But you know, I will give the Republicans this: they are consistent. Consistently wrong, but consistent. So back they came with trickle-down economics — slash taxes on the wealthy, get out of the way of corporations, don't pay attention to what's happening in the financial markets or the mortgage markets. And you know what happened.
 
“Shortly after the '08 election, President-elect Obama called me, asked me to come see him in Chicago. I didn't know why. It turned out he wanted me to be Secretary of State, but before we got to that, it was just he and I and we were talking. And he looks at me and says, "It is so much worse that they told us."
 
“I said, “President Elect, I’ve heard that before!” And you know what? It was really bad – and I want you to remember this we were losing 800,000 jobs a month, nine million Americans lost their jobs, five million homes were lost. $13 trillion in family wealth disappeared.
 
“Now, I don’t think President Obama gets the credit he deserves for making sure we didn’t fall into a Great Depression, and began working with our businesses and our families to pull us out. So we’re standing but we’re not yet running the way America should.
 
“I want to build on what works — I have this old-fashioned idea that we should stop doing what doesn’t work and start doing what does work. Now, I’m not running for my husbands third term or President Obama’s third term. I’m running for my first term but I’m going to do what works to get this economy going.
 
“Now, I’ve traveled across Iowa and I’ve had the great privilege of really talking and listening with folks. I started off with small groups because I wanted to hear what was on people’s minds. So I’ve heard about the financial struggles, the economic challenges, the cost of everything going up, the unfairness that the people at the top are doing well again and a lot of folks still haven’t had a raise.
 
“And there is something fundamentally wrong when the top 25 hedge fund managers in America make more money than all the kindergarten teachers in America combined.
 
“There’s just something really wrong about this. So my goal is to make the economy work for everybody — the struggling, striving, the successful. I want us to get back to where we were before the Republicans came back into office and destroyed what my husband left behind and then handed the biggest mess they could imagine to President Obama.
 
“Now these Republicans if you hear them, they are saying the same thing. What's their economic agenda? Cut taxes on the super wealthy, get out of the way of corporations, take off the regulations which we finally got put on them after they wrecked the economy. They are consistent — consistently wrong, but consistent. And I love it when they criticize the president. They say things like, “This is the slowest recovery in American history." You've heard that right?
 
“You listen to the debates or you watch them and they say, "A terrible, slow recovery." Honest to goodness, that takes a lot of nerve.
 
“We would not had needed to recover if they hadn't drive us into the big ditch in the first place! So I get pretty worked up about this, but let me tell you what I want to do because I think — number one, more good-paying jobs, number two, raises for Americans.
 
“Now I announced earlier this month a five-year, $275 billion plan to invest in our infrastructure on top of what the Congress finally got around to passing. It took years for them to pass what used to be just ordinary course of business. When I was in the Senate, we had differences, but we worked them out in order to get things done so we could build roads and repair bridges and tunnels and airports and ports and rail systems.
 
“Everything that is important to get the economy really moving to be competitive. So I want us to do more. We are woefully behind in what we need to do to really have a 21st century transportation system. We need to finally get broadband Internet connectivity that is high speed to every part of America, because that will improve jobs and education and businesses.
 
“Now this week I've put forth another critical piece of my jobs plan. And that is supporting American manufacturing, which is why I was thrilled to go to TechWorks. Reviving manufacturing, especially advanced manufacturing, is essential to creating the good jobs of the future.
 
“Now I know there are people in our country who basically say we can't do it. They're really pessimistic about manufacturing. I just fundamentally disagree. And if they would go look at what's going on at TechWorks, they would also see the light. There is so much America can do.
 
“When I went to Cedar Valley TechWorks, I saw the biggest 3-D printing machine in all of North America. And I saw students and faculty teaching them how to use this new machine. And I heard about the plans to be able to work with businesses, even rent time, help design what is needed to get manufacturing really moving into the 21st century. It's amazing. I want more Americans to have the chance to work with that kind of technology.
 
“I want us to lead the world in advanced manufacturing. I asked where that big machine was made. Germany, they said. I said, "So what are we going to do about that?"
 
“I admire the Germans; they have stayed on the forefront of advanced manufacturing. And I was really happy when the answer from the faculty member came back: "We're working with some folks in Ohio, we're going to see if we can't figure out how to produce this machine in America.
 
“That's the kind of thinking that I really want as President to promote more of. We've got to look again into the future. We've got to be confident about what we can do. And I was so pleased that Bill and Bob told me how hard they have fought to make that possible, to get the state legislature, no easy task, to go along with buying that kind of machinery.
 
“But if we don't invest in the future, we won't be able to shape the future. And that's what I want to do and that's why my plan includes what's called a New Manufacturing Renaissance Tax Credit. It's aimed at driving more investment to communities that have lost manufacturing jobs.
 
“To stop the downward spirals. You know it here in Iowa. I see it all over our country. A factory cuts back or even leaves, it's devastating to the community and we need to get in ahead of time. And we need to have a kind of SWAT team response, to be able to help communities invest in something new. And we need to have the Federal government working with the state, and local government, the private sector, great colleges like Hawkeye and UNI. Second, we have to do more to help prepare American workers to compete for these advanced manufacturing jobs. That's what I saw today. I wish everybody had been with me to meet these young people. They were so impressive. They are all from around here. They are all studying to try to become a real master of advanced manufacturing, using these 3-D printing machines. I am proposing more training programs and apprenticeships, including a $1500 tax credit for every apprentice a business hires. Because I want businesses to be working hand in hand with organized labor to help train the workforce of the future.
 
“Now you can ask and you should: how do we pay for this? Well we pay for the investments in our manufacturing sector here at home by closing those loopholes that make it easy for the wealthy corporations to avoid paying their fair share of taxes.
 
“Now I am passionate about this, because the maneuvers that powerful corporations are using to game the system and leave everybody else holding the bag are just offensive to me. Let me just mention one: you may have heard of something called an "inversion." This is a technical term for a trick.
 
“An American company merges with a smaller, foreign company so it can move overseas on paper and then avoid paying its fair share of taxes here in the United States. And then once they're overseas, they can exploit even more loopholes like moving profits to a country with even lower tax rates. That's a trick called "earnings stripping."
 
“Now corporations that use tax games like these end up paying a lot less to the United States Treasury. Now you may have seen in the news about the proposed merger of Pfizer, a huge American drug company, with a much smaller Irish drug company. That's an example of an inversion.
 
“A big company goes looking for a small company in a place where the taxes are lower and then they claim that they are moving the important assets of the company there. Now all told, inversions by Pfizer and the companies plus related loopholes, will cost American taxpayers more than $80 billion over the next 10 years. That's money we should be investing right here and it's not right.
 
“Think about how much we have spent over many years, we taxpayers, helping create the conditions that let corporations succeed here, like Pfizer and other drug companies. They have created new drugs with help from federally funded drug research. They've also counted on the FDA to give them the go-ahead.
 
“Think about all these companies that rely on our infrastructure, our legal system, our police, our Fire Departments, our schools, our health care system every single day. Now some do the right thing and pay their fair share of taxes, but others are doing everything they can to avoid them.
 
“Fundamentally, this is not only about fairness; this is about patriotism. If you become successful in America — if you have the chance to start a business because of the freedom that young men like the five Sullivan brothers gave their lives to preserve, if you have benefited from American tax dollars and have flourished because of all the things that make America great, you should pay what you owe just like everybody else.
 
“So here's what I am proposing: first, Congress should act to stop these inversions like Pfizer's. Second, I'm calling on Congress to impose something called an exit tax on the untaxed earnings of corporations that they stash overseas. I'm going to raise the cost to these corporations that try to get out of paying their fair share.
 
“And third, I'm announcing today that as President, I would close loopholes like what's called "earnings stripping" that corporations are exploiting. And if Congress won't act, then I will ask the Treasury Department when I'm there to use its regulatory authority, if that's what it takes.
 
“Here's the bottom line: corporations don't need a tax break; you do. And I'm the only candidate in this campaign who has said, "I want to raise your incomes, not your taxes." And as I lay out more proposals, including fighting against unfair trade practices and currency manipulation, we will look for ways how we can compete and win in the global economy.
 
“I'm excited about what we can do together, but I need your help. I'm asking you to join us and you can do it right now by texting "join," J-O-I-N, to 47246. I'm asking you to talk to your friends, your neighbors, your family if you are together over the holidays. Make sure everyone you know in Iowa is ready to caucus on February 1st.
 
“How many of you have ever caucused before? Okay, thank you for that and those of you who haven't, come [inaudible] this historic tradition that Iowa has pioneered. Together, we can win Iowa and then, once we do that, we'll turn around and start working to win in November against whoever the Republicans nominate as their candidate and to build the kind of future that I saw at TechWorks today. Thank you all very much!”
 
 
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For Immediate Release, December 9, 2015

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Clinton Vows to End Inversions, and Close Corporate Loopholes through Executive Action
 
Just weeks after Pfizer announced plans to merge with a foreign-based company mainly to avoid paying its fair share of U.S. corporate taxes, Hillary Clinton is proposing reforms to crack down on companies that exploit tax loopholes and seek to lower their tax bill by moving abroad on paper – and pledging to pursue a key element of her plan through execution action if necessary.
 
“The maneuvers powerful corporations are using to game the system and leave everyday taxpayers holding the bag are just offensive,” Clinton said at a town hall today in Waterloo, Iowa. “All told, inversions by Pfizer and other companies, plus related loopholes, will cost American taxpayers more than $80 billion in revenue over the next 10 years. That’s money we should be investing here at home. This is not only about fairness; this is about patriotism. I want to raise the cost to corporations that try to get out of paying their fair share.”
                              
A central element of Clinton’s proposal is a commitment to crack down on “earnings stripping” – a maneuver through which multinational corporations game the tax system to shift profits overseas to countries with lower tax rates while maximizing high deductions in the U.S. This would close a loophole that costs taxpayers as much as $60 billion over 10 years. 
 
Republicans in Congress should stop standing in the way of action, and it would be better for Congress to itself close this loophole.  But Clinton is vowing that, if Congress has not acted to end this practice, she would ask Treasury to restrict “earnings stripping.”
 
This practice, which could be a benefit of the Pfizer-Allergan merger, costs our nation needed revenues and disadvantages domestic American businesses and individuals who cannot take advantage of this loophole. Clinton has decried the Pfizer deal, saying it will “leave U.S. taxpayers holding the bag.”
 
In addition to cracking down on “earnings stripping,” Clinton’s plan would stop inversions and related transactions by requiring that, for any merger that a U.S. firm pursues in order to expatriate, the shareholders of their foreign merger partner must control a 50 percent stake of the combined company. Current law only requires a 20 percent threshold. Clinton would also impose an “exit tax” on the untaxed overseas earnings of corporations that give up their U.S. residence, which would capture companies that attempt to game the 50 percent threshold through tax planning and ensure they pay their fair share on untaxed overseas earnings.
                           
Clinton believes we need comprehensive business tax reform, but we cannot wait for that broader conversation to prevent inversions. Clinton remains committed to using the proceeds from closing these loopholes to provide incentives to bring jobs back to America and support manufacturing, research and small businesses.
 
This push continues her month-long focus on job creation and reinvestment in the U.S. that raises incomes for families – following announcements of her $275 billion plan to invest in U.S. infrastructure and her comprehensive plan to win the global competition for advanced manufacturing jobs.
 
A fact sheet on Clinton’s proposals to end inversions and crack down on corporate tax avoidance is available here.