Pence: ‘Americans Are Rising to the Challenge — But American Business Is Also Rising to the Challenge’

Monday, during an appearance on Fox News, Vice President Mike Pence applauded how the country was coming together, including mentioning the contributions from the business community, to take on coronavirus as it continues to spread and impair the country.

He cited the extraordinary action of President Donald Trump invoking the Defense Production Act, but also noted efforts from 3M, Facebook and Anheuser-Busch.

“You know, the president — he invoked the Defense Production Act, which gives the president the authority to mandate production during times of national crisis in the defense of the nation,” he said. “In fact, today, when the president signed the executive order, regarding — giving the Justice Department authority to thoroughly prosecute people engaged in price-gouging and hoarding, that came from the Defense Production Act. But we have been asked several times about whether the president will invoke this. Will he mandate businesses?” 

“But the truth is — and this just makes me smile and makes me proud as an American — every business we have asked to step up and do their part has said yes,” Pence continued. “No one has said no yet. I mean, we have seen, again, 3M today delivered 500,000 respirator masks to New York and Seattle. Facebook just donated from their reserve more than three-quarters-of-a-million masks to health care workers. Anheuser-Busch is switching some of their manufacturing and distributing networks to produce large amounts of hand sanitizer.”

The vice president highlighted how the cooperation from the business community would contribute to overcoming the coronavirus threat.

“I mean, Americans are rising to the challenge,” Pence said. “They’re embracing the 15 days to slow the spread. They know that it’s about protecting the most vulnerable among us. But American business is also rising to the challenge. And, Sean, I can just tell all of your listeners all across America, we can do this. And it’s going to take all of us. As the president has said many times, we’re all in this together.”

“But I’m absolutely convinced, with the cooperation of the American people, with the compassion and care of our health care workers, with the — with the full engagement of American free enterprise, the partnership that — with our states, all of our great federal leaders, and the prayers of millions of Americans, we can slow the spread, we can protect our most vulnerable, and we can heal our land,” he added.

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