It is great to be here back in a place and i want to thank Wayne Jefferson here for having us everybody knew who hicks was he was deeply involved in social justice issues talk politics in the state for a long time and was very much engaged back in the days when doctor king was assassinated in the city was in flames. He was a good friend. I used to work on the east side and i got to know hicks very well because he did a lot of work over there as well and folks here at this center are doing gods work this Community Center gives people hope and a place to belong i saw hope as a senator when i watch my son become attorney general he would attend mass at sacred heart just up the street and then walk with his notebook in hand sit around for the day to see if he could find ways to help. And on the east side as a teenage lifeguard my career as a public defender started. And he is named after my buddy. We went way back. We just walked around wilmington and everybody has a story about hicks and how he cared and was there for you and how to build a wonderful family including twin sons who gave back so much to this community and continue to do. They served in the United States army, now serving jointly as the poet laureates in the state of delaware. And as a state representative hicks and his family and everyone else at the center embodies the defining story of america. For generations black and brown and native american and immigrants have all pushed out and not fully included from the democracy and economy and by pure cure courage and great they never gave up his they pursued the full promise of america. That is the story of the people of this community and country. Thats i want to talk about my economic agenda. Bold plan to help build a stronger and more just and sustainable economy for everybody. Everybody this time included. As a story of two Civil Rights Era we lost last week. One who shows the way forward reach their separate ways. The reverend who faced drownings and beatings and his comment was you cannot turn your back on the idea of justice. And congressman john lewis who crossed the Edmund Pettis bridge one last time on sunday who once said freedom is not a state its an act i went across the bridge twice once with him and i thought i knew a lot about it but until you walk that bridge and some of you have done it, and you get to the crest of the bridge the first time you can see down the other side dont want to him a couple years ago i thought in gods name does it take in terms of fortitude and courage to walk down there to see them with clubs and on horses waiting at the bottom of the bridge with no way back. I spoke to john just before he dad on his deathbed. He wanted to talk and instead of my concerns for him he asked about me and us and ask that we stay focused for the work left undone to heal this nation and remain undaunted by the Public Health crisis and economic crisis to take the blinders off to show the systemic racism for what it is that plagues this nation. People have seen now and they allowed them to shelter in place all those folks risking their lives stacking shelves in supermarkets. All of those folks. For black and brown. One thing the senate and the president can do right away is pass the bill to restore the Voting Rights act. Just yesterday it was renamed in the congress in memory of john lewis. We heard since he passed to back that with action and protect that right to vote he was willing to die for. I have been saying all along is one of the first things i will do as president elect. We cannot let the fundamental right to vote be denied especially in the middle of this pandemic as it rages on. Nearly 150,000 dead from covid19 and counting. More than 4 million americans have tested positive and counting. Black and latinos are three times as likely to be affected and twice as likely to die from the virus. More than 30 million and counting are collecting unemployment checks black unemployment is at 50 percent latino with 14. 540 percent of black owned businesses 401 450,000 have reported they have to shut down everything is worsened by the crisis by the president ial leadership. To change the tone that doesnt change the facts of the last four years. Donald trump faces a real test but he has failed at the threshold to be president the duty to care for the entire country not just reelection prospects. He shows he cannot beat the pandemic and keep you safe. He cannot turn the economy around and get back to work and now not surprisingly stoking the flames of division and racism in this country. There is no place for violence. Peaceful protesters should be protected and local Law Enforcement can do that. When obama and i were pop the office we protected property and then to turn that into a private militia but that would not help trumps political interest. To Stove Division in chaos its not good for the country. But donald trump does not care. The campaign is failing and hes looking for a political lifeline. This isnt about law and order but a strategy to revive the feeling campaign. To add that fuel to the fire is the last thing that we need. But this election is not just about going against donald trump and understanding people struggles. And building a future worthy of their courage and ambition to overcome. Last month i stopped add a church and i talk to a group of state and local leaders who share their pain and anger and frustration at the state of affairs in our Healthcare System in politics and economy. Is just a sense that the deck is stacked against the community. The common theme is how do we break the cycle . In good time communities of color still rise in bad times they are hit first and hardest in recovery takes the longest to bounce back. This is about justice. I propose Police Reform agenda and i am committed to working with congress to see it through as president. Its also about jobs, good paying jobs, Financial StabilityBuilding Wealth for families of color and passing it down to their kids its about Economic Growth for our country and outperforming the rest of the world to stay ahead. Its also about dignity for working people in the middle class. Many of you heard me say before my dad had an expression that said your job is about a lot more than your paycheck. Richard dignity and respect and your place in the community looking your kid in the eye to say will be okay and mean it. 50 percent of people in america dont think it will be okay they will never have the standard of living that they had. Over the last few weeks i made my build back better plan based on necessities we cant just build back to what it was before but build back better. We need to make bold practical investments to recover from the economic mess we are in and rebuild the future our country deserves. Today i am here to explain how the build back better plan deals with systemic racism and Racial Equity in the economy. So far the build back better plan has three parts. First, investing in American Manufacturing and technology so the future is including all americans not just the seven cities of the vast majority. With my plan we will mobilize the biggest investment since world war ii. Creating millions of good paying union jobs and include the historic investment and procurement which is goods and services. Under my proposal we would make sure they are American Made an American SteelBuilding Technology and so on but for so long federal contracting meant to many black and brown entrepreneurs and businesses but my plan make sure that contractors and subcontractors get a fair shot we will triple those eggs fixed the existing bills from 5 percent to a minimum of 15 percent by 2025 in create jobs and grow. We can do that. The second plank addresses our infrastructure and Climate Change with jobs. Into many underserved communities of color street lights are out, sidewalks are cracked School Buildings are outdated and unsafe. There is nowhere you can buy fresh food for miles away. And following them to their adult life and abandoned home to diminish the quality of life in the neighborhoods but notwithstanding the systematic barriers to get the energy and pride and achievement of communities of color. Just imagine if we could truly unleash the full potential my build back better plan make sure families in these communities are the ones who benefit from hundreds of billions of dollars of federal investment taxpayer dollars have to be invested by the administration to purchase things. To fill those cracks in the sidewalk. For you can drink clean water and breathe clean air and shop add a new one nearby grocery store. We cannot rebuild our economy and me this Climate Crisis unless we create opportunities for people its about jobs and also about dignity and pride. The third plank is the caregivers who take care of loved ones and kids we truly want to reward the work in this country to ease the financial burden of care. To elevate the compassion on the compassion of caregiver workers families are squeezed emotionally and financially. Trying to raise their kids my guess is some of you have been through that of a parent who cannot take care of themselves. Or a young child from the age of five tries to figure out how to pay for it i had a good salary i was making 42000 a year. Without my family i cannot have done it. They need help that they cannot afford it. And the professional caregivers out there and Home Health Workers were often women of color and immigrants that are too often underpaid and undervalued. These are the things we can do right now to ease the burden. My plan would clear the waiting list of 800,000 people who are eligible for home and Community Care for a loved one through medicaid who signed up and are waiting. 800,000. My plan would make sure every three and four yearold child has access to free highquality preschool my students have at the center. Like title i schools and low income families wont spend more than 7 percent of their income on childcare for children under the age of five. The most hardpressed working families dont have to spend a dime because it would be free. We support the caregivers overwhelmingly are women of color. The plan to help those without College Degrees gain new skills in good paying Industries Like health care to provide a pathway. And then to have access to become an emt or nurse or physicians assistant. We wont just put millions of americans with Early Childhood education jobs but for yet millions more to rejoin the paid workforce. At least 2 million additional jobs will be created and more Economic Growth for the nation. And the economy as a whole will grow. We can do this. Today im laying out a fourth plan of my build back better plan to advance Racial Equity across the american economy. Not just the other pillar of build back better but to start, we create a new Small BusinessOpportunity Fund. That expands on the obama Biden Initiative generating 5 billion in private equity for every one dollar of Public Investment of a Small Business particularly in hardpressed areas. We will take 30 billion of make america investment announced earlier this year to put it into this fund to allow that federal support the most programs for financing for minority business owners. And to support Community Development thanks and have a proven record to invest in minority and Small Businesses. And then to leverage 150 billion of new financing. So the Small BusinessOpportunity Fund supports an investment and then to commercialize new technology. That helps the manufacturer get started and then the promise to that business that helps manufacturers scale and grow. And so we make sure those are the best ideas are not denied the Venture Capital because of race or zip code. Here is why it matters. We are in the midst of one of the greatest threats to Small Businesses our country has ever seen. What is donald trump doing about it . He is giving big banks the green light to loan millions of dollars covered by the federal government and make 1 million in fees by saving the most wellconnected clients while shutting the door on smaller black and brown businesses about these connections. You remember when i first laid out what i thought needed to be done in the First Recovery plan put forward by congress. I said the president should use the authority he has of the defense production act to force big banks to have to lend to Small Businesses. We have bailed them out. What do they do . Do you have a credit card with us heavy establish credit with us . A bank account . The list goes on. And they are denied. The result . Billions of dollars for Small Businesses benefit once you have lawyers and accountants with better connected physicist jump ahead of the line and big banks accommodated. Black and brown and Small Businesses got shut out in fact just 12 percent of black and brown businesses surveyed got the aid they asked for. Half say they will have to close up shop and they are a major source of employment in america. Our economy cannot afford for them to close. Under my plan, 50 percent 50 or fewer employers right now were talking 500. Do you think most people think that the Neighborhood Stores have 500 employees as a Small Business . So many small towns around america. To see them shuttered these minorityowned businesses with the wellconnected businesses jump to the head of the line. Removing the barriers for black and brown entrepreneurs we have to close that gap of the nation. And black and brown homeownership is another. There are a number where 75 percent of White American only 25 percent of black and brown citizens own their homes. But even in the middle those that exist in the White Community are valued significantly less. And to see the wealth accumulate much more slowly. Many different families if they accumulate any ability to borrow or generate wealth from their home. Thats how we send our kids to school to borrow against that. When the house is an asset to build equity the homeownership disparity denies people opportunities. My housing plan is a major contributor. [inaudible] [inaudible] but right now if you have a criminal record. [inaudible] and the more and more cost to the economy when people with certain nonviolent criminal records cannot fully compute to their full talents and capacity. It with an nonviolent record. And then to be spread across Different Court houses. And the Automated System and if the state chooses to do that. And then to allow them to know how to organize. And as a real equity. And then with the Federal Reserve focus on equity. And the fed has a profound impact on our economy. And the existing mandate promotes maximum employment and stable prices. Under my plan i believe the fed should add to that responsibility to have persistent racial gaps in jobs and wages of greater diversity including diverse nominees. And the regional federal banks. And when the economy is helping everybody Racial Equity is not just an aspiration but a theory. All of those doing extraordinary things we met a couple in here somewhere. Where are you see that young man right there and his lovely wife. Mom and dad never went to college someone gave him an old laptop computer. He took it apart and put it back together and changed his life at 17 he was certified to become an it systems specialist. He went to college studied abroad and came back home and then starting a business getting computers to folks. With seven employees and his goal is to create a workforce some of the people he helped with eighthgrade education never used a computer before five weeks later they know how. So to scale up the business to invest in the community that is heart and get and never gives up and thats who we are that is what this election is all about. We are american. We dont settle. We aspire and we succeed im happy to take your questions. Jessica . Mr. Vice president i want to talk about your vp pick narrowing in on the time frame if youll make your announcement are you still targeting early august . How many finalists do you have an can you meet with them in person because of covid . And trying to figure out a trick you all to meet them in person. And you have a choice promise to let you know when i do. Can you meet with them facetoface . We will see. You will have to wear a mask. Will you get tested if you have to do that . Im not prepared to say much more than that. Thank you. Im supposed to call on people. Okay. This pandemic is taking a terrible toll on american lives in the economy but are there specific dates right now and if so which state . I will not comment on every state but when the rate is more than one one it should be rolling back. Look, from the beginning, in my view the president gave us a false choice. We have to get back to work and deal with covid you cannot get this country going again unless you get covid under control. He has been late in the game we have heard it 100 times columbia is