Vice President Pence comes to Franklin County to promote trade agreement

Vice President Mike Pence was in Franklin County Thursday to speak to workers at Manitowoc Cranes in Antrim Township.

The event, co-hosted by the Association of Equipment Manufacturers, included remarks from Manitowoc's President and CEO Barry Pennypacker, who had dinner with Pence a few months prior, inviting him to the facility. Pence and his wife, Karen, flew into Hagerstown (Md.) Regional Airport earlier in the morning, where he greeted a crowd of dozens, even shaking hands and taking photos with many of them.

U.S. Rep. John Joyce, of Pennsylvania’s 13th Congressional District, also expressed his support during the event of the president and vice president's United States–Mexico–Canada Trade Agreement (USMCA) - the main reason for Pence's visit. 

"It's a great day for Manotowoc, a great day for Pennsylvania and another great day for America," Joyce said.

The USMCA was the main topic of both the Acting Secretary of Labor, Patrick Pizzella and Pence's speeches to the crowd of nearly 1,000 workers - all clad in red Manitowoc T-shirts and blue hats embroidered with the words "I Make America."

"What matters more are the workers behind the numbers," Pizzella said. "We stand for the dignity of a hard day's work."

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Richie Gruber, a welder for Manitowoc, told Public Opinion he's been looking forward to the vice president's visit. The Manitowoc employees found out last week about the scheduled visit.

"I think it's a good thing," he said. "I've been looking forward to hearing him talk about the United States–Mexico–Canada Trade Agreement, talk about manufacturing and where that opportunity lies in this county and job security." 

Bob Hile, vice president of finance, learned about the visit a few weeks earlier as a member of the senior staff.

"The team's been preparing for the better part of a week to host the event and it's been very well done so far," Hile told Public Opinion. "The plant looks great and the equipment looks great."

Hile was also interested in what Pence had to say about the trade agreement.

"It's very important for us so we can compete on a level playing field with the products we build," he said. "We want to better understand and show him what we are capable of doing here."

As Pence took the stage, workers stood from their seats to take pictures with their phones. 

"It's a great to be here at the country's only American owned and American produced crane company," Pence said.

Pence pleaded with the workers in the crowd to spread the word and support for the USMCA. 

The agreement, brought before Congress by President Donald Trump, was signed last November by Trump, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and Mexico’s then-President Enrique Peña Nieto, but has not ratified yet by the United States.

The language of the agreement describes the goal as "to modernize the 24-year-old NAFTA into a 21st century agreement."

Pence has been adamant on backing this agreement and said in his speech it needs to be passed this year.

The deal is said to raise U.S. real GDP by $68.2 billion (0.35 percent) and U.S. employment by 176,000 jobs, according to a report compiled by the United States International Trade Commission. 

Progress is moving forward as House Democrats continue to meet with trade representatives, according to the Associated Press, but democrats want the agreement to include stronger protections for workers and the environment.

Mexico ratified the agreement in June, but it is still unclear when or if the United States will follow.

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