Speeches
Pelosi Remarks at ‘Make It In America’ Event in San Francisco
10/06/2010
San Francisco – Speaker Nancy Pelosi today toured the McRoskey Mattress
Company, a family-owned San Francisco mattress manufacturer, and
discussed the “Make It in America” agenda with owner Robin Azevedo and Mark
Dwight, founder of SFMade, which is focused on building San Francisco’s economic
base by developing the local manufacturing sector.
“Thank you very much Mark and Robin. It is wonderful to be here with you. It is always wonderful to be home in San Francisco.
“Robin, your family—for nearly 112 years, the McRoskey name has meant you can sleep well and live well, and it all begins in San Francisco. Robin is the granddaughter of McRoskey’s founder, and she continues the family tradition of high quality mattresses and real box springs.
“Mark, your initiative San Francisco Made is a wonderful one and I know it will be a growing one. Next time I come back, I want to come see your plant to see what you are doing. Last time I was here, we went to a place that was a small business that was making food for restaurants. Of course, that has to be domestic, by and large.
“As has been mentioned, this month McRoskey celebrates its 112th anniversary as San Francisco’s premiere source for high quality products, in this case mattresses, as the center of manufacturing excellence and success and I want to recognize that. For three generations, this family-owned business has been the embodiment of what is best about our city and our country’s economy: quality products, manufactured by local workers, sold here, across the country, and, as Robin said, across the world. As the recent news story about the company said, ‘employees never know where their mattresses are headed, they all know that they are made in San Francisco.’
“It is the same idea of course that drives Mark Dwight’s San Francisco Made to invest so much time, effort, and resources to building and supporting vibrant, growing, and thriving manufacturing here in San Francisco. His work is the work of leaders in the community in terms of words that he used over and over again, ‘entrepreneurship,’ ‘innovation,’ ‘Make it in San Francisco,’ ‘Make It in America,’ to build our economic base by strengthening our manufacturers, sustain our companies that produce locally made products, and to grow a sustainable local economy, that creates quality jobs, while making it in America.
“These same principles have led the Democratic Congress to work to empower business owners, like Robin and Mark, to strengthen the hand of manufacturing, change the leverage, large and small, and extend opportunities to our workers. All of our actions have focused on the key goals of creating jobs for the American people, and moving America forward to growth today in our country.
“In recent months, the Democrats in Congress have made ‘Make It in America’ our rallying call. It is the strategy that insists on a thriving manufacturing center as the cornerstone of a growing economy. Because when we ‘Make It in America,’ our people can make it in America.
“We no longer can allow the erosion of our manufacturing and technological and industrial base to continue. It’s really in our national security interest to make sure we have a strong industrial, manufacturing, and technological base. I was so pleased when Robin said that they were going to buy an oven that was ‘Made In America’ – Wisconsin – because of the expensing provisions of the legislation that has been passed since President Obama became President.
“There are other initiatives within the legislation that close loopholes that encourage companies to ship jobs overseas. Surprising as that is—only two Republicans voted with us on that. I believe that there will be a provision over law that enables business to have a tax advances for shipping jobs overseas, 99 percent of Republicans voted no. I don’t mention that in a political way I just mention that, we have work to do to educate Members of Congress about how important it is to have everything that we do, our standards, our tax policy, in support of keeping jobs in America.
“We provide hometown tax credit to help small businesses and manufacturers hire new employees so they can grow, ensure that the U.S. government, and its contractor buy American, demand that China other countries honor their trade, the trade principles of the WTO or lose American business. Fair is fair. We want to involve in trade, we know how important it is in job creation, but we are not going to have a situation where there is no reciprocity. Key legislation has already become law including bills to reduce cost for U.S. businesses and increase the competitiveness of their products, protect American patents, prevent outsources, and cut the deficit by more than $1 billion.
“And we have passed bills that just relate to small businesses; we passed 16 tax cuts for small businesses, including payroll tax holiday to spur hiring, write-offs to buy equipment, the oven, $10,000 deduction for entrepreneurs taking a chance on a new idea. The signature piece of our tax cut for small business came in a Small Businesses Jobs Act. It provides new tools to help Americans and small businesses compete at home and abroad, helps create half a million jobs, provides tax cuts to small businesses to spur investment growth, access to capital and hiring, unleashing up to $300 billion in private sector lending for small businesses, up to $300 billion.
“With Congress taking the lead and with business owners like Robin McRoskey Azevedo, and Mark Dwight working at the ground level, we can keep America going forward with prosperity for all Americans. San Francisco, the San Francisco Bay Area, has always led the way in economic growth and innovation in strengthening our manufacturers and small businesses and we will build on that legacy and leadership now and into the future.
“So I thank you for the opportunity to tour the factory, to meet the workers, to be inspired by your commitment to high quality, for being a very clear message that when you ‘Make It in America,’ you allow people to make it in America as well. So congratulations to McRoskey for your, since 1899, mattress company, and box springs I might add. So thank you all, very much, I will be pleased to take any questions that you might have. Thank you to the employees, they all make it happen.”