that's real money in people's pockets pretty relief instantly almost and millions more will be getting their money very soon one final note since we passed the american rescue plan we're starting to see new signs of hope in our economy since it was passed a majority the majority of economic forecasters have significantly increased their projections on the economic growth that's going to take place this year they're now projected it will exceed 6 percent a 6 percent growth in g.d.p. and just this morning we learned the number of people filing for weekly unemployment insurance fell by nearly 100000 persons it's the 1st time any year the numbers fall below the preplanned demick high.

so there are still too many americans out of work too many families hurting. and i still have a lot of work to do but i can say to the american people help is here and hope is on the way now i'll be happy to take your questions. zeke associated press. a president even in the progress of it i'd like to ask you about some of the other if you're basing your presidency one of the defining challenge of the faith in the coming by this is how to leverage your promise to america on issues like immigration reform gun control voting rights climate change all of those right now are a step in uniting opposition from republicans on capitol hill how far are you willing to go in a keep those promises that you made here. while i'm good look. when.

i took office i decided that it was a fairly basic simple proposition and that is i got elected to solve problems and the most urgent problem facing the american people i stated from the outset was 19 and the economic dislocation for millions and millions of americans and so that's why i put all my focus in the beginning are a lot of problems but all my focus on dealing with those particular problems and the other problems we're talking about from immigration to guns in the other things you mentioned are long term problems and been around a long time and what we're going to be able to do god willing is now began one of the time to focus on those as well and whether it's immigration or guns or

a number of other problems that face the country but the fundamental problem is getting people some peace of mind. so they can go to bed at night and not stare at the ceiling and wonder where they lost their health insurance whether they're going to lose a family member whether they're going to be in a position where they're not going to be they're going to lose their home because they can't pay their mortgage or the millions of people are going to get thrown out of their homes because of the inability to to pay the rent so we're we're going to move on these one of the time try to do as many simultaneously as we can but that's the reason why i focused as i have and here's the deal i think my republican colleagues are going to have to determine whether or not. we want to work together or decide that the way in which they want to proceed is to is to just.

to divide the country continue the politics of division but i'm not going to do that i'm just going to move forward and take these things as they come. mr president can your presidency be if he said if you can't make progress on of the challenges of climate change immigration reform got control voting rights well i plan on making progress on all of them but that's going to be for the american people decide i think you know i doubt whether maybe you did maybe others did i i thought many of you thought there was no possibility of my getting the the plan i got passed passed without republican votes pretty big deal got passed growing the economy people's lives are changing so let's see what happens all i know i've been hired to solve problems to solve problems not create division. ok. thanks so much

mr president he said over and over again that immigrants shouldn't come to this country right now this isn't the time that that message is not being received instead the perception and they got you elected as a moral decent man is the reason why a lot of immigrants are coming to the country and trusting you with unaccompanied minors how do you resolve that tension and how are you choosing which family can stay which can and can go given the fact that even though with title 42 there are some families that are staying and if there is a timeline for when he won't be thing overcrowded facility with run by c.p.p. when it comes to unaccompanied minors will look i guess i should be flattered people are coming because i'm the nice guy that's reason why it's happening and i'm a decent man or ever strays that the. no that's why they're coming because no biden is a good guy truth of the matter is nothing has changed as many people came 28 percent increase in children of the border in my administration 31 percent in the

last year of 2019 before the pandemic and the trumpet ministration it happens every single solitary year there is a significant increase the number of people coming to the border in the winter months of january february march it happens every year in addition to that there is a and nobody and by the way does anybody suggest that there was a 31 percent increase under trump because he was a nice guy and he was doing good things at the border that's not the reason they're coming the reason they're coming is that it's the time they can travel with the least likelihood of dying on the way because the heat in the desert number one number 2 they're coming because of the circumstances in country in country.

the way to deal with this problem and i started to deal with it back when i was united states senator for i mean vice president for putting together a bipartisan plan of over $700000000.00 to do the root causes of why people are leaving what a trump do he eliminated that funding he didn't use it he didn't do it and in addition to that what he did he dismantle all the elements that exist to deal with what had been a problem and quick and has been continued to be a problem for a long time he in fact shut down the number of beds available he did not fund h.h.s. to get people to get the children out of those those border patrol facilities where they should not be and not supposed to be more than a few days a little while but he dismantle all of that so what we're doing now is which attempting to rebuild rebuild the system that can accommodate the there what is

happening today and i'd like to think is because i'm a nice guy but it's not just because of what's happened every year let me say one other thing on this if you take a look at the number of people are coming the vast majority the overwhelming majority of people coming to the border crossing are being sent back are being sent back thousands tens of thousands of people who are who are over 18 years of age and single people one time coming have been sent back sent home we're sending back the vast majority of the families that are coming in are trying to work out now with mexico their willingness to take more of those families back but that's what's happening they're not getting across the border and those who are coming across the border who are unaccompanied children we're moving rapidly to try to put in place which. it was dismantled and i said for

example of all the children are coming across the border over 70 percent are either 16 or 17 years old we're not talking about people ripping babies from mother's arms or little 3 year old stand on the border less than i think it's one and a half percent fall in the category of the very young so what we're doing is we're providing for the space again to be able to get these kids out of the border patrol facilities which no child no one should be in any longer than 72 hours and today i went to for example use all the resources available to me went to defense department and and the secretary of defense has just made available fort bliss 5000 beds. be made available 5000 beds in the texas border so we're building back up to capacity that should have been maintained and built upon that trump dismantled it's going to take time and the other thing we're

doing i might add i might give you 2 an answer because if you don't want to do to you. know know what i mean i don't know how much detail you want about immigration maybe i'll stop there and for new york i follow question. one if you could talk a little bit about which family why they're being allowed to take what the family that are being allowed to say why they're being a lot of faith in addition to that when it comes to the filibuster which is what the quote that in about there is immigration it is the big issue of course when it relates to the filibuster but there are also republicans who are perhaps the bill after bill trying to restrict voting rights chuck schumer is calling it in an accidental threat to democracy why not that a filibuster rule that at least gets around if you think looting voting rights or immigration jim cliburn some of course you know very well that the idea of a filibuster rule when it comes to civil rights and voting rights well look.

i'm going to do with all those problems the question is the priorities as they come in land on my plate let's go to the 1st question you asked the 1st and the 2nd question. and that is what about dealing with families why are not some not going back because mexico is refusing to take them back. they're saying they won't take them back not all of them were in negotiations with the president mexico i think we're going to see that change they should all be going back all the going back the only people we're not going to let sitting there on the other side of the rio grande by themselves with no help our children and what we're doing there it's important point to understand i know you understand i don't mean to say it that way important point to focus on the vast majority of people under the age of 18 company united states come with a telephone number on them on a wristband or come with

a telephone number in their pocket in the united states a mother a father a close rose of a grandma and grandpa what was happening before is this taking literally weeks and weeks and maybe even months before anybody pick up the phone call to see if there really was someone there well we've set up a system now where within 24 hours there's a phone call made as that person crew that child crosses the border and then a verification system be put in place as well as of today to determine quickly whether or not that is a trafficker being called or that is actually a mom a dad and or a close relative. there is stably sheen that right off the bat if it in fact is mom or dad dad says to take the extreme case i got a birth certificate then guess what we're getting that kid directly to that parent immediately and so that's going to reduce significantly there's 2 ways to reduce

child populations in circumstances that are not acceptable like being held at a border patrol station one is to get them to the place where they have a relative and set a date as to when a hearing can be held the 2nd way to do it is put them in a health and human services facility that we're occupying now both licensed beds around the country that exist as well as for example federal resources like fort bliss to get them safely in a place where they can be taken care of while their fate is determined. filibuster filibuster. you know with regard to the filibuster i believe we should go back to a position of the filibuster that existed just when i came to united states senate 120 years ago. and that is that it used to be required for the filibuster and i

i had a card as i was going to give the statistics but you probably know them. that it used to be that the. for between 1978 and 971 the filibuster exist it there were a total of $58.00 motions to break a filibuster. that whole time last year alone there were 5 times that many. so it's been abused in a gigantic way and for example it used to be you had to stand there and talk and talk and talk and talk and 2 you collapsed and guess what people. tired of talking to tired to collapse and filibusters broke down a rebel to break the filibuster get a corpsman vote so i strongly support moving in that direction in addition to having an open mind about dealing with certain things that are are just elemental

to the function of our democracy like the right to vote like the basic right to vote we've amended the filibuster in the past but here's the deal. as you observe i'm a fairly practical guy. i want to get things done i want to get them done. consistent with what we promised the american people and ordered to do that in a 5050 senate we've got to get to the place right get 50 votes so that the vice pres united states can break the tie or i get 51 votes without her and so i'm going to say something outrageous i have never been particularly poor and calculated how to get things done in the united states senate so the best way to get something done if you if you hold near and dear to you that you. like to be able. the new way. we're going to get

a lot done and if we have to if there's complete lockdown and chaos as a consequence of the filibuster then we'll have to go beyond what i'm talking about . ok. sorry oh sing me miss kim. thank you mr president to follow up on the bill of us or so do you believe it should take 60 votes to end at the all of us or of legislation or 51. if we could end it with $51.00 we would have no problem you're going to have to the existing rule is going to be hard to get a parliamentary ruling that allows. 50 votes to end the filibuster the existence of a filibuster. but. it's not my expertise and what the parliamentary rules and how to get there are but. our

preoccupation with the filibuster is totally legitimate but in the meantime we've got a lot we can do while we're talking about what we're going to do it about the filibuster . we got here ok. i'd like to circle back to immigration please you just listed the reasons that people are coming talking about in the country problem thing that happens every year you blame the last administration sorry just got back last night from a reporting trip to the border where i met 9 year old joe south who walked here from her doris by himself along with another little boy he had that down on him and we were able to call his family his mother says that she sent her son to this country because she believes that you are not deporting unaccompanied minors like

her son that's why she sent him alone from honduras so certain you blame the last administration but you are messaging in saying that these children are and will be allowed to stay in this country and work their way through this process encouraging families like joe says to come well look. the idea that i'm going to say. which i would never do run a company trial is about the border we're just going to starve to death and stay in your so. no previous administration that is except trump. i'm not can do it. i'm not going to do it that's why i've asked the vice president of states yesterday to be the lead person i'm dealing with focusing on the fundamental reasons why people leave honduras guatemala el salvador in the 1st place it's because of earthquakes floods it's because of lack of food as

because of gang violence it's because of all whole range of things that when i was vice president had the same obligation to deal with unaccompanied children i was able to get it slowed up significantly by working with the heads of state of those communities to do things like in one of the major cities because the people were leaving as they couldn't walk the street because they were going to their kids were getting beat up or shot or gang violence well what i was able to do is not give money to the head of state because so many are corrupt but i was able to say ok you need light in the streets to change things put the light in we got a contractor we got the type of money we paid directly the contract to do not go through the government and violent crime significantly was reduced in that city fewer people sought to leave when this hurricane occurred 2 hurricanes instead of us going down and helping in a major way so that people would not have

a reason to want to leave in the 1st place because they didn't have housing or water or sustenance we did nothing we're going to do a lot in our administration we're going to be spending that $700.00 plus $1000000.00 a year to change the life and circumstance of the why people leave in the 1st place that mother did not sit around with on the kitchen table and and say you know i got a great idea where i'm going to make sure my son get taken care of is i'm going to put a how was he or she. i also met a 10 year old a 9 year old i'm going to send him on a 1000 mile journey across the desert and up to the united states because i know joe biden's a nice guy and he'll take careful. what a desperate act to have to take. circumstances must be horrible so we can do something about that that's the vice president's going to be doing what i did

when president obama asked me to come and deal i was in i was in turkey at the time he said you got to come home and take care of this so we put together a plan and it had an impact and so the question here is whether how we go ahead and do this what we do there's no easy answer. quick follow up i made do you want to see these unaccompanied minors staying in this ship in this country or should they be deported eventually well the judgment has to be made whether or not this young man's case as a mom and home there's an overwhelming reason why he would put in a plane flown back to his mom. follow sir you mention circumstances that must be horrific the customs and border protection facility and donna texas i was there is that 1556 percent capacity right

now with mostly unaccompanied minors there are kids that are sleeping on floors they are packed into these pods i've spoken to lawyers who say that they some of these children have not seen the son in days what's your reaction what is your reaction to these images that have come out from that particular facility is what's happening inside acceptable to you and when is this going to be fixed is that serious question right it's except on come on that's why we're going to be moving a 1000 of those kids out quickly that's why i got fort bliss opened up that's why i've been working from the moment this started to happen to try to find additional access for children to be able to safely not just children to particularly children to be able to safely be housed while we follow through on the rest of what's happened that is totally unacceptable. ken. thank you mr president i want to ask you

a dollar afghanistan you face may 1st deadline for the withdrawal of u.s. troops from that country as a candidate in foreign affairs you wrote that it is past time to these forever wars can you commit to the american people that bite in a 2nd the u.s. will no longer have forces in afghanistan. the answer is that it's going to be hard to meet the may 1 deadline. is in terms of. tactical reasons hard to get those troops out so what we've been doing and what i've been doing and what secretary blinken has been doing has been we've been meeting with our allies those other nations that have nato allies who have troops in afghanistan as well and and if we leave we're going to do so in

a safe and orderly way. we're in consultation i say we're allies and partners and how to proceed and secretary blinken meeting in brussels this week with our nato allies particularly those who have forces there and general austin is just met with kayani and i'm waiting for the briefing on that he's the the the leader in afghanistan a couple and there's a u.n. led process that's beginning shortly. how to mechanically get people how to end this war but it is not my intention to stay there for a long time but the question is how and in what circumstances do we meet that agreement that was made by president trump to leave us. deal that looks like it's not been able to be worked out to begin with how's that

done but we are not stayed a long time. do you think it's possible that we will leave the question is when we. started to believe though it's possible we could have troops there next year. i can't picture that be the case. christine. thank you very much mr president given the conditions that were just laid out at the migrant facilities at the u.s. border will you commit to allowing journalists to have access to the facilities that are overcrowded moving forward. i will commit when my plan very shortly is underway to let you have access to not just them but other facilities as well. to.

be able to have access to the facilities we've obviously been allowed to be inside one but we haven't seen the facilities in which children are packed together to really give the american people a chance to see that will you commit to transparency on this issue i will commit to transparency and soon as i am in a position to be able to implement what we're doing right now one of the reasons i haven't gone down i have. my chief folks have gone down as i don't want to become the issue i don't want to be you know bring in all the secret service never be with me to get in a way so this is being set up and you have full access to everything once we get the signal ok just to be clear how soon will that be mr president i don't know. to be clear. responsibility for everything that's happening at the border now i hear you talking a lot about the past administration you decided to roll back some of those policies

did you move too quickly to roll back what i'm sorry. did you move too quickly to roll back some of the executive orders of your predecessor 1st of all all the policies are under way we're not helping at all did not slow the amount of immigration and as many people coming and rolling back the policies of separating children from their for their mothers make no apology for that rolling back the policies of remain in mexico sitting on the edge of the rio grande in a muddy circumstance with not enough to make no apologies for that i make no apologies for any programs that did not exist before trump became president that have an incredibly negative impact on all international wall as well as on human dignity and so i make no apologies for that. i ask you about foreign policy mr president overnight we learned that north korea tested 2

ballistic missiles what is that any actions will you take and what is your red line on north korea. number one. u.n. resolution 1718 was violated by those particular missiles that were tested number one we're consulting with our allies and partners and. there will be responses if they choose to escalate. we will respond accordingly. but i'm also prepared. for some form of diplomacy. but it has to be conditioned upon the end result of denuclearization so. that's we're doing right now consoling their

allies just very quickly got another hour to diplomacy can you define what you mean and former president obama warned the incoming president from that north korea was the top foreign policy issue that he was watching is that how you assess the crisis in north korea yes. ok hang on a 2nd here. nancy c.b.s. . thank you very much mr president i want to go back to voting rights and as you may she mentioned republican legislatures across the country are working to pass bills that would restrict voting particularly democrats fear impacting minority voters and young voters the very people who helped to get you elected in november are you worried that if you don't manage to pass the voting rights legislation that your party is going to lose seats and possibly lose control of the house and the

senate in 2022 when i'm worried about is how un-american this whole initiative is it's sick. it's sick to society in some states that you cannot bring water to people standing in line waiting to vote to society and that you're going to end voting at 5 o'clock when working people are just getting off work deciding that there will be no absentee ballots under the most rigid circumstances it's all designed and i'm going to spend my time doing 3 things one trying to figure out how to pass the legislation passed by the house number one number 2 educating the american public the republican voters i know find this despicable republican vote.