Kokomo — President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden visited a Chrysler Plant in Kokomo today, where it was announced that Chrysler Group LLC is donating $843 million to invest in the Kokomo facilities.
The crowd of more than 100 workers had plenty to cheer about, such as investment in the company, job retention and a renewed faith in the city's economy, as well as the upswing in the national economy.
"What's happening at this plant, changes we're seeing throughout Kokomo, are signs of hope and confidence in the future, in our future, together," Obama said in his opening remarks.
Biden spoke of Chrysler's investment to improve the plant, making it a new leader in front wheel-drive transmissions. He talked the company's investment in retaining 2,250 jobs and the positive effect on the entire community. Investment in the middle class is necessary for America's economy to bounce back, Biden said.
"When you guys have jobs, guess what happens: the coffee shop stays open, the barber shop stays open, the restaurant stays open," he said. "People in fact have jobs. This has an effect all the way through the economy."
About 25 percent of the workforce in Kokomo is employed by automakers, said Indiana University-Kokomo Chancellor Michael Harris to The Associated Press.
Obama said bailing out the auto industry was a tough decision. He said it was the right decision, especially now that Americans are finally buying more from the top American manufacturing companies — Ford, GM and Chrysler — than foreign companies.
"Don't bet against America," he said to a crowd of Chrysler workers as they stood and began to cheer.
"Don't bet against the American auto industry. Don't bet against the American workforce. Don't bet against it," he said.
The momentum can't stop, Obama said. Democrats and Republicans need to work together so the economy can recover faster.
"The election is over," he said. "We've got to find places where we can agree."
The most important contest isn't between parties, he said. "It's between America and our economic competitors."
Kokomo Mayor Greg Goodnight said Obama's visit strengthen morale at the plant, but what matters more is knowing Chrysler is going to invest more than $800 million in the company's two Kokomo facilities.
The investment will reach beyond the city. Goodnight said Chrysler is the largest employer in the northwestern part of the state, bringing in employees from outside the city.
Obama recognized a couple of Chrysler employees during his speech. Sharon Ybarra was hired at Chrysler after a brief unemployment. Her last job was at a communications company in Marion.
"I'm a new hire, due to the president and the stimulus," she said. "It is terrible out there. I was submitting résumés, filling out applications. It's hard for someone in their mid-50s to compete against someone in their 20s.
Ybarra said she's tried for 30 years to get a job at Chrysler.
"I did not give up on myself. Obama did not give up on us," she said.
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