Biden: Companies are Choosing America Again [VIDEO]

Vice President Joe Biden told Albany Engineering Composites workers in Rochester on Thursday morning the Obama administration knows that "people are tired of being tired" and "people are looking for some hope" that an economic recovery is at hand.

As he looked out at the several dozen manufacturing workers who sat in the audience, Biden said the "dream partnership" formed between the State of New Hampshire, Great Bay Community College in Portsmouth, Albany Engineering Composites and Safran that will create 400 new, well-paying jobs is one of many examples of how the economy is turning around.

During his State of the Union address on Tuesday night, President Barack Obama encouraged partnerships like this one to be duplicated nationwide to give workers the skills they need to get jobs and give companies the workers they need to grow.

Biden commended Gov. John Lynch, Great Bay Community College officials and Albany Engineering Composites and Safran for the partnership they created. He also said it was perfectly understandable why an international company like Saffron would choose to build a new plant in Rochester because, as Lynch pointed out, New Hampshire has a great quality of life and a well educated workforce with a 1 percent drop out rate.

Biden joked that he wished he could convince Lynch to seek reelection after the governor announced in 2011 that he would not seek another term.

He said part of a successful economic recovery is to get the American people to believe that things are really getting better. He said there are already several indicators that show things are turning around.

Each day, Biden said more American companies are choosing to "in-source" jobs instead of sending jobs overseas because the economic playing field that once made it lucrative to do business in China, Mexico and elsewhere is changing.

He said one call center company is bring 100,000 jobs back to the U.S. and is constructing a new call center in Texas. He said the auto industry, which shed more than 400,000 jobs during the height of the recession, has now added 160,000 jobs after the Obama administration chose to help the Big Three automakers rebound.

Biden said the best way to continue the positive movement that is taking place is to keep giving U.S. companies tax incentives to in-source jobs and not give tax breaks to U.S. firms that outsource jobs, which drew heavy applause.

He also said the U.S. should not fear the emerging economies of countries like China and India because as they grow, they will continue to be among America's best customers.

"It's in our interest to want countries like China to grow," he said.

Biden also reiterated President Obama's statement during the State of the Union address that it is time to return some dignity to Americans and the middle class by creating a level playing where they can get good jobs and take care of their families. By making a concerted effort to improve education across the board, Biden said the U.S. can move its workforce toward more of the jobs that are being created in the 21st century.

The willingness of Albany Engineering Composites and Safran to work with Great Bay Community College is evidence of that, he said.

"Never, ever, ever have the American people let America down when they have been given a fair shot," said Biden, who also told the audience he was battling a cold.

Safran is a global high-technology company with annual revenues exceeding $15 billion and core concentrations in aerospace, defense, and security. Albany is a global advanced textiles and materials processing company with revenues of approximately $1 billion and core businesses serving the paper and aerospace composites industries, according to the White House.

During a press conference that followed his address, Biden said the Republican Party's assertion that the best way to help the middle class is to return to the policies of the Bush administration that favored the country's wealthiest Americans and the "job creators" are failed policies.

"The logic of the Republican argument of how to maintain a middle class is just wrong," the Vice President said.

New Hampshire Republican leaders issued prepared statements following Biden's visit that criticized what they describe as "big government" solutions to fix the economy.

"The Vice President should leave his big government solutions in Washington and learn how we can get the economy moving again when we lift the burden of the state from the back of those who actually create jobs,” said House Speaker William O'Brien in a prepared statement.

House Majority Leader Rep. D.J. Bettencourt, R-Salem, said the New Hampshire way of creating jobs totally contradicts the policies of the Obama administration.

“The Democrats were in the process of destroying the New Hampshire Advantage with higher taxes, fees and regulations when we took over in 2010. Now, we have more people working across the state than since the recession started.  Republican leadership has meant more jobs here in the Granite State, while Vice President Biden’s agenda of passing stimulus plans and attempting to take over health care did nothing but give us a huge budget hangover," said Bettencourt.

Biden said that neither President Obama or himself are responsible for creating the new jobs in the U.S., but government can play a role in helping an economic recovery take shape.

He said now more than ever, keeping the promise that America will also offer the middle class real opportunities "is the real essence of who we are."

Before Biden left the state, he met with Obama grassroots supporters at the Obama for America campaign office in Portsmouth.

State Rep. Terie Norelli, D-Portsmouth, was at the Obama for America office in Portsmouth. She said Biden reiterated a lot of the positive signs that a slow, steady economic recovery is taking place.

"When you consider the number of jobs that we were bleeding as the Bush administration was going out and the Obama administration was coming in, it’s clear there were huge challenges and I think they’re starting to meet those challenges. Clearly, the recovery isn’t happening as fast as any of us would like, but it is happening," said Norelli during a telephone interview.

Norelli said Biden also told Obama supporters that he will make more trips to New Hampshire over the next 10 months of the Presidential campaign and that President Obama would be coming to the state as well, but he didn't offer any specifics.

As has been the case during the past few elections, Norelli believes New Hampshire will be a heavily contested battleground state and President Obama wants to win the state's four Electoral College votes. She is confident that given the strong presence the President already has in New Hampshire, he will accomplish that.