Biden says he is considering sending the National Guard in to fix the supply chain crisis and drive trucks at backed-up ports: Blames the problems and labor shortages on COVID
President Biden said in a CNN town hall Thursday night that he would 'absolutely' consider sending in the National Guard to help alleviate the supply chain crisis, even by driving trucks.
'The answer is yes,' the president said, asked if he would send in the guard to alleviate supply chain issues that are leading to product shortages and rampant inflation. 'Absolutely, positively,' he added.
Asked if he would consider sending in the guard to drive trucks, the president said: 'Yes, if we can’t increase the number of truckers.'
Biden said his first goal was 'to get the ports up and running,' before he would call up the guard.
Haulage companies are offering six-figure salaries and $15,000 sign-on bonuses while struggling to attract 80,000 new drivers who are needed to relieve the nation’s supply crisis.
'The answer is yes,' the president said, asked if he would send in the guard to alleviate supply chain issues that are leading to product shortages and rampant inflation
Thousands of containers are unloaded from a ship at the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach, while dozens of large container ships wait to be unloaded offshore Wednesday
Thousands of containers sit, waiting to be loaded on trucks and trains, as large container ships are unloaded from the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach
But industry experts said more drivers won’t alleviate the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach backlog, where an empty shipping container fiasco is preventing trucks from moving product to consumers.
Facing an exodus of 600,000 retiring truckers by 2028, the transportation industry is desperate to recruit more people and estimates that 80,000 new hires are needed this year to offset attrition and clear a backed-up supply chain.
US Foods, seeking a Northern Californian with a commercial driver’s license (CDL), is offering a $15,000 sign-up bonus and a $1,000 quarterly bonus to candidates willing to work for $38.50 an hour.
And last June, JK Moving Services said it would guarantee its qualified drivers a salary of at least $100,000 as ‘market demands grow and the pool of qualified candidates shrinks.’
It’s all happening as shipping backlogs delay cripple the supply chain, with Christmas toys and holiday goodies among the items stranded in the Pacific as freightliners queue for weeks to unload cargo.
A group of 160 Republican lawmakers have addressed the importance of fixing the supply chain crisis in a letter to President Joe Biden while attacking his embattled spending proposals.
The letter, led and signed by Representative Sam Graves, was sent to Biden on Wednesday in an attempt to further address the urgency of the crisis.
The current supply chain crisis has caused a delay in shipping multiple products to stores and warehouses which has resulted in a months-long shortage of multiple products, amid warnings that the crisis will get even worse before it improves.
Right now, the mass congestion of empty containers is monopolizing space in nearby truck lots, blocking filled containers from getting moved, and crippling efficiency.
In order to fetch a new order at the port, trucks must first return their previously-used container to the steamships – but with space at a premium, cargo operators are refusing to accept the empty containers.
As of Tuesday at the Los Angeles and Long Beach ports, there were 63 ships berthed at the two ports and 96 waiting to dock and unload, according to the Marine Exchange of Southern California that oversees port vessel traffic.
Meanwhile, consumer prices rose 0.4 percent last month, slightly higher than August's gain and pushing annual inflation back to its highest increase in 13 years, the Labor Department said on Wednesday.
The consumer price index rose 5.4 percent in September from a year ago, up slightly from August's gain of 5.3 percent and matching the levels seen in June and July.
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