First Lady Pool Reports of May 25, 2022

FLOTUS pool report #1 - rolling to Dulles

Greetings,

I'll be your print pooler for the event with the first lady and the surgeon general welcoming the arrival of infant formula at Washington Dulles International Airport.

The motorcade left the White House at 1:12 p.m., and we are now on I-66 en route to the airport.

The event itself is open to precredentialed press, but I'll send along any additional material from the travel pool perspective.

FLOTUS pool report #2 -arrival and background

The motorcade reached its destination at IAD at 1:39 p.m. We are now on the tarmac next to a FedEx Express aircraft, from which cargo is being unloaded.

Background from the White House:

Today, First Lady Jill Biden and the U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy will greet the arrival of the second shipment of infant formula arriving at Dulles International Airport, brought to the United States under "Operation Fly Formula" in response to the infant formula supply chain challenges caused by Abbott Nutrition's voluntary recall.

President Biden launched "Operation Fly Formula" last week, in coordination with the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), and Department of Defense (DOD), to speed up the importation of infant formula and get it into stores as quickly as possible. Using DOD-contracted commercial aircraft for transportation, infant formula that meets U.S. health and safety standards is picked up from manufacturing facilities abroad and delivered to hospitals and retailers in the United States. The first shipment arrived on Sunday, May 22, bringing 132 pallets of Nestlé Health Science Alfamino® Infant and Alfamino® Junior formula from Ramstein Air Base in Germany to Indianapolis, Indiana – equating to 500,000 8-ounce bottles of formula. Tomorrow's DOD-contracted flight, also from Ramstein Airbase in Germany, will be operated by FedEx Express and is delivering more than 100,000 pounds of formula, which equates to an additional 1 million 8-ounce bottles of Nestlé's Gerber Good Start® Extensive HA® infant formula. The formula will be transported by FedEx Express to a Nestlé distribution facility near Allentown, Pennsylvania.

The First Lady will greet with the following individuals
Tarik Malkani, Gerber
Gina Adams, Fed Ex
Congresswoman Jennifer Sexton and Switzerland's Ambassador to the U.S. Jacques Pitteloud

FLOTUS pool report #3 - Murthy and FLOTUS remarks on Texas shooting

The brief event has ended and the motorcade is rolling as of 2:02 p.m.

Both Surgeon General Murty and FLOTUS began their remarks by talking about Tuesday's mass shooting in Uvalde, Texas.

The first lady began with a call for prayer.

"The sudden senseless massacre in an elementary school, little children and their teachers, Eva and Irma," she said. "Let us pray that God cradles those broken families in the palm of his hand."

"But let us also pray to use the will and courage God gives each of us to act united with common sense to protect our children," the first lady said.

After the formal remarks, she said "of course" she and the president are going to be visiting Texas, in response to shouted questions. She did not appear to offer specifics on timing.

As always, check the quotes against the transcript.

FLOTUS pool report #4 - formula remarks

Full video of the event has been posted by cspan, including the photo ops at the end.

https://www.c-span.org/video/?520576-1/lady-greets-baby-formula-arrival

Some highlights from the first lady's remarks on formula, again check against the final transcript.

"Joe and his team have put solutions into place to get formula back on the shelves. Thank you to Nestle and FedEx for your partnership in this. Thank you to Tarun Malkani, and Gerber, for your leadership. And I want to thank the devoted service of the U.S. Transportation Command for their critical role in Operation Fly Formula."

"There's more to do. We know that. Joe knows that. And as Dr. Murthy said, these shipments are only one part of the strategy."

"I am here today to say to parents: You aren't alone. At the highest levels of Joe's administration, he and his team understand what you are going through. They won't stop until every parent can get the formula their child needs."

FLOTUS pool report #5 - typo corrections and return to the White House

Two name corrections: Tarun Malkani from Nestle and of course Rep. Jennifer Wexton.

The motorcade returned to the White House grounds at 2:29 p.m.