Governor Rosselló attends working lunch at the White House, at the invitation of the president of the United States
(June 21, 2018 - Washington, DC) Governor of Puerto Rico Ricardo Rosselló met today with the president of the United States, Donald J. Trump and the vice president, Mike Pence, to discuss the importance of economic development for the Island, federal and state economic policies, as well as the challenges and opportunities to increase the workforce.
“During the meeting, I requested President Trump to accelerate permanent work in Puerto Rico and to make this process the most effective one in the history of the United States. Also, to end with the last enclave of colonialism and to validate the democratic will of the People of Puerto Rico, converting the colonial territory into the 51st state of the nation," said Rosselló.
The governor also added that "it is clear that only through statehood the 3.4 million citizens in Puerto Rico will be equally treated as American citizens. Then we will be able to leave behind the second-class citizenship.”
Similarly, the chief executive emphasized the need to continue working together with the federal Government to achieve full recovery in Puerto Rico.
During the work lunch held at the White House, Rosselló and seven other governors of the nation, along with several members of the Trump Administration cabinet, discussed the problem of opioid abuse and the diversity of federal programs available to address this situation.
The governors of Idaho, Butch Otter; Indiana, Eric Holcomb; Kentucky, Matt Bevin; Missouri, Mike Parson; Oklahoma, Mary Fallin; Utah, Gary Herbert; and Wisconsin, Scott Walker, were also present at the work meeting.
The governor was accompanied by Carlos Mercader, executive director of the Puerto Rico Federal Affairs Administration in Washington (PRFAA).
Earlier, Rosselló met with Admiral Doug Fears, deputy assistant to the president and Homeland Security and Counterterrorism advisor for the National Security Council.
Rosselló and Fears talked about the recovery of the Island after the passage of the hurricanes, several issues that require urgency, and some areas in which the federal Government can improve in this recovery process.
