John Ratzenberger to Host Des Moines Town Hall Meeting on American Manufacturing

John Ratzenberger to Host Des Moines Town Hall Meeting on American Manufacturing

TV star headlines the Alliance for American Manufacturing's 'Keep it Made in America' event; encourages voters to ask the Presidential candidates how they will strengthen U.S. manufacturing

WASHINGTON, Oct. 15 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- On October 17th in Des Moines, Iowa, television and film star John Ratzenberger and the Alliance for American Manufacturing (AAM) will host a 'Keep it Made in America' Town Hall Meeting. The Des Moines event is the second of seven national meetings being held to spotlight growing voter concern about the challenges facing American workers and manufacturers.

"I'm proud to partner with the Alliance for American Manufacturing on the 'Keep it Made in America' town hall meetings," said Ratzenberger. "I've traveled all across this country and I've seen firsthand how manufacturing drives our economy. In this presidential election, we have a chance to make the voices of American manufacturing heard in Iowa. We're going to educate and inspire voters to ask candidates the hard questions about manufacturing jobs and how they intend to keep manufacturing 'Made in America'."

From humble beginnings in Bridgeport, Connecticut, John Ratzenberger gained international fame on the acclaimed television series Cheers. Today, Ratzenberger hosts his own show about American manufacturing on the Travel Channel, John Ratzenberger's Made in America.

"John gets the challenges we're facing. He understands the impact of job losses and factory closings on our community," said Chaz Allen, Mayor of Newton. "Manufacturing is still the largest sector of Iowa's economy, but we need to overcome some real obstacles. Our state has lost more than 22,000 manufacturing jobs since 2000 - jobs that hard-working Iowa families depended on. It's time for the presidential candidates to stand up for the workers and manufacturers in Iowa."

The "Keep it Made in America" town hall meeting will be held on Wednesday, October 17th, at the Iowa Events Center, 730 Third Street, in Des Moines. Doors open at 6:00 pm. The program begins at 6:30 pm. Admission is free and is open to the general public.

During the town hall meeting, Ratzenberger will encourage Iowa voters to ask the presidential candidates three key questions about their commitment to American manufacturing:

   -- How will you save American manufacturing jobs?   -- What specific policies will you enact to strengthen the American      manufacturing base, which is vital to our economic and national      security?   -- What steps will you take to enforce trade laws and hold cheating      countries like China accountable?   

"There's no shortage of Presidential candidates in Iowa. We need to hold their feet to the fire and demand answers to the tough questions on trade and manufacturing," said Al Skinner, President USW Local 310, which represents workers at Firestone Agricultural Tire. "Iowa voters need to know if their next president will level the playing field and stop countries like China from cheating or sit idly by while our manufacturing jobs continue to move offshore. Manufacturing is our future, and we want a president who will do something about it."

"The manufacturers and workers of Iowa share John Ratzenberger's and AAM's dedication to strengthening American manufacturing, and we're excited to work together to urge the candidates to focus on these issues," said Scott Paul, AAM's executive director. "For America to remain the leader in the global economy, we have to overcome some very real challenges that threaten the vital core of our economic engine. Our town hall meetings will initiate this important dialogue and empower voters to continue the discussion with their presidential candidates."

The Alliance for American Manufacturing is a unique non-partisan, labor-management partnership forged to strengthen manufacturing in the U.S. For more information, visit: http://www.americanmanufacturing.org/.

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FCMN Contact:

Source: Alliance for American Manufacturing

CONTACT: Khristyn Brimmeier, +1-202-292-6964,
kbrimmeier@gloverparkgroup.com, for Alliance for American Manufacturing

Web Site: http://www.americanmanufacturing.org/

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