Bullshit. No Democrat believes in manufacturing except as a means of pandering to the unions for votes. Every law, regulation and tax they want to pass would do nothing but hurt manufacturing in the US. They have done it for decades on end.
If manufacturing was that important, then Obama might mention vocational and trade schools instead of the myth that everyone is entitled to a college education.
I think that the claim that everyone "deserves" a college education is one of the worst things we have done to our young people. My grandmother was Canadian, and around the time of Junior High she had to choose between the vocational and college routes for high school. She chose vocational and received secretarial/receptionist training, and worked various office jobs, including some managerial, until she retired. She was born around 1940. Now, many secretarial jobs require a college education.
Some careers require higher education, no doubt about it. Medical professionals, engineers, lawyers, etc. all require extensive training. A college education really doesn't contribute much for a standard office type job. A lot of skills could be taught in high school to prepare people to begin work after graduation. Plumbing, construction, automotive repair, etc. are all careers where people could start vocational training in lieu of some of their current high school curriculum and receive more of a benefit. Even better, they could receive a more targeted education with academic classes focused on the information they will really need in their careers.
