President Trump: County leaders are ‘where it’s at’

Key Takeaways

President Donald Trump met with county leaders Oct. 23, capping off a year of meetings between county officials and the White House.

“It’s a true honor to host so many great leaders from Alaska, California and Hawaii,” Trump said at the White House State Leadership Conference at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building.

“In particular, I want to thank the president of the National Association of Counties and a member of the San Diego County Board of Supervisors, Greg Cox,” Trump said to applause. Cox was elected NACo president July 16 and has been active in NACo since 2002, serving on the association’s board of directors as well as on the Large Urban County Caucus and task forces.

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Remarks by President Trump at White House State Leadership Conference for Alaska, California, and Hawaii Local Officials

Watch some of President Trump's remarks

“As president of the National Association of Counties, I was proud to lead a delegation of leaders from California counties to the White House today to talk about critical issues facing our regions,” Cox said.

In addition, Shasta County, Calif. Supervisor Les Baugh thanked the president for federal aid the area received for relief from the Carr Fire and presented him with a certificate of appreciation.

Throughout the year, county officials have traveled to Washington, D.C. to meet with White House officials about issues important to counties.

“The National Association of Counties applauds the White House for engaging county elected officials from across the country,” NACo noted in a statement. “Face-to-face communications and relationship building are pivotal to improving our intergovernmental partnerships. Through this unprecedented series of meetings, county leaders talked directly with top administration officials about pressing issues, such as disaster mitigation and recovery, infrastructure needs, the opioid epidemic and public lands management.”

The president noted that since he first took office, his administration had made it a priority to meet with county officials from across the United States. “Very, very important people to me and to a lot of other people,” he said. “We know where it’s at.”

In all, more than 3,700 local government leaders from 50 states have participated in the White House Leadership Conference.

“In recent weeks, we have seen the crucial importance of state, local and federal partnerships,” Trump said.

“Natural disasters have struck states across the nation, including each of yours — and very heavily in your states. In every instance, our joint response and recovery efforts have been critical to saving lives and rebuilding communities.”