Governor-Elect Lou Leon Guerrero was in a meeting with President Donald Trump, Vice President Mike Pence, several cabinet secretaries and senior advisors in the White House, according to a press release issued by her transition committee. According to the release, the governor-elect joined recently elected governors from across the nation in the face-to-face meeting with the president to discuss shared priorities between the White House, states, and territories. The governor-elect joined 12 other governor-elects comprising both Republicans and Democrats. They include:
Governor Mike Dunleavy, AK
Governor-elect Ron DeSantis, FL
Governor-elect Brian Kemp, GA
Governor-elect Brad Little, ID
Governor-elect J.B. Pritzker, IL
Governor-elect Gretchen Whitmer, MI
Governor-elect Mike DeWine, OH
Governor-elect Kevin Stitt, OK
Governor-elect Kristi Noem, SD
Governor-elect Bill Lee, TN
Governor-elect Albert Bryan, USVI
Governor-elect Tony Evers, WI
The audience with President Trump and Vice President Pence was preceded by an hour-long meeting with the following White House staff and Cabinet Secretaries:
Jared Kushner, Senior Advisor to the President
Ivanka Trump, Advisor to the President
Kellyanne Conway, Senior Counselor to the President
John DeStefano, Counselor to the President
Andrew Bremberg Director, Domestic Policy Council
Doug Hoelscher, Director, Intergovernmental Affairs
Secretary Wilbur Ross, Department of Commerce
Secretary Alex Acosta, Department of Labor
Secretary Alex Azar, Department of Health and Human Services
Secretary Elaine Chao, Department of Transportation
Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen, Department of Homeland Security
According to the release, "Governor-Elect Leon Guerrero expressed the need to address priority issues for Guam such as the skilled labor shortage, Medicaid reimbursements, the application of the Earned Income Tax Credit program as an unfunded federal mandate, national defense, job creation and economic growth. President Trump and his staff were receptive to the issues raised by the governor-elect and gave the assurance that his administration would work closely with her."
“I look forward to working closely with the current administration. And I ask you, President Trump, please do not forget Guam out there. We’re a tiny island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean but I think we are the first line of national defense for our country,” said Governor-Elect Leon Guerrero directly to President Trump.
“[This meeting] was a unique opportunity for newly elected governors across the nation and territories. I appreciate the invitation by the president and I am committed to working closely with his administration to resolve some of Guam’s longstanding federal-territorial issues affecting our island and people. Additionally, the meeting also provided me another opportunity to strengthen the relationships that I was able to establish during my recent participation at the National Governors Association’s Seminar for New Governors. We are already paving the way, ahead of our inauguration, and I look forward to building on this progress as we begin our administration,” Leon Guerrero said, according to the release.