President Obama notes Apple’s plan to bring Mac manufacturing back to U.S. this year in State of the Union address

In his State of the Union address tonight, President Barack Obama mentioned Apple’s plan to bring back manufacturing to the U.S. starting with an existing Mac line this year. President Obama’s comments came in the larger context of bringing jobs back to the United States:

After shedding jobs for more than 10 years, our manufacturers have added about 500,000 jobs over the past three. Caterpillar is bringing jobs back from Japan. Ford is bringing jobs back from Mexico. After locating plants in other countries like China, Intel is opening its most advanced plant right here at home. And this year, Apple will start making Macs in America again.

As we previously noted, Apple CEO Tim Cook is in attendance at the State of the Union address. Cook announced Apple’s plans to bring Mac manufacturing to the U.S. at some point in 2013 in interviews in late 2012. Cook reiterted the plans in an employee “Town Hall” meeting earlier this year.

Recent speculation and reports have pointed to Apple’s 2013 U.S.-built Mac line as being the Mac mini. Apple already sources iPhone components like glass and its chipsets from U.S. based manufacturing plants.

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