Kerry gets a Navy contract for Pittsfield

"Jobs, jobs, and jobs are priority No. 1 in Western Massachusetts, which is why we banded together to push for this Navy contract," Kerry said. "These aren't just statistics, these are hundreds of real jobs for real families, and I'm proud that we fought every inch of the way and won."

For Kerry's part in pushing for the contract, he worked closely with the Senate Appropriations Committee and the Senate Committee on Armed Services; Navy Secretary Ray Mabus; Defense Secretary Robert Gates; Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid; Sen. Dan Inouye, chairman of the Senate Subcommittee on Defense; Pete Rouse, interim White House chief of staff; and Jack Lew, director of the Office of Management and Budget.

"I give a ton of credit to Harry Reid and Dan Inouye, OMB Director Lew and Secretary Mabus for listening to me every step of the way and letting me make the personal case for how much this means to Massachusetts," Kerry said. "When jobs come and go, it can hollow out a community and we all worked our tails off to make sure that didn't happen. These folks understand this isn't just statistics, it's real jobs for real families. Bottom line -- this means hundreds of good jobs in our state when every single one counts, and I'm proud that we fought every inch of the way."

Ruberto and Patrick also spent great effort to champion the attributes of both General Dynamics and Pittsfield during the contracting process, according to Kerry.