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In Wisconsin, Biden seeks gain from Trump's economic misfire
In Wisconsin, Biden seeks gain from Trump's economic misfire
by AFP Staff Writers
Racine, United States (AFP) May 8, 2024

President Joe Biden visited crucial US battleground state Wisconsin Wednesday and announced a $3.3 billion artificial intelligence datacenter -- drawing contrasts with rival Donald Trump, whose pledged mega-project at the same location fizzled.

"On my watch, we make promises and we keep promises," the Democrat said as he highlighted a major investment by Microsoft in Racine, a city on the shores of Lake Michigan.

Microsoft will build a new AI datacenter built right where Trump, Biden's predecessor and likely rival again in November's presidential election, had vowed with great fanfare to build a giant factory for Taiwanese manufacturer Foxconn.

That project, touted as creating 13,000 jobs and which Trump declared would be the "eighth wonder of the world" during the site's inauguration in 2018, never materialized.

The Republican tycoon came there "literally holding a golden shovel," Biden told several hundred people in Racine County.

"Are you kidding me? Look what happened. They dug a hole with those golden shovels and then they fell into it... Foxconn turned out to be just that: a con."

The datacenter will create 2,300 union construction jobs, followed by 2,000 permanent jobs, the White House said in a statement.

"Everything that we're doing, here ... is also benefiting directly from the work of this White House, of this president," said Brad Smith, Microsoft vice chair and president.

Racine and Wisconsin lost manufacturing jobs during Trump's 2017-2021 presidency.

Since Biden took office, nearly 4,000 jobs have been added in Racine -- roughly a third in manufacturing -- and 177,000 jobs have been added in Wisconsin, according to White House figures.

The upper Midwestern state, whose economy is based both on farming and industry, is an epicenter of this year's fierce US election battle.

A Quinnipiac University poll released on Wednesday puts Biden in the lead there, with 50 percent to Trump's 44 percent in a two-way race.

But the gap shrinks to almost nothing when expanded to include three other potential candidates, including independent Robert F. Kennedy.

Wisconsin is among the handful of swing states -- including Arizona, Michigan and Pennsylvania -- that hold the key to presidential victory in 2024.

It is no coincidence the Republican Party has chosen to hold its nominating convention this summer in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Biden has already made multiple campaign stops in the state this year.

His Democratic Party, meanwhile, will hold its national convention in August in Chicago, Illinois, where Biden is headed for a fundraising visit on Wednesday.

Trump pledged reversal of green policies to energy execs: report
Washington (AFP) May 9, 2024 - Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump urged oil industry executives to raise $1 billion for his campaign, promising to reverse environmental regulations imposed by Joe Biden's administration once he is re-elected to the White House, the Washington Post reported Thursday.

The paper cited anonymous sources with knowledge of the meeting, which was said to have taken place last month at Trump's Mar-a-Lago club in Florida.

Contacted by AFP, Trump's campaign neither confirmed nor denied the content of the article.

"Joe Biden is controlled by environmental extremists who are trying to implement the most radical energy agenda in history and force Americans to purchase electric vehicles they can't afford," spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt said.

Biden's campaign team, in turn, accused Trump of "selling out working families to Big Oil for campaign checks."

The Washington Post said Trump pledged to immediately end the Biden administration's freeze on permits for new liquified natural gas (LNG) exports.

He also reportedly told the energy executives -- about two dozen from companies including Venture Global, Cheniere Energy, Chevron and Exxon -- he would auction off more oil leases in the Gulf of Mexico and reverse restrictions on drilling in the Alaskan Arctic.

Biden's 2022 climate action plan, the Inflation Reduction Act, funnels some $370 billion into subsidies for America's energy transition.

Trump has cast doubt on the science behind climate change and pulled the United States out of the Paris climate accord to limit global warming.

"Donald Trump is acting like a comic book villain, offering to sell off the fate of the planet for a $1 billion check," climate group Evergreen Action said in a statement.

"(He) is prepared to literally hand the pen to Exxon and Chevron to write the policies that will set back America's climate progress and poison our communities."

Biden's campaign called Trump "a puppet for his biggest donors."

"Trump isn't fighting for what's best for American families, cheaper energy, or our climate -- he only cares about winning this election," the campaign said.

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