The economy is among the most important issues for American voters in this election cycle where President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump face off.
As Voice of America correspondent Scott Stearns reports, President Biden campaigned this week on the theme of investments in the field of technology.
While former President Trump says he will cancel President Biden’s infrastructure programs and promote oil drilling in the United States.
President Joe Biden campaigned on technology investment this week in Wisconsin, where Microsoft is investing $3.3 billion to build a new data center.
President Biden says this is “another example of optimism in the private sector.”
“We’ve enabled $866 billion in private sector investment, almost $1 trillion — a historic amount in such a short period that’s creating so many jobs, building factories for semiconductors, electric cars and batteries and so much more, here in America,” said President Biden.
The location for Microsoft’s new data center is exactly the same one where six years ago former President Donald Trump announced a $10 billion investment by electronics maker Foxconn.
The project was intended to create 13,000 new jobs in Wisconsin, but it never materialized. President Biden called this another broken promise by former President Trump.
“He actually came here with your Senator Ron Johnson, gold shovel in hand, to break ground on the eighth wonder of the world. Isn’t this a joke? Look what happened. They dug a hole with their golden shovels and fell in themselves,” said President Biden.
Former President Trump says President Biden is mismanaging the economy and points to rising annual inflation.
“The economy is not good. We see how inflation is at its peak. They will not be able to lower the interest rate. It’s a political move, but they won’t be able to do it,” said former President Trump.
Former President Trump is campaigning against President Biden’s infrastructure investments, including in clean energy and technology.
“When I take office, I will put a moratorium on all new spending and handouts through Joe Biden’s mammoth socialist bills, such as the so-called De-Inflation Act. We will save all this money,” said former President Trump.
President Biden says infrastructure investments help the economy.
“In addition, roads and highways and many other things will be made with American products, built by American workers, creating good-paying American jobs,” President Biden said.
Former President Trump’s plan aims to lift restrictions on oil drilling and aims to protect free-lance American workers from illegal immigration.
“What is my plan for jobs? Yes, my plan for jobs is to drill and drill, to reduce the cost of energy. To close the border, to get rid of all the criminals who are being allowed to enter our country,” said former President Trump.
A recent survey conducted by the Harvard Center for American Policy Studies (CAPS) and the firm Harris Insights and Analytics showed that inflation is the most important issue for American voters. Only one in three respondents answered that the economy is in the right direction.
