President Biden on Wednesday declared the Trump administration’s much-touted effort to bring a Foxconn facility to Wisconsin a “fraud,” dismissing the failed project and Microsoft’s new investment in the state. Contrasted.
Biden visited Racine, Wisconsin, where he announced that Microsoft would invest $3.3 billion to build a new artificial intelligence data center on the same site as the Foxconn project, which did not develop as promised.
Biden quoted former President Trump. Visited Wisconsin in 2018 In it, he predicted that Foxconn’s campus would become the “eighth wonder of the world” and used a golden shovel at the groundbreaking ceremony.
“Are you kidding me? Look what happened,” Biden said. “They dug a hole with a golden shovel, and it fell into it.”
“They shoveled some dirt out,” the president continued. “100 homes were bulldozed. They wasted hundreds of millions of dollars in state and local tax money promising projects that never materialized. Foxconn is just a scammer.” It turns out, let’s go.”
In 2017, technology giant Foxconn announced plans to invest $10 billion in facilities that would create thousands of jobs. The project was hailed at the time as a major victory for the Trump administration, but it never materialized.
investment It was eventually reduced Costs were reduced to less than $700 million, and the number of jobs created by the project was reduced from 13,000 to approximately 1,500.
Microsoft purchased the land originally planned for Foxconn’s facility in April 2023 for $50 million.
The White House said the Microsoft project is expected to create 2,300 construction union jobs and 2,000 permanent jobs over the long term.
Wednesday marked Biden’s fourth visit to Wisconsin this year, underscoring the importance of the election. He won the state by less than 21,000 votes in 2020, but polls show the incumbent and Trump are locked in another close race in the Badger State this November.
Trump leads Biden by 3 points in the state, according to an average of The Hill/Decision Desk polls.
“Joe Biden is trying to save face in Racine County as Wisconsinites feel the pain of Bidennomics,” Republican National Committee Chairman Michael Whatley said in a statement.
“Manufacturing is at a standstill, family farms are closing, and the cost of everything from electricity and gas to food and housing is rising,” he added. “No wonder Biden is losing in Wisconsin and other battleground states around the country. His policies are failing and people want President Trump to continue in office.”
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