Biden touts domestic chip investments as midterm clock ticks down

WASHINGTON

President Joe Biden continued his fast-paced electioneering tour in the final weeks before the US holds nationwide midterm elections, taking to New York to tout local investments in computer manufacturing made possible by laws passed under his watch.

Speaking in Syracuse, where Micron Technology is investing $100 million to develop a state-of-the-art semiconductor production plant following the passage of the bipartisan Chips and Science Act, Biden said his predecessor Donald Trump "made a string of broken promises in places like Wisconsin, Indiana, Ohio."

"Promised investments in jobs and manufacturing never materialized, but layoffs and shuttered factories did materialize," the president said. "On my watch, we've kept our commitments. On my watch, 'Made in America' isn't just a slogan, it's a reality: Made in America. Today's announcement is the latest example of my economic plan at work."

Micron's investment in the facility is part of a broader push for technological development in upstate New York that will also see the company and the steadily-Democratic state invest $500 million in the surrounding community, $10 million in local educational institutions and $10 million more in local small businesses that contribute to the semiconductor supply chain.

Turning to the latest economic report, which showed that the US economy grew by a decent 2.6% during the past quarter, Biden said "although it may not feel like it for everyone, people's incomes went up last quarter more than inflation went up."

"Economic growth is up, the price of inflation is down, real incomes are going up and the price of gas is down," Biden said. "Folks continue to spend, but now at a more stable pace than during our rapid recovery last year."

After visiting New York on Thursday, Biden will travel to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on Friday as he seeks to continue lifting Lt. Gov. John Fetterman, who is in a tight race against Republican doctor Mehmet Oz for an open Senate seat that will prove pivotal to the balance of power in the chamber.

An average of polling compiled by the FiveThirtyEight website has Fetterman above Oz by a razor-thin two points.