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Deep in Trump Country, Biden Plan Creates Hundreds of Green Jobs
Deep in Trump Country, Biden Plan Creates Hundreds of Green Jobs
In the reddest district in America, First Solar is building a $1.1 billion solar-panel factory.
By Saijel Kishan
November 1, 2023 at 6:00 AM EDT
Updated on November 1, 2023 at 9:36 AM EDT
The papermill in Courtland is gone. The railcar factory in Cherokee too. Here in north Alabama, people are worn out from watching good jobs disappear. Weve been beat on and beat on and beat on, says Bobby Burch, whos lived here his whole life. Which is why whats happening these days off State Route 20 is so remarkable. Past the Dollar General store, the Wheeler Grove Baptist Church and Dots Soul Food restaurant, a new industry is coming to this corner of the Bible Belt.
First Solar Inc. plans to start manufacturing solar panels near the cooperage that makes barrels for Jack Daniels Old No. 7 whiskey. Burch cried when he delivered the news. Here, in the reddest district in America where old-fashioned conservatism mixes with new-fashioned economics people are buzzing about green jobs. They're talking about them on the Rick & Bubba comedy radio show. Under the stadium lights at Friday night high-school football games. Over Southern sweet tea at Rotary Club lunches.
What theyre talking less about is the uneasy politics of all of this. Republicans outnumber Democrats by 14-to-1 in this part of deep-red Alabama. In 2020, then-President Donald J. Trump who rolled back 100-plus environmental rules and regulations, to cheers from the oil and gas industries won 80% of the vote in the states 4th congressional district. It was one of his biggest landslides anywhere.
Now Joe Biden, the Democrat in the White House, is helping to bring back jobs. Biden has issued an urgent call to combat climate change and restore environmental policies that Trump dismantled. He and Democrats in Congress authorized hundreds of billions of dollars in federal incentives last year to encourage domestic manufacturing and speed the nations transition away from fossil fuels.
(snip)
More: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2023-11-01/deep-red-alabama-district-gets-700-green-jobs-from-a-solar-factory
In the reddest district in America, First Solar is building a $1.1 billion solar-panel factory.
By Saijel Kishan
November 1, 2023 at 6:00 AM EDT
Updated on November 1, 2023 at 9:36 AM EDT
The papermill in Courtland is gone. The railcar factory in Cherokee too. Here in north Alabama, people are worn out from watching good jobs disappear. Weve been beat on and beat on and beat on, says Bobby Burch, whos lived here his whole life. Which is why whats happening these days off State Route 20 is so remarkable. Past the Dollar General store, the Wheeler Grove Baptist Church and Dots Soul Food restaurant, a new industry is coming to this corner of the Bible Belt.
First Solar Inc. plans to start manufacturing solar panels near the cooperage that makes barrels for Jack Daniels Old No. 7 whiskey. Burch cried when he delivered the news. Here, in the reddest district in America where old-fashioned conservatism mixes with new-fashioned economics people are buzzing about green jobs. They're talking about them on the Rick & Bubba comedy radio show. Under the stadium lights at Friday night high-school football games. Over Southern sweet tea at Rotary Club lunches.
What theyre talking less about is the uneasy politics of all of this. Republicans outnumber Democrats by 14-to-1 in this part of deep-red Alabama. In 2020, then-President Donald J. Trump who rolled back 100-plus environmental rules and regulations, to cheers from the oil and gas industries won 80% of the vote in the states 4th congressional district. It was one of his biggest landslides anywhere.
Now Joe Biden, the Democrat in the White House, is helping to bring back jobs. Biden has issued an urgent call to combat climate change and restore environmental policies that Trump dismantled. He and Democrats in Congress authorized hundreds of billions of dollars in federal incentives last year to encourage domestic manufacturing and speed the nations transition away from fossil fuels.
(snip)
More: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2023-11-01/deep-red-alabama-district-gets-700-green-jobs-from-a-solar-factory
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Deep in Trump Country, Biden Plan Creates Hundreds of Green Jobs (Original Post)
BumRushDaShow
Nov 2023
OP
LaMouffette
(2,039 posts)1. Love my president! Note Biden's lack of vindictiveness. He's the president of all the states, blue and red alike.
If it had been the bloated orange tick doling out federal dollars, only the red states would have received any.
And what do you want to bet that Tommy Tuberville will take credit for the federal funding coming to his state?
Deep State Witch
(10,449 posts)2. Yeah, But They'll Still Vote GOP
Because God, guns, and abortion outweigh economic benefits.
appalachiablue
(41,168 posts)3. Glad to see this, Biden's right on. K/R