WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House launches a website Tuesday to map and track tens of thousands of infrastructure projects and private manufacturing investments, an effort by the administration to show the positive impact its policies have on the economy. US economy to a skeptical public.
The site, Invest.gov, documents about 32,000 infrastructure projects and more than $470 billion in investments in the production of electric vehicles, batteries, computer chips, biotech, clean energy and more. sectors. President Joe Biden is seeking re-election in 2024 trying to show how his policies are reshaping the US economy to deal with climate change and compete with rivals such as China.
Natalie Quillian, White House deputy chief of staff, said the site shows Biden’s agenda is “up and running.”
“We want people to be able to see what’s happening in their communities,” Quillian said.
American adults have generally given Biden poor reviews of his economic leadership. Only 33% approve of the president’s handling of the economy, according to a May survey by the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. High inflation resulting from the pandemic has eroded confidence in Biden’s economic management, eclipsing the 3.7% unemployment rate and more than 13 million jobs created so far during his presidency.
The site’s rollout comes shortly before the administration embarks on additional public outreach with a second round of its “Invest in America” tour. He plans to send Cabinet secretaries and other officials across the country as part of the two-week Congressional recess on July 4. Biden and other senior administration officials have already visited parts of the United States in March and April in hopes of focusing more on their policies.
The president plans to bring up the site at Tuesday’s Cabinet meeting. It’s a key part of a broader effort to keep public attention on a string of legislative victories during Biden’s first two years, when Democrats controlled both the House and Senate. After $1.9 trillion in pandemic relief, Biden signed a $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill. He also secured more than $250 billion to invest in computer chip production and scientific research and created new tax incentives for renewable energy sources worth hundreds of billions of dollars.
Site users can view a national map or scroll through projects by state. The site documents more than $100 million in private investment that the administration said its policies helped spur. It also provides additional economic data and state-level detail, including how administrative policies have increased access to health care coverage and reduced prescription drug prices.