An unconfirmed new children’s book to help explain the problem with Trump’s Carrier deal. Yesterday, Trump celebrated news that Indiana-based manufacturer Carrier, which had previously promised to shift 2,000 jobs to Mexico, would keep 1,000 jobs in Indiana thanks to Trump’s deal. The media was quick to chock it up as an early win for Trump, but we had some questions.
Today, news broke that, as part of Trump and Pence’s deal, Indiana officials agreed to give United Technologies Corp.—Carrier’s parent company—$7 million in tax breaks over 10 years to keep the Carrier jobs from moving to Mexico. And notably, the deal will only keep about 800 Carrier jobs in the state and the company still plans to ship about 1,300 Indiana jobs to Mexico. So to recap: thanks to Trump’s deal, 800 jobs will stay in Indiana, 1,300 will go to Mexico, and it will cost Indiana $7 million. But that’s not the only issue with the deal. In general, using tax benefits to try to keep jobs is a waste of money. Tax giveaways, like this Carrier deal, are politically expedient, but are an inadequate tool for meaningful job creation.
The main problem is that Pence has already tried bribing Carrier and it failed since there was nothing in place to force them to keep these jobs in Indiana. In 2013 and 2015, Gov. Pence approved $500,000 in grants for Carrier in exchange for the company to stay in Indiana. But that didn’t stop Carrier from announcing in February that it would shift production to Mexico anyway, laying off more than 2,000 workers.
So what is Trump and Pence’s solution? Give Carrier $7 million instead of $500,000 and take the political points. It shouldn’t surprise anybody when Carrier tries leaving Indiana again in a few years and asks for more taxpayer money. Hopefully, by that time Trump and Pence will have learned a negotiating lesson or two from When You Give a Mouse A Cookie.
ACTION OF THE DAY
Go OT. Today, is the day the Department of Labor’s proposed overtime rule, which would benefit 12.5 million workers, was supposed to take effect. But thanks to a Texas judge’s emergency injunction the rule has been put on hold. Meanwhile, Trump and Pence are going to Indiana today to celebrate the 1,000 Indiana jobs they “saved.” But they still support denying overtime to 250,000 Indiana workers. For every worker whose job gets saved at Carrier, there will be 250 who won’t get overtime. Trump will speak at 2 PM ET, share these graphic while he’s speaking to urge him to take action to support workers.
WHAT’S TRENDING
Crumbling promises. Our infrastructure currently has a “D+” grade, so clearly it needs work. Donald Trump has claimed he’s going to make infrastructure great again. But, like most Trump claims, his actual policies suggest he’s not planning on keeping his promises. Instead of investing in infrastructure, Trump wants to offer tax breaks to encourage costly public-private partnerships…which may sound great, but in reality it will cost states and localities more, won’t provide support for areas with the most critical projects or for projects in rural areas, would raise taxes on the middle class in the form of tolls and user fees, and won’t spur meaningful economic growth. In short, Trump’s plan would fail Americans and it’s a real tear in the heart to all those who use our infrastructure.
Second Times the Charm. For peace in Colombia. Yesterday, less than two months after voters rejected a version of a peace agreement between the FARC rebels and the government, the Colombian Congress bypassed voters and approved a revised peace accord with the rebels. Opponents of the deal aren’t pleased, but it’s looking like a final peace deal may finally be on the horizon for the South American nation.
Keith Lamont Scott. Yesterday, a county judge announced that Officer Brentley Vinson, the officer who shot and killed Keith Lamont Scott would not be charged. Accounts of the incident varied widely, and Scott’s death set off a wave of protests in Charlotte, NC after police refused to release video footage of the shooting. Police officers, like Officer Vinson, are very rarely prosecuted for shootings—in 2015, approximately 1,200 people were killed by police in the U.S. and no officer was convicted of murder or manslaughter.
TRANSITION TRACKER
Trump as an environmentalist? He may not believe in climate change, but he does seem committed to protecting the D.C. waters. Want to bet he’s going to keep his promise of going hard against Wall Street? Neither do we. Find everything you need to know about his transition team here.
UNDER THE RADAR
Not in our house city. Earlier this week, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors passed a resolution in response to Trump’s election. The resolution states that despite the fact that Trump has been elected, the city will remain a Sanctuary City, will fight for women’s rights and LGBT rights, will welcome people of all religions, will continue to fight climate change, and much more. Point taken.
Doing it for the kids. Senate Republican Lindsay Graham sent a strong message to the incoming Trump administration yesterday when he introduced plans for bipartisan legislation that would extend protections to previously undocumented young immigrants who received legal status as part of President Obama’s landmark immigration actions. Graham’s move is a welcome reminder of what Senate Republicans can and should do to protect the American people from the damaging policies of the incoming Trump administration.
GOOD NEWS
Keeping Promises. Thanks, Patagonia, for looking out for Mother Earth. As promised, the outdoor retailer donated all $10 million of its Black Friday sales to the planet.