White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre on record voter turnout in Georgia
President Biden released a statement praising Hyundai’s investment in Georgia, despite supporting Major League Baseball’s decision to move the All-Star Game from Atlanta in 2021.
Biden said he is “excited” that Hyundai is breaking ground on a new manufacturing plant in Georgia on Tuesday, stating that the investment will create thousands of jobs.
“Hyundai’s commitment to invest more than $5 billion and create more than 8,000 jobs making electric vehicles and batteries will help boost the entire community around Bryan County with good jobs people can raise a family on, and ultimately help lower costs for the American people,” Biden said. “This has been at the heart of the historic legislation we have passed over the past two years, and the last thing we should do is repeal it as Republicans in Congress want to do.”
Hyundai plans to open the factory in 2025, and create at least 8,100 jobs that annually produce up to 300,000 electric vehicles.
KARINE JEAN-PIERRE SAYS ‘VOTER SUPPRESSION’ AND ‘HIGH TURNOUT’ CAN TAKE PLACE ‘AT THE SAME TIME’
President Biden speaks about energy and the Strategic Petroleum Reserve during an event in the Roosevelt Room of the White House, Wednesday, Oct. 19, 2022, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci/AP Newsroom)
However, Biden said in March 2021 he’d “strongly support” the MLB’s decision to pull its All-Star Game out of Atlanta over the GOP-backed election reform legislation signed by Republican Gov. Brian Kemp.
“I think that today’s professional athletes are acting incredibly responsibly. I would strongly support them doing that,” Biden said during an ESPN interview. “People look to them. They’re leaders. Look at what’s happened with the NBA as well. Look at what’s happened across the board. The people who’ve been victimized the most are the people who are the leaders in these various sports, and it’s just not right.”
Biden also called the legislation “Jim Crow on steroids.”
“Imagine passing a law saying you cannot provide water or food for someone standing in line to vote, can’t do that? C’mon!,” Biden said. “Or you’re going to close a polling place at 5 o’clock when working people just get off? This is all about keeping working folks and ordinary folks that I grew up with from being able to vote.”
The Washington Post gave Biden four pinocchios for his claim that polling places close “at 5 o’clock when working people just get off.”
WHITE HOUSE MUM ON WHETHER BIDEN REGRETS CALLING GEORGIA ELECTION LAW ‘JIM CROW 2.0’ AFTER RECORD EARLY VOTING
Hyundai Motor Company Dealership. (iStock / iStock)
Biden has called the Georgia legislation “Jim Crow” on multiple occasions.
“Jim Crow 2.0 is about two insidious things: voter suppression and election subversion. It’s no longer about who gets to vote; it’s about making it harder to vote. It’s about who gets to count the vote and whether your vote counts at all,” Biden said of the law on Jan. 11, 2022 in Atlanta. “It’s not hyperbole; this is a fact.”
“This is Jim Crow in the 21st Century. It must end,” Biden said of the law on March 26, 2021.
“The 21st century Jim Crow assault is real. It’s unrelenting, and we’re going to challenge it vigorously,” Biden said on July 13, 2021.
MLB’s decision to pull the All-Star Game out of Atlanta cost the city more than $100 million, the Cobb County Travel and Tourism Bureau told WSB-TV.
“This event would have directly impacted our county and the state, as visitors spend their dollars on local accommodations, transportation, entertainment and recreation, food and retail throughout the county,” Cobb County Travel and Tourism said. “This would have been a big boost to Cobb businesses and help with recovery after the COVID-19 pandemic.”
Gov. Brian Kemp greets attendees at a campaign event on May 17, 2022, in Alpharetta, Georgia. (Photo by Elijah Nouvelage/Getty Images / Getty Images)
Kemp said in a press release that Hyundai’s investment would have a deep impact on Georgia.
“With more Georgians working than ever before, record jobs and investment coming to all parts of our state, and award-winning workforce development programs and infrastructure, the Peach State’s economy is reaching new heights,” Kemp said. “Our partnership with Hyundai Motor Group and the groundbreaking of this innovative facility exemplifies that unprecedented success. With a long-term commitment to improving lives and livelihoods, we look forward to continuing this partnership and seeing its impact on both this community and our state as a whole.”
When asked about Georgia’s record early voting turnout on Tuesday, White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said that “voter suppression” and “high turnout” can take place at the same time.
“And speaking generally of course, more broadly, of course, high turnout and voter suppression can take place at the same time,” she said. “They don’t have to be, one doesn’t have to happen on its own. They could be happening at the same time.”
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On Oct. 19, Georgia’s Secretary of State Office released figures showing that 400,000 voters have cast ballots as of Oct. 19, a 63% increase from the same time period during the 2018 midterm elections.
A White House spokesperson told FOX Business that “President Biden is proud of the fact that his economic policies have helped create 10 million jobs and given Georgia a record low unemployment rate.”
“He looks forward to continuing to create good-paying manufacturing jobs and fighting for voting rights in the Peach State,” the spokesperson said.
Fox News’ Joseph Wulfsohn and the Associated Press contributed to this report.