The Washington Post has raised concern that U.S. President Joe Biden's strategy to revive manufacturing may not have extensive economic effects in an advanced industrial society while alienating allies.
In an opinion piece Friday, the Post said Biden's assessment that “the industrial Midwest is back" can be disputed.
The article pointed to decreased employment due to advancing technology and argued that even though electric vehicles are produced in the U.S., related jobs are still likely to drop. It said the EV policy will also be a cost to consumers and the climate.
The controversial U.S. Inflation Reduction Act excludes electric vehicles assembled outside of North America from tax incentives, and has drawn strong protest from South Korea and other countries. For instance, Hyundai Motor currently produces all of its EVs in Korea.
The Post said the U.S. economy is based on service sectors such as engineering, finance and medicine and therefore the solution is not to revive labor intensive industries but to train the workforce and provide quality jobs.