Foxconn 'drastically' scales back the Wisconsin project that was a key part of Trump’s 'America first' agenda

In 2017, then-President Donald Trump and his allies promised that the Foxconn deal — a key part of his "America first" agenda — would create countless new jobs in Wisconsin. But the Taiwan-based electronics manufacturer, according to CNBC, is "drastically scaling back a planned $10 billion factory" inthe midwestern state.

Foxconn, on April 20, announced that its investment in Wisconsin is being reduced from $10 billion to $672 million — and the number of new jobs planned for the facility is being reduced from 13,000 to 1,454.

Foxconn announced, "Original projections used during negotiations in 2017 have, at this time, changed due to unanticipated market fluctuations."

CNBC notes, "Foxconn, the world's largest contract manufacturer of electronic devices, proposed a 20-million-square-foot manufacturing campus in Wisconsin that would have been the largest investment in U.S. history for a new location by a foreign-based company…. But industry executives, including some at Foxconn, were highly skeptical of the plan from the start, pointing out that none of the crucial suppliers needed for flat-panel display production were located anywhere near Wisconsin."

Wisconsin, a state that Trump won in 2016's presidential election but lost to now-President Joe Biden four years later, has had a great deal of debate about the merits of the Foxconn deal. Trumpistas pointed to the deal as proof that Trump was a major job creator, while Trump's critics viewed it as corporate welfare for a foreign company. CNBC points out that the deal's critics didn't like the fact that it "granted extensive water rights and allowed for the acquisition and demolition of houses through eminent domain."

According to Democratic Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers, Foxconn's change of plans will save taxpayers in his state "a total of $2.77 billion compared to the previous contract, maintain accountability measures requiring job creation to receive incentives, and protect hundreds of millions of dollars in local and state infrastructure investments made in support of the project." And Wisconsin will reduce the tax credits for the project from $2.85 billion to $80 million.