Macron and Biden go head to head over U.S. economy ahead of state dinner

Macron and Biden go head to head over U.S. economy and Ukraine war – after French president blasted ‘super aggressive’ climate subsidies that will ‘kill’ European jobs and could ‘fragment the West’

  • Macron and Biden will meet at the White House on Thursday for their state visit
  • The French President said Wednesday subsidies are ‘super aggressive’
  •  He told lawmakers the climate-friendly policies will ‘kill a lot of jobs’ in Europe
  • The climate initiatives in question are part of Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act 
  • It includes $369 billion in incentives for U.S. companies to build electric cars, batteries, solar panels and wind turbines  

President Joe Biden and French President Emmanuel Macron will go head-to-head on the economy when they meet at the White House on Thursday.

Macron, like many European leaders, is worried Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act, with its subsidies for U.S. manufacturers, will hurt European companies.  

The French president even fired an undiplomatic shot at the American president on Wednesday. 

A reporter for Agence France-Presse heard Macron complain that Biden’s industrial subsidies are ‘super aggressive’ against French competitors.

‘This is super aggressive for our business people,’ he was heard telling members of Congress and business leaders at a lunch.

He told lawmakers the policies will ‘kill a lot of jobs’ in Europe unless they are synchronized globally. 

French President Emmanuel Macron puts his arm around President Joe Biden as they leave Fiola Mare restaurant after a private dinner 

It may be one of the many issues Macron brings when he arrives at the White House for his one-on-one meeting with Biden.

Biden’s signature climate law includes $369 billion to address climate change including billions in incentives to encourage U.S. companies to build electric vehicles, batteries, solar panels and wind turbines. 

Macron also told the French community in Washington that the cost of the war in Ukraine was much higher in Europe than in the United States and that Europe risked falling behind if the subsidies siphoned new investments. 

This could ‘fragment the West,’ he said. 

Macron earlier this month said the subsidies could upend the ‘level playing field’ on trade with the EU.

European leaders have complained about the legislative package, signed by Biden in August, that offers massive subsidies for U.S.-made products, which they say unfairly disadvantages non-American companies and would be a serious blow to their economies as Europe deals with the fallout from Russia’s February invasion of Ukraine.

White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said the legislation ‘presents significant opportunities for European firms as well as benefits to EU energy security,’ when asked about European concerns.

The IRA has provisions that will contribute to the growth of the clean energy sector globally, she added.

Germany and its European Union partners are also trying to find an amicable agreement with the United States on how to deal with the effects of the U.S Inflation Reduction Act on the bloc’s industry, said a German government spokesperson on Wednesday.

Talks with the U.S. are aimed at making clear what impact the act will have, and if nothing comes from the discussions, then Europe will have to discuss how to go from there, the spokesperson told a regular government news conference.

The Bidens and the Macrons ate at Fiola Mare on Wednesday evening - an Italian restaurant on the bank of the Potomac River where an entree runs between $50 and $150. The menu includes a variety of pasta, seafood and cheeses

The Bidens and the Macrons ate at Fiola Mare on Wednesday evening – an Italian restaurant on the bank of the Potomac River where an entree runs between $50 and $150. The menu includes a variety of pasta, seafood and cheeses

First Lady Jill Biden and French First Lady Brigitte Macron leave the restaurant together

First Lady Jill Biden and French First Lady Brigitte Macron leave the restaurant together

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