From the Democratic Party of Virginia:
Virginia Democrats call out Trump’s broken promises that have left the economy in crisis ahead of day two of Republican National Convention
Richmond, VA — At a Roanoke rally in 2016, Trump promised Virginians that he would create “millions of jobs.” Four years later, Virginians are still coming to grips with Trump’s broken promises on the economy. With hundreds of thousands of Virginians out of work in Trump’s COVID economy and the country in the midst of the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression, Trump’s broken promises have been a disaster for Virginia.
“Donald Trump and his campaign will try to spin the economic numbers every which way during their convention this week, but Virginians know the truth. His incompetence has caused a devastating recession that has destroyed nearly 300,000 jobs in Virginia in less than a year. At the start his presidency Trump inherited a strong economy from the Obama-Biden administration. But just like everything else he inherited, Trump squandered it,” said DPVA Communications Director Grant Fox.
Nationwide, over 16 million Americans are unemployed—more than one in ten workers. Under Trump, the economy lost more than six million jobs in total. And despite what Trump’s advisors say about the recovery, the economy has regained less than half of the jobs lost during the pandemic.
Virginians are feeling the pain of Trump mishandling the economic crisis. The Commonwealth’s unemployment rate is at 8%, nearly three times higher than it was a year ago. Data from the BLS shows that 284,100 more Virginians were out of work in July 2020 compared to July 2019. And a survey of renters in Virginia found that 192,000 Virginians couldn’t pay their June rent on time.
The Trump administration has also botched the rollout of the Paycheck Protection Program, delaying badly needed assistance for Virginia small businesses while allowing far too much of the funds to go to massive corporations that don’t need them.
Trump’s Small Business Administration has also altered the program’s rules in ways that will end up putting some small businesses in debt. As a result, more than 110,000 small businesses have shuttered for good—and Black and Hispanic business owners have been hit disproportionately hard. This particularly difficult for Virginia, which has one of the highest percentages in the country of minority-owned businesses. Business owners from Roanoke to Virginia Beach have run into problems trying to get help.
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