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Updated November 9th, 2021 at 20:51 IST

US: Joe Biden talks about Infrastructure bill for Kentucky & Ohio in rare live interview

In a TV interview, Biden stated that he expected funding for the Brent Spence Bridge, which connects Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky across the Ohio River.

Reported by: Aparna Shandilya
US
Image: AP | Image:self
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US President Joe Biden began his pitch for his $1 trillion infrastructure bill on Monday, predicting that a notoriously congested bridge in Senate Republican Leader Mitch McConnell's backyard will finally get a long-overdue overhaul. In a rare live television interview with Cincinnati station Local 12, Biden stated that he expected funding for the Brent Spence Bridge, which connects Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky across the Ohio River, to be included in the bill that the House passed last week and that he is expected to sign soon. Kyle Inskeep, the interviewer, also pressed Joe Biden on supply chain issues and his plummeting approval ratings, which he blamed on problems he claimed were all caused by the COVID pandemic. 

The US President's television appearance had not been announced in advance. On Saturday, Biden praised the bill, falsely claiming that it would not cost Americans anything and would aid in the resolution of economic issues such as supply chain backlogs and rising inflation. The president highlighted a proposed project in two states that he lost in the 2020 election, to kick off and what is expected to be a lengthy administration-wide effort to inform Americans about what the infrastructure bill could mean for them. Following the passage of his infrastructure bill, Biden stated that Kentucky will receive "well over $10 billion" to assist in the repair and construction of highways and bridges. Late Friday, the House finally passed the $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill, which was facilitated by summer negotiations between senators and the president. 

Most of Biden's television interviews have been pre-recorded

Reporters have complained about having limited access to the president because his communications team appears to keep him reserved, something Biden has joked about by saying several times that he's 'not supposed' to take questions during public remarks. As of late October, Biden had given one-fifth the number of interviews as his predecessor, Donald Trump, at this point in his presidency in 2017, and one-eighth the number as Barack Obama. Since becoming president, most of Biden's television interviews have been pre-recorded. Biden's approval rating began to fall in mid-August as a result of the botched withdrawal from Afghanistan in the midst of the war-torn country's increasingly struggling economy, for which the US administration has refused to accept responsibility.

Image: AP

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Published November 9th, 2021 at 20:55 IST

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