President Donald Trump says upstate New York is not working and people are "getting very badly hurt." The president made the comments during a recent interview with the Wall Street Journal, suggesting people leave the area in search of better work elsewhere.
Trump's remarks were made while he was talking about Foxconn, a Chinese manufacturer, that he says will open a LCD flat-screen manufacturing plant in Wisconsin.
Oneida County Executive Anthony Picente tried to get the company to open that plant in the Marcy’s nano technology center earlier this year. But Picente says the bigger issue is what he calls Trump's “sad” comments, especially considering that the president is from New York and won most upstate counties in the election.
"If he's so concerned at times about - and continually brings up - the election, he should take a look at who supported him and who looked at him to help turn around these areas,” Picente said. “Now he's cast aside in a completely a disparaging way."
Picente, a Republican, also called it discouraging for the elected leaders in upstate.
“We work each and every day to make this place better,” Picente said. “No one would ever expect the president to tell people that."
Assemblyman Anthony Brindisi (D-Utica), who's seeking the Democratic ticket in the 22nd congressional district, called Trump's statement offensive. And he challenged Trump to come to upstate and create the jobs the president promised to during the campaign.
Trump has a history of maligning upstate having called it a ghost town, war zone and death zone.
