US Midterm Elections 2018: Economic revival leaves many behind

World
Europe

02:28

Reviving steel and manufacturing jobs was one of Trump's major campaign promises two years ago. To check on what has been done so far, CGTN's Nathan King traveled to one of America's biggest manufacturing state, Pennsylvania.

NATHAN KING MONESSEN, PENNSYLVANIA "Monessen Pennsylvania. Two years ago then-candidate Donald Trump came here and vowed to make America Great Again, bringing back the jobs to the struggling steel town. And while the steel operation here is firing on all cylinders, the rest of Monessen isn't."

81-year-old former Mayor Lou Mavrakis has lived in Monessen all his life. He remembers when Main Street was packed with young families, the town booming from thousands of good-paying, solid steel jobs.

Now, the steel coking plant is all that is left, employing less than two hundred people. Two years into the Trump presidency, he sees no change.

LOU MAVRAKIS FORMER MAYOR OF MONESSON "Trump came here, and what did he do, he told these people what they wanted to hear- well naturally when you have no hope and somebody comes in and tells you something that you want to hear you feel somewhat good about what is going to happen and well as you can see, nothing has happened at this point."

"You are upset - you are mad as hell, right "

"I can't say what I really feel on TV for you people, because you would be beeping the hell out of me. Nobody's done a damn thing. It doesn't make any difference whether you are a Democrat or a Republican. The two-party system doesn't work for communities like this."

"So what about the 'American dream'?"

"The economy is growing where you have nice places. Where you have blight, it's not growing. They are not investing the money here because it costs too much. They say to hell with it leave it go, leave this part of the world forgotten."

Lou Mavrakis is now in charge of the city's redevelopment plan, such as it is. The plan is to pull down blighted buildings and attract business with tax breaks and free land. So far, there are no takers.

NATHAN KING MONESSEN, PENNSYLVANIA "And so while the US economy is growing robustly overall, towns like this, despite politicians' visits, seem to be left behind. Nathan King, CGTN, Monessen, Pennsylvania."