Bloomberg Philanthropies announced on Tuesday that three Tennessee cities will take part in an initiative that would use federal funds provided by the Biden administration.
Nashville, Memphis, and Chattanooga were selected for the organization’s American Sustainable Cities Initiative, which stated its focus would be on creating economic equity and green energy jobs, according to a Tuesday news release from Bloomberg Philanthropies. Mike Bloomberg, the former Democratic New York Mayor, founded Bloomberg Philanthropies.
The $200 million program would last three years and provide Nashville with an “innovation team” of up to three staff.
The initiative would leverage “over $400 billion” in federal funds freed up for local governments by President Joe Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the organization said in the release.
Additionally, Bloomberg Philanthropies will also provide “multi-year, in-depth, customized policy and technical assistance” to achieve the project’s goals, according to the news release. The organization said in the release that “communities of color” are disproportionately impacted by climate change and that solutions to the two issues are connected.
Democratic Nashville Mayor Freddie O’Connell expressed his excitement in a post to X.
In a critical moment for addressing climate change and racial wealth equity, Nashville is proud to be selected by @BloombergDotOrg for Bloomberg American Sustainable Cities to increase innovation, maximize federal funding, and improve lives. Learn more: https://t.co/nejjgkYIQq pic.twitter.com/t2P66DfCL2
— Freddie O’Connell (@freddieoconnell) March 12, 2024
In the video, O’Connell expressed his excitement about the Bloomberg initiative’s “capacity to advance minority wealth, climate, and sustainability goals” in Nashville. He added that the project will focus on areas of Nashville that suffer from “chronic underinvestment,” such as North Nashville and Southeast Nashville.
“This project shows that Nashville is attracting investment and partnership that speaks to our vision and competitiveness,” the Nashville mayor wrote in the post.
The Tennessee Star reached out to O’Connell to ask how the federal funds would be used and how much the Nashville government expected to gain, but he did not respond by press time.
Memphis Mayor Paul Young, also a Democrat, is also enthusiastic about the initiative, saying Memphis could use the funds for affordable housing and reducing emissions.
Twenty-two other cities are slated to participate in the American Sustainable Cities initiative, many of which are Democratic cities in overall Republican states. Tennessee is the state with the second-most cities participating, only behind Ohio.
“Potential projects in the 25 cities announced today include developing affordable energy-efficient housing, increasing access to clean energy, investing in electric vehicles and infrastructure, and more,” Bloomberg Philanthropy wrote in the release.
Cities participating in the program have already applied for and received more than 100 federal grants that work toward the goals of American Sustainable Cities.
After the introduction of the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022, the national deficit increased dramatically in 2023. Consumer prices rose again in February after soaring inflation at the beginning of Biden’s term as president, though such increases have recently slowed.
The federal government estimated back in 2021 that the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law would increase the federal budget deficit by more than $250 billion over the following 10 years.
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Matthew Giffin is a reporter at The Tennessee Star and The Star News Network. Follow Matthew on X/Twitter.
Photo “Mike Bloomberg” by Mike Bloomberg.
Agenda 21
Liberal Marxist world order agenda is against We The People, our Constitution, and Country. Stand Up Tennessee and tell these globalists NO!!!!
Just what we need – a way left liberal in Bloomberg plans to “help” Tennessee by installing left wing groups to push the cities further to the left. No thank you.
Nashville and Memphis won’t turn down the money but Chattanooga should.
North Nashville and South East Nashville…..always the same. No amount of money will fix their “problems”. Hole in the bucket……been that way for decades…..Fast Freddie at work.
Good grief!!! Don’t you see what this is? It’s another tactic by the sneaky Dems to promote the Dem agenda – the objective is probably to get votes for Biden. We know Bloomberg is a Leftist. The article says > “its focus would be on creating economic equity and green energy jobs” and “provide Nashville with an “innovation team” of up to three staff.” So, they’re going to hire 3 Leftists to advise the cities.
and the goal is to > “advance minority wealth, climate, and sustainability goals”
and it will focus on areas that have a high percent of People of Color.
My guess is that the objective is to obtain votes for Biden and Dems.
Repubs MUST start being smarter and recognize the Dems strategic manipulation or they will take over the nation. STOP being outsmarted by Dems. Whenever they propose anything ask >”What are they really trying to do?” Remember all the times Biden said “The border is secure” and people believed him.
Billions from Biden’s Federal Slush Fund
The initiative would leverage “over $400 billion” in federal funds freed up for local governments by President Joe Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 and the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, the organization said in the release.
Since when has Congress gain the authority to create a “Slush fund” to fund “WHATEVER”???
Want to know why everything we buy cost an arm and leg, this is why,
400 billion is almost half a “TRILLION”, and guess who gets to decide who gets the money how the money is spent,
SURE AS HELL NOT CONGRESS.
They might as well put people on an “Auction block” and auction them and their labor off to the highest bidder,
but don’t tell the ignoramus voters.
It is sad what is happening to Nashville. Great city being destroyed by DEI and extreme Leftist garbage.
The only thing being sustained is stupidity and government hand outs to the looney left.
The current national debt is approximately $35T and increasing at a rate of $1T dollars about every one hundred (100) days. I saw on the national news today that the Biden Administration’s proposed budget for the next fiscal year has an item of approximately $870B to cover the interest costs for our ever-growing national debt. This means that the interest cost of the national debt is now greater than the budget item for our entire national defense for the next fiscal year which is about $833B if I correctly remember the numbers (I may be ‘off’ a bit on the numbers but not on the ‘big picture’). This financial state of affairs is not sustainable.
State of Tennessee, do not incur additional debt unless absolutely necessary. Pay off whatever debt the State now has as quickly as can be done. In a time of economic crisis, the best place to be is debt free (or as debt free as possible). When one has money, one can do things. When one does not have money to do things, he is in trouble—BIG TROUBLE. Members of the Tennessee General Assembly, if you get this wrong you will be held responsible by the voters!!! Trust me!!!