CLARKSVILLE, TN (CLARKSVILLE NOW) – U.S. Senator Bill Hagerty visited the industrial park today as part of a nationwide economic development tour. Hagerty spoke with managers of the LG Clarksville plant and the owners of Old Glory Distillery and toured both facilities.

Hagerty toured LG’s washing machine plant and saw a demonstration of some of the electronics company’s new product lines. He also discussed the plant’s operations with managers and John Taylor, senior vice president of government affairs and communications for LG USA.

When asked about economic policy, Hagerty said part of the problem is pandemic-era spending laws and regulations. Hagerty said the money pumped into the economy is a big cause of inflation and shrinkflation, saying, “The root cause of this inflation is not corporate price gouging. The root cause of this inflation is the war that (this administration) has waged on American energy. It’s the regulatory war that it has waged on every business here in America.”

Hagerty said that regulatory costs for industries like banking hinder business and hurt the economy. When asked about the interests of workers, Hagerty said that when it comes to economic outcomes, they often align with the interests of employers. Hagerty said that spending bills like the Green New Deal proposals hurt everyone by causing inflation, and that when “you put all that capital into areas that the market isn’t demanding and you create inflation in the process, that inflation outpaces people’s wage growth.”

The visit is part of Hagerty’s fourth annual economic development tour of Tennessee, where he meets with businesses across the state.

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