Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich said on Monday that President Trump has a "winning message," so presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden is trying to steal it.
“I think that proves that Biden has good pollsters. They do good focus groups, and they said, 'You know, the president has a good message, why don’t you steal it?'” Gingrich told “Fox & Friends.”
Gingrich said that the problem is that Biden’s policy ideas are inconsistent with Trump's economic nationalist agenda.
“He has huge tax increases, huge regulatory increases, his program would kill jobs and not create them and he' always been so close to China that it is hard to imagine you would follow Trump’s policy of negotiating as tough as Trump has, for example, with Mexico and Canada.”
“Biden can whistle the tune, but he can't dance the dance,” Gingrich said.
PROFESSOR DOUBLES DOWN ON PREDICTION MODEL OF TRUMP'S CHANCES IN 2020
Biden on Thursday introduced a plan that seeks to create five million new jobs. It was the first of four economic proposals Biden is expected to roll out over the coming weeks.
The American-centric proposals spotlighted by Biden will compete in this year’s White House race with the “America first” agenda long pushed by Trump, who has emphasized protecting American workers and reenergizing domestic industries in decline.
The first part of Biden's proposal is a $400 billion investment by the federal government to purchase American products such as cement, concrete, steel and other materials to rebuild the nation’s crumbling infrastructure.
The second part is a $300 billion investment in research for new technologies, such as electric vehicles, artificial intelligence and 5G.
Biden’s plan also calls for new tax breaks and credits for small manufacturers – including those run by minorities and women – and would levy penalties on companies who take federal money and then move their investments overseas. The campaign says that Biden will also push federal investments toward overlooked parts of the country that have not received government help.
Trump's victory in the 2016 presidential election was in part due to his promises of bringing back American jobs and re-inflating flagging industries. And as president, he's waged an aggressive trade war with China and slapped tariffs on other nations, including longtime allies.
Gingrich said that every economist he knows believes that the size of tax increases Biden proposes would kill jobs and keep America mired in a deep recession for 10 years.
“Part of the reason the president should be fighting for 100 percent expensing for investments is so companies have an incentive to bring their factories back from China and rebuild them in the U.S.,” Gingrich said.
CLICK HERE FOR THE FOX NEWS APP
“I think the president ought to challenge Biden and say, 'Why don't you join me, let’s get a bill to buy American, as you point out. You have identified accurately. Let’s take this to the Congress, Joe. I work to deliver to Republicans, you work to deliver to Democrats.' See how long Biden tries to do anything real.”