Trump looks to shift focus to economy with event, order on workforce

WASHINGTON – After spending days responding to questions about his joint appearance with Russian President Vladimir Putin, President Donald Trump will attempt to shift the White House message back to the economy on Thursday with an event and executive order focused on worker training.

White House officials said they will announce commitments from private companies such as IBM and FedEx to create more than 500,000 jobs for students and midcareer workers and said Trump will sign an executive order to create a council focused on the issue of workforce training.

“More people who have been discouraged or were sitting on the sidelines are reengaging and starting to look for a job,” said Ivanka Trump, a White House senior adviser who has been a leading voice on workforce development in the administration.

But, she said, “employers are having trouble finding enough workers with the right skills.”

Trump will speak on the issue Thursday after several days of criticism of his remarks during his meeting with Putin in Helsinki, though the event was scheduled before the controversial appearance.

The White House has frequently returned to the issue of workforce development. Trump signed an executive order last summer geared toward expanding apprenticeships and increasing federal funding for those programs.

WJAX