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Anthony Pratt will show U.S. President Donald Trump around his new paper mill in Wapakoneta, Ohio

WAPAKONETA, Ohio (From news reports) -- A $2 billion strategy is about to come true for Australia's richest person, with the photo opportunity of his life with the President of his dreams.

Billionaire Anthony Pratt will cap almost three years of tireless work and campaigning this weekend when he is one of the celebrated guests at a White House state dinner hosted by ­Donald Trump and then shows off the biggest paper mill he has built, in the crucial heartland state of Ohio.
Scott Morrison will be there, as will an eclectic mix of Australian guests likely to include media mogul Kerry Stokes, astronaut Andy Thomas, IndyCar driver Will Power and possibly even golfer Greg Norman and actress Nicole Kidman.
The Prime Minister will use the US trip to deepen security co-operation, particularly in the Indo-Pacific region, and seek to encourage more US investment to help boost Australian job creation. But make no mistake, the 59-year-old Mr Pratt, standing over 183cm with a shock of red hair, will be the star of the show and greeted warmly by the US President, with whom he has struck a close relationship that he has cultivated for several years.
In 2017, Mr Pratt made a public pledge to the President aboard the USS Intrepid that his Pratt ­Industries cardboard box making and recycling company would spend $2bn in America over the next decade to create 5000 high-paid manufacturing jobs, mainly in the Midwest.
The jewel in his crown is a new mill in Wapakoneta, Ohio, which cost $US270m to build and represents Mr Pratt's biggest US investment in what is the small home town of astronaut Neil Armstrong.
Mr Pratt will show Mr Trump and Mr Morrison around the brand new centre on Sunday, ­ensuring priceless coverage of both his business and his relationship with the most famous politician on Earth.
Mr Pratt previously had ­famously bet $100,000 on Mr Trump to win the last US election after watching the third presidential debate in October 2016, and has since gone on to build paper mills and cardboard box factories in the rustbelt states that swung to Mr Trump in the election three years ago.
He is a big fan of the President's tax policies, including tax cuts and accelerated depreciation schedules for big capital investments, previously telling The Australian: "We think the Trump tax bill has made it easier to invest in America than it was before and his tax ­regime rewards people like us who reinvest their profits into their businesses."
The Australian billionaire is a member of Mr Trump's Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida -- as is another billionaire in mining magnate Gina Rinehart -- and has attended several New Year's Eve functions there with the Trump family.
Mr Trump greets Mr Pratt warmly whenever the pair cross paths at Mar-a-Lago and has been known to call for a standing ovation in the dining room for the Australian billionaire and send him his favourite dessert, ice cream sundae.
Mr Pratt's connection with the Trumps goes back further via his partner, Claudine Revere, the mother of his two children. Ms ­Revere owns an upscale New York business Relish Catering, which has been in business with the Trump Organisation for more than 15 years. Mr Pratt is naming the Wapakoneta mill "Revere" in honour of his partner.
After the Wapakoneta investment Mr Pratt will have spent more than $1bn on building facilities in the Midwest, including the Valparaiso mill in Indiana, opened in March 2016 by now Vice-President Mike Pence, and on corrugated box plants in Lewisburg, Ohio and Beloit, Wisconsin.
Excitement about the visit has spread quickly in Wapakoneta, with Mayor Tom Stinebaugh telling local Lima News: "With Pratt Industries being there and the President's relationship with owner Anthony Pratt it's huge and will help us in the long run."
Mr Morrison will visit Washington DC, Chicago, Ohio and New York on his US tour as he seeks to strengthen collaboration in the areas of space technology, critical minerals as well as veterans' mental health.
The party travelling with Mr Morrison includes his chief of staff, John Kunkel; the secretary of the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet, Philip Gaetjens; the secretary of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Frances Adamson; the Chief of the Defence Force, General Angus Campbell; and National Security Adviser Michelle Chan. At various stages of the trip Mr Morrison will also be joined by Joe Hockey, Australia's ambassador to the US.
Mr Morrison is set to touch down in the US at the Andrews Air Force Base where the travelling delegation will be welcomed by a guard of honour. He will have a one-on-one meeting with Mr Trump in the Oval Office as well as receiving an expanded bilateral meeting with senior cabinet officials along with meetings with Mr Pence and secretaries of State and Defence.

Mr Morrison will be focused on meeting with US business leaders as he seeks to encourage further investment in Australia.

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Onlypulpandpaperjobs.com has taken off like a rocket! Over fifty jobs are posted, in many interesting categories. These jobs are in at least ten different US states. [12.19.19]

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Employers are on board with Onlypulpandpaperjobs.com. There are nearly forty employers located in fifteen different US states and six other countries. [12.19.19]


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