President Trump said Thursday that General Motors is an outlier that’s laying people off in an otherwise “booming” U.S. economy.
“General Motors is very counter to what other auto, and other, companies are doing,” Trump tweeted Thursday morning. “Big Steel is opening and renovating plants all over the country. Auto companies are pouring into the U.S., including BMW, which just announced a major new plant. The U.S.A. is booming!”
[Opinion: Subsidies and bailouts here. Tariffs and taxes there. Now the GM plants are gone]
General Motors is very counter to what other auto, and other, companies are doing. Big Steel is opening and renovating plants all over the country. Auto companies are pouring into the U.S., including BMW, which just announced a major new plant. The U.S.A. is booming!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) November 29, 2018
The car manufacturer announced Monday that it would be cutting 15 percent of its salaried workforce and stop production in several North American plants in order to reduce costs.
GM will stop assembly in Ontario, Canada; Warren, Ohio; and Detroit, Mich., where the company is based.
Trump targeted GM on Twitter Tuesday, saying that he is considering “cutting all @GM subsidies,” and sending a message to his supporters in states that would be affected by the motor company’s decision.
After Trump tweeted his displeasure with the car manufacturer, GM’s stock dropped almost 4 percent.
One of the president’s biggest promises during his campaign, besides border security, was to bring jobs back to America.
Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, urged GM’s CEO Mary Barra to consider reallocating “some of the production and employees” to Toledo, Ohio, instead of laying them off.
“For decades, workers in the Mahoning Valley have made a commitment to GM, and today GM let Northeast Ohio down,” Portman said in a statement. “During today’s conversation, I pressed GM again to provide new opportunities to the Lordstown workers and take advantage of the skilled workforce there.”
