President Obama will travel to Detroit Wednesday to tout the rebounding auto industry, a centerpiece of the president’s defense of his handling of the economy.
The only problem?
The Ford plant where Obama will hold the event is temporarily closed because of a sagging demand for the small cars and hybrid vehicles the facility produces. The shortage of demand has been exacerbated by the lowering price of gas, according to analysts, as consumers flock to sports utility vehicles and other larger cars.
A White House official confirmed the plant’s temporary closure, saying Obama’s communications team was aware of the situation when the event was scheduled.
The plummeting price of fuel puts Obama in an awkward spot. Though his White House welcomes the cheaper price at the pump, it could lead to layoffs at energy companies and auto manufacturers, for example.
The Detroit News first reported that Obama would be speaking at a closed factory this week.
Obama has long championed the turnaround of the auto industry, framing the bailout of major vehicle manufacturers as central to getting the economy back on track.
In advance of the speech, the White House downplayed the temporary shuttering of the Detroit-area plant.
The president will “highlight the workers in the resurgent American automotive and manufacturing sector now that the auto rescue has been completed,” said White House spokesman Eric Schultz, “and the decision to save the auto industry and the more than one million jobs that went with it.”
