CONTACT:
Gwen Pepin
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Chicago, IL — Donald Trump is promising to implement his disastrous Project 2025 economic agenda that would jack up costs for America’s auto industry and consumers, proving once again that Trump won’t hesitate to sell Illinois’ autoworkers and their families out. In response, the Democratic Party of Illinois released the following statement:
“Illinois’ assembly plants and workers deserve a president who stands with them, not one who commits to a nonsensical and expensive Project 2025 agenda that could offshore jobs, exacerbate inflation and trigger plant closings. By undermining Illinois’ and the Midwest’s auto industry, Trump and MAGA Republicans are abandoning working and middle class families in favor of an ill-advised economic flop.”
Economists warn Trump’s proposed tariffs would have immediate negative impacts on Illinois’ auto industry and lead to higher inflation all around.
New York Times: “Trump’s Tariffs Would Deal a Big Blow to the Auto Industry”
“The prospect of tariffs ‘is a two-alarm fire for the auto industry,’ said Patrick Anderson, chief executive of Anderson Economic Group, a consulting firm in Michigan. ‘There is probably not a single assembly plant in Michigan, Ohio, Illinois and Texas that would not immediately be affected by a 25 percent tariff.’
“All of those vehicles and many others would become significantly more expensive if Mr. Trump, who won the state of Michigan with promises to preserve auto jobs, followed through on his threat. Those higher auto prices would have a significant effect on overall inflation.
“Tariffs ‘would spell disaster for the U.S. auto industry,’ analysts at Bernstein said in a note to investors.”
REMINDER: Trump has a long record of failing to protect auto workers and the auto industry – from plants closing on his watch to incentivizing companies to ship jobs overseas.
Detroit News: “The number of jobs in vehicle and parts manufacturing in Michigan was about 175,000 when Trump took office in January 2017, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. It dropped to 171,300 in February 2020, a decrease of 2.2%, before the state reported its first COVID-19 cases in March 2020, leading to Michigan auto plants being shuttered for eight weeks under a public health order from Democratic Gov. Gretchen Whitmer.
“By the end of Trump’s term, there were 166,300 jobs in vehicle and parts manufacturing in Michigan, a drop of 5% from when he took office, according to the bureau’s data.”
Washington Post: “Trump promised ‘America First’ would keep jobs here. But the tax plan might push them overseas.”
Bloomberg: “The Offshoring of U.S. Jobs Increased on Trump’s Watch
Reuters: “How offshoring rolled along under Trump, who vowed to stop it”
“Donald Trump won the U.S. presidency four years ago, in part, by a promise to Midwest factory workers that he would stop companies like Schneider Electric SE from moving jobs out of the country. He didn’t stop them.”
