Donald Trump will travel to Detroit to show support for workers in the motor industry who have been on strike since last Friday. This has been confirmed to Breitbart by several Trump campaign aides, after The New York Times reported this possibility.
Trump will not attend the second consecutive Republican primary debate, choosing an alternative option as he did with the first one. In the previous debate, Trump gave an interview to host Tucker Carlson, which aired at the same time as the debate. The former president continues to lead by a large margin in the primary polls.
According to the Breitbart report, Trump will give a speech for the United Auto Workers (UAW) union. On Monday, the former president published a message on Truth Social charging against the Biden administration’s policies in the auto industry. In his message, Trump called for the vote and support of workers. "WITH THE DEMOCRATS & CROOKED JOE CALLING THE SHOTS, YOU'LL BE JOBLESS & PENNILESS WITHIN 4 YEARS. REMEMBER, BIDEN IS A CROOK WHO HAS BEEN PAID MILLIONS OF DOLLARS BY CHINA, & OTHERS," he wrote
It is not the first time that Trump has directly addressed this sector, which is threatened by the electric car revolution. During his term, the Trump administration focused on revitalizing industrial areas in the north of the country to avoid a relocation of production plants to Mexico.
Unions may become a linchpin in the looming showdown between Trump and Biden for the presidency. In the 2016 campaign, Donald Trump had the most support in union households of any Republican since Ronald Reagan. In the 2020 election, Biden managed to snatch that advantage from him, with 57% support to Trump's 40%.
The union ups the ante
On Monday, the UAW union announced that it will intensify the strike if no progress is made in its negotiations with the three major automotive companies. Shawn Fain, president of the union, intends to call more plants to strike simultaneously to pressure the companies.
#UAWStrike it's real right pic.twitter.com/6CswkNWFoT
— Thoth (@Twontweez) September 15, 2023
The union has staggered its strike. Although several plants are participating in the work hiatus, not all cease their activity at the same time, but go in rotating weekly batches. If "serious progress" is not made, the rotations would involve more plants at once. The deadline presented by Fain is Friday, one week after the start of the strike.
The UAW call, which brings together about 12,700 motor workers, asks companies for a 40% wage increase over the next four years. For now, the union plans to revise their demand to 36%. They also expect their weekly schedule to be reduced by 32% and the pension system to return to the traditional format.
