Donald Trump isn’t even President yet, but his campaign promises are coming true and he’s already saving U.S. jobs.
On Tuesday, Ford Motor Co announced that it will cancel its $1.6 billion planned factory in Mexico.
Instead of the plant, Ford Motor Co will invest $700 million at a Michigan factory, which will add 700 U.S. jobs.
When Ford announced its earlier plan to move the production of all small cars to Mexico, Donald Trump fired back, vowing to not let Ford take away American jobs.
“When that [Ford] car comes back across the border into our country that now comes in free, we’re gonna charge them a 35% tax. And you know what’s gonna happen, they’re never going to leave,” said Trump.
However, Ford Chief Executive Mark Fields said the decision to cancel the Mexican plan had nothing to do with Donald Trump’s remarks.
“There was no quid pro quo because there was no negotiation” with Trump, said Fields.
However, Fields noted that Trump’s “pro growth” tax and regulatory policies were beneficial.
“This is a vote of confidence for President-Elect Trump and some of the policies he may be pursuing,” Fields said.
Since Trump’s victory, he has managed to secure over 1,000 jobs. In November, the president-elect worked out a deal with United Technologies Corp to keep jobs at its Carrier air conditioning unit manufacturing plant in Indiana from being moved to Mexico.
“Ford scraps plan for $1.6 billion plant in Mexico after Trump criticism”
Ford Motor Co (F.N) said Tuesday it will cancel a planned $1.6 billion factory in Mexico and invest $700 million at a Michigan factory, after President-elect Donald Trump had harshly criticized the Mexico investment plan.The second largest U.S. automaker said it would build new electric, hybrid and autonomous vehicles at the Flat Rock, Michigan plant and add 700 jobs.
Ford Chief Executive Mark Fields said the decision to cancel the new Mexico factory was the result of sagging demand for small cars in North America and not because Trump was elected president. He told Fox Business that the automaker would have made the same decision even if Trump had not been elected.
“There was no quid pro quo because there was no negotiation” with Trump over the decision to cancel the plant, Fields said.
Fields told reporters the decision related to the need to “fully utilize capacity at existing facilities” amid declining sales of small and medium sized cars such as the Focus and Fusion.
Fields also endorsed “pro growth” tax and regulatory policies advocated by Trump and the Republican-led Congress. “This is a vote of confidence for President-Elect Trump and some of the policies he may be pursuing,” Fields said.
Trump repeatedly said during the election campaign that if elected he would not allow Ford to open the new plant in Mexico, which he called an “absolute disgrace” and would slap hefty tariffs taxes on imported Ford vehicles.
Source: Pamela Geller
