President Biden announced that he will “join the picket” with members of the United Auto Workers union next week in solidarity with their demands for higher wages and a shorter work week from the “Big Three” Detroit automakers.
“On Tuesday I will go to Michigan to join the picket line and stand in solidarity with the men and women of the UAW as they fight for a fair share of the value they helped create,” Biden, 80, tweeted on Friday.
“It’s time to reach a win-win deal that keeps American auto manufacturing thriving with good-paying UAW jobs.”
The president’s announcement comes after UAW President Shawn Fain extended an invitation to the commander in chief to join striking workers on the picket line.
“We invite and encourage everyone who supports our case to join us on the picket line, from our friends and family to the president of the United States. We invite you to join us in our fight,” Fain said in comments broadcast live Friday.
The union, which has withheld its endorsement of Biden over concerns about his support for electric vehicles, also revealed that it will expand its strike on Friday to include 38 Stellantis and General Motors facilities in 38 locations and 28 states.
Biden’s trip to Michigan will come a day before Trump’s visit to the Great Lake State.AP
Fain said the union has made progress in negotiations with Ford and will not ask the company’s employees to leave their jobs at any of its facilities for now.
Biden’s trip to Michigan will come a day before former President Donald Trump’s previously announced visit to Detroit, during which the 2024 Republican presidential primary front-runner will host a rally involving 500 autoworkers and other business owners.
Trump’s event will take place on the same day as the second GOP primary debate in Simi Valley, California, which the 77-year-old will not attend.
The UAW demands higher wages and a shorter work week for auto workers.Getty Images
“Joe Biden’s trip to Michigan is nothing more than a cheap photo op as he finds himself between a rock and a hard place politically,” Trump campaign adviser Jason Miller tweeted.
“The only reason Biden will go to Michigan on Tuesday is because President Trump announced he will go on Wednesday. If President Trump hadn’t said anything, Biden would be giving UAW workers in Michigan ‘the East Palestine treatment,'” Miller said, referring to the site of a toxic train derailment in Ohio in February, which the president reported. has refused to visit.
“Biden is still hell-bent on destroying all the auto jobs he claims to care about. “His visit on Tuesday is completely meaningless unless he withdraws his insane mandate on electric vehicles and rejects his Green New Deal, which Biden will never do because he is beholden to the radical left Eco-Loons in California.” , he added.
The union has withheld its support for Biden.AP
Biden’s former White House adviser, Michael LaRosa, questioned the trip and expressed concern that it seemed “fake.”
“Ugh, no, please don’t do this to him,” LaRosa tweeted. “These designed performances ALWAYS seem awkward, over-rehearsed and fake, especially through visual media like television. Powerful performances happen organically, naturally, and unplanned (think Reagan, Clinton, Pete, Trump).”
Nearly 13,000 UAW members working for Ford, General Motors and Stellantis went on strike last Friday, demanding a 46% pay increase, a 32-hour work week and benefits for office workers.
The additional strikes announced Friday will add about 5,600 workers to the picket line.
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Source: vtt.edu.vn