Former President Donald Trump decided to skip the second GOP nominee debate on Wednesday, instead opting to speak with union members on strike in Michigan.
Nearly 400 to 500 Trump supporters were inside a Drake Enterprises facility for the former president’s speech on Wednesday, as he made an effort to appeal as a pro-worker candidate.
However, it wasn’t clear how many auto workers were actually in the crowd of Trump supporters listening to the former president speak.
For example, Drake Enterprises employs nearly 150 people, and the United Auto Workers does not represent its workforce.
Additionally, some members of the crowd were seen holding signs that said “union members for Trump,” but one of them shared with Detroit News that she wasn’t even a union member.
Another person holding an “auto workers for Trump” told the media outlet that he also wasn’t an auto worker.
Still, there were some auto workers in the crowd, as Doug King, a 55-year-old auto worker from Clawson, shared with Detroit News that consumers, not the government, should decide what vehicles to purchase.
King was referring to the Biden administration’s push for electric vehicles, which some have said could eliminate jobs for auto workers. He maintains that under Trump, the auto industry flourished.
“The four years under Trump were the best years that we had in the auto industry,” King, who works for Stellantis, said.
Trump addressed electric vehicles in his speech on Wednesday night. The former president has never shied away from criticizing the EV market.
“You can be loyal to American labor, or you can be loyal to the environmental lunatics,” Trump said. “But you can’t really be loyal to both. It’s one or the other.”
Trump then went on to recall a conversation he had with someone about the dangers of electric boats.
“The entire boat would be like one big battery.…” Trump said. “What happens if the boat has an accident and starts sinking? Do you get electrocuted if the boat sinks?… Can you imagine the boat goes down, and you’re sitting on top of a battery?”
However, all boats, like cars, do have batteries.
Trump made several other remarks throughout the evening, taking shots at UAW president Shawn Fain, who has publicly denounced Trump in the past.