Whitmer Continues To Mislead The Public On Her Record On Auto Jobs
“Gretchen Whitmer continues to mislead the public about her record on auto jobs,” said Dean Cleary, MIGOP Research and Rapid Response Director. “The fact is that Whitmer’s radical climate agenda is decimating the auto parts industry and transitioning Michigan’s workforce to work under the management of oligarchs in China.”
WHITMER IS TAKING CREDIT FOR JOBS THAT HAVE NOT BEEN CREATED YET
- Today, Gretchen Whitmer tried to take credit for creating 30,000 auto jobs in a Tweet from her official office.
- Whitmer is being more careful now to use the word “announced” after being called out by PolitiFact for lying about her job record.
- Whitmer did not create 30,000 auto jobs, she stitched together some press releases of job announcements and is claiming those announcements as accomplishments.
- Since Gretchen Whitmer took office, Michigan only gained 5,400 auto and auto parts jobs combined.
- This is a result of a 13,600 gain in motor vehicle manufacturing combined with a 8,200 jobs loss in motor vehicle parts manufacturing.
- The Detroit Free Press’ Clara Hendrickson previously analyzed this bogus claim on PolitiFact which rated Whitmer taking credit for job announcements as job creation as “mostly false.”
- PolitiFact: “The state has not seen a net gain of 25,000 jobs since Whitmer took office. Data shows Michigan’s auto industry is still recovering from the massive job losses suffered during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.”
- The Daily Wire: “Gretchen Whitmer Continues To Brag About Creating 25,000 Auto Jobs – But That’s Not True.”
- The Washington Free Beacon: “Michigan Governor Won’t Stop Lying to Voters About Job Gains.”
JOBS ANNOUNCED ARE NOT NEW JOBS CREATED
- In June, Whitmer announced that Ford was creating 3,200 jobs for EV production.
- Then in July Ford announced they were cutting 8,000 jobs, a quarter of all salaried workers in Michigan, as they restructure to EV production.
- In August, Ford said they were cutting 3,000 jobs as they shift focus on EV Production.
MICHIGAN’S AUTO PARTS INDUSTRY IS GETTING DECIMATED
- Whitmer does not have a plan to replace the thousands of workers losing their jobs as Michigan transitions to a Green New Deal auto economy that will result in fewer workers and less equity in Michigan’s economy.
- There are 8,200 fewer motor vehicle parts manufacturing workers in Michigan compared to when Whitmer took office.
- In April, Whitmer released her climate agenda which called for neutralizing carbon emissions by 2050.
- Whitmer’s plan “strongly emphasizes environmental justice” and to “right environmental injustices.”
- Whitmer’s plan calls for transitioning 2 million Michiganders from gas-powered cars to electric vehicles.
- Michigan’s auto infrastructure is built around the combustible engine, not EV production.
-
- Ford Chief Executive Jim Farley said that the workforce in Michigan is not properly trained to work on electric vehicles.
- Reuters: “Ford has a workforce largely hired to support a traditional combustion technology product lineup.”
- MarketWatch: “The reason for the job risk and recent cuts is clear: Electric vehicles have far fewer moving parts in their drive trains than gas-powered vehicles.”
- Brett Smith, director of technology at the Center for Automotive Research: “There’s a pretty strong chance that there will be fewer people building these cars, fewer people building the parts to these cars, and that will create challenges in some automotive communities.”
- The Economic Policy Institute estimated that shifting to electric vehicles could cost up to 75,000 workers their job nationwide.
PROUDUCTION IS MOVING TO BE UNDER THE MANAGEMENT OF OLIGARCHS IN CHINA
- In July, Stellantis announced that they are decommissioning their V-6 engine line at the Trenton Engine Complex which will be repurposed for non-manufacturing needs.
- In October, Guoxuan, a Chinese company headquartered in Shanghai, which goes by the name “Gotion” in the United States announced they will be opening up a plant in Big Rapids and will now be in the business of Michigan’s electric vehicle battery production.