Presidential candidate Donald Trump squandered no time Monday striking among his major concerns– trade– and targeting Ford by asserting the automaker is moving jobs to Mexico during the very first presidential debate.
The problem left Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton on the defensive for almost the first 10 minutes of the debate. Clinton, who supported the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) in the 1990s and initially supported the idea of the proposed Trans Pacific Partnership described that she just supports trade deals that are reasonable and benefit the U.S. economy.
“Our jobs are fleeing the nation. They are going to Mexico,” Trump said during his first response throughout the presidential debate on Monday. “So, Ford is leaving– thousands of jobs. Leaving Michigan, leaving Ohio. They are all leaving.”
Trump’s statement about Ford might be up to individual to decide. Ford is moving production of the Ford Focus and Ford C-Max from its Michigan Assembly Plant in Wayne to Mexico in 2018. Ford said in April it prepares to invest $1.6 billion to develop a new plant in Mexico and produce 2,800 jobs to construct little automobiles there.
Ford immediately responded to Trump’s comments.
Ford has more hourly employees and produces more vehicles in the U.S. than any other automaker. pic.twitter.com/k15cqknsvX
— Ford Motor Company (@Ford) September 27, 2016
@Ford Can you confirm no jobs will be lost as part of Ford's plans to build new plant in Mexico?
— Elizabeth Schulze (@eschulze9) September 27, 2016
