President Donald Trump on Thursday stated General Motors decision to move much of its focus to electric vehicles will not succeed, and he said a new trade deal will make it harder for the company to shift work to other countries.
GM last year stated it prepared to release 20 new electric vehicles by 2023 as it deals with increasing regulatory requirements for zero-emission vehicles in China and others.
The largest U.S. automaker has come under massive criticism in Washington following its announcement on November 26 plans to close four plants in the United States and remove up to 15,000 jobs in North America.
Trump doubted the automaker’s CEO Mary Barra’s business strategy in an interview with Fox News.
“They’ve changed the whole model of General Motors. They’ve gone to all-electric. All-electric is not going to work … It’s wonderful to have it as a percentage of your cars, but going into this model that she’s doing I think is a mistake,” Trump stated.
Barra was on Capitol Hill for two days of meetings previous week to talk about the company’s decision with angry lawmakers from states where plants are shutting down. “To tell me a couple weeks before Christmas that’s she going to close in Ohio and Michigan – not acceptable to me,” Trump stated.
