Former President Donald Trump made remarks at a rally in Ohio on Saturday about the automotive industry and foreign countries building factories in Mexico, stating, “We’re going to put a 100% tariff on every single car that comes across the line, and you’re not going to be able to sell those cars. If I get elected — now if I don’t get elected it’s going to be a bloodbath for the whole — that’s going to be the least of it, it’s going to be a bloodbath for the country, that’ll be the least of it. But they’re not going to sell those cars, they’re building massive factories.”
In response to Trump’s choice of words, a number of mainstream media publications have taken the remarks out of context (see here and here for examples). Trump responded on Truth Social:
The Fake News Media, and their Democrat Partners in the destruction of our Nation, pretended to be shocked at my use of the word BLOODBATH, even though they fully understood that I was simply referring to imports allowed by Crooked Joe Biden, which are killing the automobile industry. The United Auto Workers, but not their leadership, fully understand what I mean. With the Electric Car Mandate being pushed by Biden, there soon won’t be any cars made in the USA — UNLESS I’M ELECTED PRESIDENT, IN WHICH CASE AUTO MANUFACTURING WILL THRIVE LIKE NEVER BEFORE!!! MAGA2024
Former Vice President Mike Pence, who stated on Friday that he will not be endorsing Trump, said on CBS’s Face the Nation yesterday, “The president was clearly talking about the impact of imports devastating the American automotive industry.”
