Yesterday, Joe Biden held an Electric Vehicle Summit at the White House, but there was something conspicuously missing, America’s largest electric vehicle producer, Tesla. The Daily Mail reports:
Joe Biden on Thursday raised eyebrows by failing to invite the world’s largest manufacturer of electric vehicles to his EV summit, after appearing to bow to union pressure.
Biden invited to the White House the heads of General Motors, Ford and Stellantis – the Dutch-owned firm which makes Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep brands.
The three firms are the three largest employers of members of the United Auto Workers union, which in April 2020 endorsed Biden, bringing the support of 400,000 workers.
The top electric vehicle made by the Big Three, GM’s Chevy Bolt, only accounted for five per cent of EV sales in 2019.
Elon Musk, the founder of Tesla, tweeted that his exclusion from the meeting was ‘seems odd’.
When someone tweeted a meme of Musk outside the White House, holding up a sign reading: ‘Hi. I make lots of EVs in the US’, Musk responded with a laughing emoji.
Teslas sold in the United States are made at its California plant, and are far more domestically sourced for parts than GM’s Chevy Bolt. The Bolt gets about three-quarters of its components, including the expensive batteries, from South Korea.
GM is building U.S. battery factories with partners that will increase its domestic content in the future, yet Tesla already gets 50-55 per cent of their components from U.S. factories.
One man tweeted: ‘Maybe if @elonmusk moved Tesla manufacturing to Mexico like Ford did for the Mach-E they would have a seat at the table?
‘Apparently good paying American jobs, making 100% Electric vehicles isn’t enough to be shown as an example of how other manufacturers should behave?’
Musk replied: ‘Irony indeed.’
Another Tesla fan tweeted: ‘Unions exist because of previous discriminatory and unfair labor practices.
‘This is why $TSLA doesn’t need a union. From Day 1, Tesla has treated their employees fair, compensating them for their hard work. Legacy Auto is already dead, inside & out.’
Musk agreed, replying: ‘Reality is total opposite of what detractors say! Biggest challenge is recruiting enough people to build cars. SF Bay Area essentially has negative unemployment, so people at our factory have several other job offers.
‘If they weren’t treated well, they would leave immediately!’
Action Line: Right-to-work states like Tennessee and Mississippi are gaining jobs fast, and Elon Musk is showing the Big Three how it can be done without unions even in heavily unionized California. If your state is trying to weigh down your business with rules that give all the power to extortionate union bosses, it’s time to look for a better America. Start with my Super States and compare to my Top 10 Best States for Survival.
