Trump Demands All Foreign Firms ‘Hire and Train American’ After Hyundai ICE Raid

(Alex Brandon/AP)

President Donald Trump demanded “all Foreign Companies” in the U.S. “hire and train American Workers” and that companies who bring “smart workers” to the U.S. do so “LEGALLY” after nearly 500 workers were swept up in an immigration raid at a Hyundai-LG battery plant in Georgia.

The Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operation on Thursday saw detained employees, which included South Koreans, Mexicans, and others, filmed in handcuffs and ankle chains as they were loaded onto buses.

Taking to Truth Social in the early hours of Monday morning, Trump wrote:

Following the Immigration Enforcement Operation on the Hyundai Battery Plant in Georgia, I am hereby calling on all Foreign Companies investing in the United States to please respect our Nation’s Immigration Laws. Your Investments are welcome, and we encourage you to LEGALLY bring your very smart people, with great technical talent, to build World Class products, and we will make it quickly and legally possible for you to do so. What we ask in return is that you hire and train American Workers. Together, we will all work hard to make our Nation not only productive, but closer in unity than ever before. Thank you for your attention to this matter! DONALD J. TRUMP, PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

The remarks came just hours after South Korea confirmed that 300 of its nationals detained in the raid would be released and flown home.

Kang Hoon-sik, chief of staff to President Lee Jae Myung, said “only administrative procedures remain” before a chartered flight returns the workers.

South Korean officials condemned the release of the images as “lamentable,” warning that the spectacle threatened to undercut recent trade talks between the allies.

“The economic activities of our companies that have invested in the US and the rights and interests of our citizens should not be unfairly infringed upon during the course of US law enforcement,” said First Vice Foreign Minister Park Yoon-joo.

Trump, however, dismissed diplomatic unease. “I would say that they were illegal aliens and ICE was just doing its job,” he told reporters on Friday.

The president is expected to visit South Korea next month for an APEC summit.