UAW Striker Snubs Trump’s Upcoming Speech to Union Members: ‘He Didn’t Support Us Back When He Was President’

A member of the United Auto Workers labor union shunned Donald Trump over his upcoming speech to her colleagues, denouncing the expected show of support as a politically motivated sham.

The former president reportedly plans to skip the second GOP primary debate of the 2024 presidential election in order to speak with autoworkers and union members in Detroit. The plan is expected to gravitate around UAW’s dispute with Ford Motor Company, General Motors, and Stellantis as the striking workers demand contract renegotiations with the Big Three.

Trump has expressed sympathy for the striking workers (while criticizing their leaders), so his reported plan indicates he intends to curry favor with those workers and union members. NBC News’ Shaquille Brewster reported from Detroit on Tuesday though, noting that the UAW and the Trump campaign haven’t spoken to each other to make arrangements yet.

Brewster also shared a conversation he had with striking UAW member Peggy Medillin, who said, “It would be nice if [politicians] were actually out here doing it for real instead of just for votes.” She later clarified that she was talking about Trump, assessing he’s only coming to Detroit to score political points.

“He did not support us before, back when he was president,” she said. Medillin didn’t spare President Joe Biden though, accusing him of causing the build-up to the strike:

Biden is the one with electrification and basically forcing the Big Three to go electrified. So I think its just for votes.

Medillin’s comments come after UAW President Shawn Fain scoffed at Trump ahead of his visit.

“Every fiber of our union is being poured into fighting the billionaire class and an economy that enriches people like Donald Trump at the expense of workers,” said Fain. “We can’t keep electing billionaires and millionaires that don’t have any understanding what it is like to live paycheck to paycheck and struggle to get by and expecting them to solve the problems of the working class.”

Watch above via MSNBC.