GM announces $1 billion investment in U.S., Trump takes credit
General Motors announced a $1 billion investment plan in the U.S. that some are saying is a direct result from Donald Trump and his tweets.
"The car companies are afraid of Donald Tump. He tweets something out and you get half the country mad at you. We've never seen that happen before," said John McElroy, host of Autoline and a WWJ automotive analyst.
Within hours after GM made its announcement, Trump was tweeting, in two tweets:
"With all of the jobs I am bringing back into the U.S. (even before taking office), with all of the new auto plants coming back into our.....country and with the massive cost reductions I have negotiated on military purchases and more, I believe the people are seeing "big stuff."
Some disagree with Trump's statement.
"General Motors had this in place prior to Donald Trump so nobody should be taking credit for this except General Motors," Autumn Rogers said.
"Everybody -- GM, Ford, FCA, even Hyundai, even Toyota now are coming out and saying 'look how much we're doing for America. It's all about Donald Trump. They're repackaging what they would have announced that never would've gotten any attention - now it does," McElroy said.
General Motors issued this statement:
"As the U.S. manufacturing base increases its competitiveness, we are able to further increase our investment, resulting in more jobs for America and better results for our owners."
Donald Trump was not mentioned.
The $1 billion investment is in addition to the $2.9 billion announced last year by GM. The specifics, as to which plants will get that billion dollars, will be announced later in the year.
McElroy said the car companies wouldn't be making the headlines if it wasn't for Trump's tweets.
"They're shooting off all the fireworks and making big headlines all about this investment because of Donald Trump," McElroy said.
How much impact does Donald Trump really have on General Motors? That remains to be seen but some say some say that if he wants to take credit for keeping jobs in the United States, he should mention when he's sworn in as President on Friday.