Former South Carolina Republican Governor Nikki Haley—a 2024 GOP hopeful—was widely criticized after her attempt to smear President Joe Biden as "the most pro-union President" backfired.
Speaking on Fox News, Haley addressed the ongoing United Auto Workers (UAW) strike against the three unionized automakers in the United States, which are Ford Motor Company, General Motors, and Stellantis.
UAW President Shawn Fain has called for changes such as the end of a tiered employment system that underpays newer employees and improved worker protections against plant closures as electric vehicle production increases, demands that Haley is blaming on Biden.
Haley said having a President who is "constantly saying, 'Go union, go union!'" is bad for the country because "unions get emboldened and they start asking for things."
You can hear what Haley said in the video below.
Nikki Haley on UAW strike on Fox: "When you have a president that's constantly saying go union, go union, this is what you get. The unions get emboldened, and then they start asking for things that companies have a tough time doing." https://t.co/0rY62Q9cUG— David Weigel (@David Weigel) 1695153893
Haley said:
"It tells you that when you have the most pro-union President and he touts that he is emboldening the unions, this is what you get. And I'll tell you who pays for it, it is the taxpayers."
"You know, here from what I understand, the union is asking for a 40 percent raise. The companies have come back with a 20 percent raise. I think any of the taxpayers would love to have a 20 percent raise and think that's great, but the problem is, you know we're all going to suffer from this."
"This is going to cause things to go up. This is going to last a while."
"When you have a President that's constantly saying 'go union, go union,' this is what you get. The unions get emboldened and then they start asking for things that companies have a tough time doing."
As Meidas Touch put it in their post about Haley's remarks:
"Nikki Haley just handed Biden the perfect campaign ad."
Many agreed with that sentiment and slammed Haley's remarks.
Biden, affectionately dubbed "Union Joe" due to his unwavering support for labor throughout his career, remains steadfast in his support of UAW, urging the major automobile corporations to compensate their employees fairly, emphasizing the need for workers to receive their rightful earnings.
Despite the substantial profits recorded by these automakers in recent years, this prosperity has not translated into improved conditions for their workforce. For instance, at GM, the CEO's salary is a staggering 361 times higher than that of assembly line workers.
Haley, meanwhile, has historically pushed back against unions, and in 2014, during her tenure as South Carolina's governor, said she didn't want unions in the state because “we don’t want to taint the water."
She has bragged about being a "union buster" because "we didn’t encourage middlemen between companies and their workers.”
@GavinNewsom/X
