'Lasting political consequences' as UAW files labor charges against Trump, Musk over X interview

13 August 2024

During the 2024 Republican National Convention in Milwaukee, one of the most unlikely speakers was Teamsters President Sean O'Brien. But now, GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump is facing a lawsuit from another major labor union: the United Auto Workers (UAW).

The UAW announced the lawsuit on X, formerly Twitter, on Tuesday morning, August 13 — the day after X CEO Elon Musk interviewed Trump on the platform.

During the interview, Trump praised Musk (who is also CEO of Tesla and SpaceX) for firing striking workers.

Trump told the X/Tesla/Space-X CEO, "I mean, I look at what you do. You walk in, you say: You want to quit? They go on strike — I won't mention the name of the company, but they go on strike — and you say: That's OK, you’re all gone. You're all gone. So, every one of you is gone."

The next day on X, the UAW announced it had "filed federal labor charges against disgraced billionaires Donald Trump and Elon Musk for their illegal attempts to threaten and intimidate workers who stand up for themselves by engaging in protected concerted activity, such as strikes."

The UAW tweeted, "After significant technical delays on X, formerly known as Twitter, Trump and Musk had a rambling, disorganized conversation on Monday evening in front of over one million listeners in which they advocated for the illegal firing of striking workers…. Under federal law, workers cannot be fired for going on strike, and threatening to do so is illegal under the National Labor Relations Act."

The union, in its X thread, posted an official statement from UAW President Shawn Fain, "When we say Donald Trump is a scab, this is what we mean. When we say Trump stands against everything our union stands for, this is what we mean."

UAW also tweeted audio of Trump's interview with Musk, arguing, "He's for the billionaires. Not for you. Donald Trump is a scab."

In response to the UAW's announcement, The Atlantic's Ronald Brownstein tweeted, "Out of the entire meandering conversation between Musk & Trump, the exchanges in which Trump praised Musk for firing striking workers may have the longest lasting political consequences."

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