General Motors to close plant in Ohio where Trump promised jobs were 'all coming back'


Remarks President Trump made to residents of Lordstown, Ohio, last summer have not aged well.
General Motors is set to cease production at a plant in Lordstown next year as part of a plan to lay off 15 percent of salaried workers in North America, The Washington Post reports. This plant is not far from where Trump held a rally in July 2017 during which he told the crowd that factory jobs in Ohio are "all coming back." He also offered his supporters some advice: "Don't move. Don't sell your house." Trump said the Lordstown community would "fill up those factories or rip them down and build new ones."
After hearing the news of the Lordstown plant's shutdown, Rep. Tim Ryan (D-Ohio) reminded Trump of his promise on Twitter, urging the president to "keep his word" and saying he "owes this community an explanation." Ryan added that the "massive corporate tax cut" Trump passed clearly did not help the community, a sentiment reflected by Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio). "Ohio taxpayers rescued GM," Brown wrote, pointing out that GM recently opted to open a new plant in Mexico, "and it's shameful that the company is now abandoning the Mahoning Valley and laying off workers right before the holidays."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Brendan worked as a culture writer at The Week from 2018 to 2023, covering the entertainment industry, including film reviews, television recaps, awards season, the box office, major movie franchises and Hollywood gossip. He has written about film and television for outlets including Bloody Disgusting, Showbiz Cheat Sheet, Heavy and The Celebrity Cafe.
-
Qatar luxury jet gift clouds Trump trip to Mideast
speed read Qatar is said to be presenting Trump with a $400 million plane, which would be among the biggest foreign gifts ever received by the US government
-
Trump taps Fox News' Pirro for DC attorney post
speed read The president has named Fox News host Jeanine Pirro to be the top federal prosecutor for Washington, replacing acting US Attorney Ed Martin
-
Trump, UK's Starmer outline first post-tariff deal
speed read President Donald Trump and British Prime Minister Kier Starmer struck a 'historic' agreement to eliminate some of the former's imposed tariffs
-
Fed leaves rates unchanged as Powell warns on tariffs
speed read The Federal Reserve says the risks of higher inflation and unemployment are increasing under Trump's tariffs
-
Denmark to grill US envoy on Greenland spying report
speed read The Trump administration ramped up spying on Greenland, says reporting by The Wall Street Journal
-
Supreme Court allows transgender troop ban
speed read The US Supreme Court will let the Trump administration begin executing its ban on transgender military service members
-
Hollywood confounded by Trump's film tariff idea
speed read President Trump proposed a '100% tariff' on movies 'produced in foreign lands'
-
Trump offers migrants $1,000 to 'self-deport'
speed read The Department of Homeland Security says undocumented immigrants can leave the US in a more 'dignified way'