It's a little-known secret in American politics that most of the nation's largest labor unions have long been client organizations of the Democratic Party. In presidential election years, it's generally assumed that these unions will support the party's candidates, regardless of the voting habits of their rank-and-file members.
Some have been quick to endorse others, but not others. Vice President Kamala Harris barely had time for the United Auto Workers to purchase her campaign letterhead. Weighed With approval granted on July 31, union leaders made the move despite the reality of a Biden-Harris administration. Electric vehicles mandatory The companies they work for are losing billions of dollars every year in a utopian effort to force people to pay premiums for cars they can't rely on when the going gets tough, and many of their members' jobs are at risk. (Related: David Blackmon: Harris doesn't want to talk about EVs — and it's easy to see why)
Despite this early movement, the UAW lagged behind the AFL-CIO by nine days. Jumped on Harris' support was rolled out so quickly that union members were probably dizzy: Speed matters when constant demands for benefits and protections from the federal government are essential to your business model, and Democrats have traditionally found the federal government the most fertile ground for plowing through it.
Given this reality, the Teamsters union made headlines this week after refusing to endorse anyone, even though Republican candidate and former President Donald Trump has overwhelming support from rank-and-file union members. This is the first time since 1996 that the Teamsters have not endorsed a Democratic candidate in an election, and only the second time since the union was founded. Teamsters President Sean O'Brien Gave a speech O'Brien's refusal to endorse Harris was not a big surprise, after he endorsed her at the Republican National Convention in July but was snubbed at the Democratic convention, but O'Brien seems well aware of the vindictiveness of Democrats against their political opponents and likely decided it would be politically unwise to loudly endorse a candidate whose party members clearly favor.
It remains to be seen whether any of these major union decisions will be wise in what is likely to be another closely contested election, but a move to back Harris comes with increased risks for the UAW amid a softening EV market pushed by American consumers and a growing challenge from Chinese EV makers to domestic car companies' dominance in the U.S. market. (Related article: Biden-Harris Administration to spend billions more on battery manufacturing as China dominates market)
Ford and General Motors Automakers, already losing billions of dollars in the EV sector despite heavy government subsidies, simply cannot afford to let Chinese automakers, who can build and sell higher-quality EVs at much cheaper prices than their American counterparts, enter the U.S. market. Now, Europe is providing an example of what could happen in the EV sector if governments let it.
EU countries have been slow to act to protect their domestic automakers from Chinese companies. Like BYD EVs began flooding the European market. EV buyers in countries like Germany and France eagerly snapped up Chinese cars, saving thousands of euros per vehicle in the process. When the EU belatedly imposed import tariffs on Chinese cars, domestic car companies responded by raising the prices of their EVs to recoup their losses.
The result was entirely predictable: EV sales in Germany Collapsed They fell by nearly 70% during the month of August, and in France they plummeted by 33%. Clearly, EU car buyers' appetite for EVs is extremely price sensitive (no one could have predicted that), and consumers are more than happy to buy gasoline cars as a cheaper alternative.
Now, as a way to deal with uncooperative buyers, the EU's climate crisis-mongering central planners are proposing to impose huge fines on car manufacturers that continue to sell the gasoline-powered cars they actually want to buy – because, of course, that's how power-crazed bureaucrats deal with it.
Given that the Biden-Harris Administration has essentially followed the EU model on EV regulation, the EU's struggles are a harbinger of what the US auto market will be like under President Harris. It's hard to believe that this is the future the UAW leadership really wants for its members.
David Blackmon is a Texas-based energy writer and consultant who worked in the oil and gas industry for 40 years and specializes in public policy and communications.
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