Former U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday (September 27) that it does not matter whether striking auto union workers can get a favorable deal in negotiations with large traditional auto companies.Because the automotive industry's transition to electric vehicles will soon make these traditional car companies obsolete. "It doesn't matter what you get, because in two years you're all going to be broke," Trump told blue-collar workers gathered at a non-union auto supplier outside Detroit, Michigan.

Trump has always argued thatPresident Biden’s push to boost electric vehicle production through incentives will kill jobs across the industry.

The move reflects Trump's decision to intervene in the escalating dispute between members of the United Auto Workers (UAW) union and the three major U.S. automakers.

Just the day before (Tuesday), Biden arrived at the site of the UAW strike action in Michigan and delivered a brief speech on the picket line to show solidarity with UAW members and support their call for a 40% wage increase and improved working conditions.

It underscores the importance both men place on gaining support from working-class voters in Michigan and other battleground states in next year's presidential race.

Currently, Trump is expected to win the Republican nomination and challenge Biden for the presidency, and Michigan is a key state. In the 2020 Michigan election, he lost by 154,000 votes.

The state was one of three Rust Belt states that Trump won in 2016 but lost in 2020, along with Pennsylvania and Wisconsin. These three states are likely to be critical to both parties next year.

Biden's campaign issued a statement when Trump spoke, saying, "Donald Trump is misleading on President Biden's agenda to distract from his failures to cut taxes, close factories, and more."