Skip to content
Search
Human content, AI powered search.

Latest Stories

News

Biden’s auto dilemma

Striking UAW workers picket outside a Stellantis facility in Center Line, Michigan, on Sept. 22, 2023.

Striking UAW workers picket outside a Stellantis facility in Center Line, Michigan, on Sept. 22, 2023.

REUTERS/Dieu-Nalio Chery
Willis Sparks
By Willis SparksSeptember 25, 2023
Willis Sparks
Willis Sparks is a senior editor for GZERO Daily. He is also a Director in the Global Macro practice at Eurasia Group, where he has worked since 2005. He has made speeches on international politics on every continent except Antarctica. Willis holds degrees from Brown University, the Juilliard School, Columbia University's School of International and Public Affairs, and the Institut d'Etudes Politiques in Paris. He also holds an honorary degree from the Moscow Art Theatre School. A native of Macon, Georgia, Willis has worked as a stuntman at New York's Metropolitan Opera. As a child, he declined an opportunity to spend an afternoon riding the Great American Scream Machine, a rollercoaster, with Ronald McDonald, for money. He has never regretted that decision.
See Full Bio
Make us preferred on Google

Today, President Joe Biden will join striking autoworkers on the picket line in Michigan.

Former President Donald Trump, meanwhile, will be in the Great Lake State tomorrow, but he’s expected to use a speech in Detroit to pit workers against leaders of their union, the United Auto Workers.

In some ways, Biden has the tougher political task. His image as “friend of the working man” stands at odds with the current image of his Democratic Party which, in the words of pundit and activist Paul Begala, “has gone from being the party of the factory floor to the party of the faculty lounge.” Biden’s outspoken support for labor unions – and the historical rarity of a US president joining a picket line – demonstrate his political commitment to win more working-class votes.

There’s an even more direct political calculus here. To win reelection, Biden badly needs Michigan, home to a big share of US autoworkers. The percentage of union members is also high in Wisconsin and Pennsylvania. Trump won in 2016 because he won all three of these states. Biden won in 2020 because he won them all back for Democrats.

But… Biden’s policy agenda depends heavily on support for production of electric vehicles in the battle to limit climate change. The UAW has so far refused to endorse Biden’s reelection bid, in part, according to the union’s president, because Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act has provided large financial incentives to car companies to make more electric vehicles without including guarantees for better worker pay and conditions.

That’s why this strike, and Biden’s role in it, are important 2024 election stories to watch.

uaw strikelaboreconomicspoliticsbidenstrikeus politicsus election2024 election

Latest Videos

Aliens invade the Regime!play icon
Puppet Regime

Aliens invade the Regime!

Is the US-China relationship reaching a breaking point?
Quick Take

Is the US-China relationship reaching a breaking point?

What happens when global power goes unchecked?
GZERO World Clips

What happens when global power goes unchecked?

Why Trump keeps backing down on Iran
Quick Take

Why Trump keeps backing down on Iran

Thousands of migrants cross into Spanish territory
GZERO Europe

Thousands of migrants cross into Spanish territory

Why has Britain had seven Prime Ministers in ten years?
GZERO World Clips

Why has Britain had seven Prime Ministers in ten years?

More For You

South Africa wants other African countries to write it a check, The Pentagon prepares to zap drones, Putin visits islands seized from Japan in WWII

Nearly 5,000 protesters took part in a march against illegal immigration in Pretoria.

June 30, 2026 , Pretoria, South Africa: Nearly 5,000 protesters took part in a march against illegal immigration in Pretoria. The demonstrations were reportedly organized by more than 20 anti-migrant organizations and civil society groups, including the March and March movement.

© Manash Das/ZUMA Press Wire
South Africa bills other nations for deportationsSouth Africa is asking other African countries to reimburse them for the costs of deporting their citizens, after spending nearly $18 million on a massive deportation campaign. In recent months, the government has deported or helped other nations repatriate more than 80,000 migrants as it responds [...]

Japan’s outside-the-icebox way to stay cool

Japan’s outside-the-icebox way to stay cool
Will Fitzpatrick
A Japanese company has come up with a novel way to beat the heat: a human-sized refrigerator. The “Do Hiemon” personal cooling booth blasts users with cold air and claims it can lower body temperature in just minutes. The product comes as Japan endures another punishing summer marked by temperatures over 104 degrees and a surge in heat-related [...]

How Iran turned water into a weapon

How Iran turned water into a weapon
Iran lands in the headlines a lot these days. But one recent development stood out for Americans thousands of miles from the war in the Middle East: Iran was likely behind a wave of cyberattacks targeting US water systems.Late last month, Minnesota announced that a “coordinated” cyberattack had hit more than 30 of its water systems. City and state [...]

Europe’s first full solar eclipse in decades

Europe’s first full solar eclipse in decades
Natalie Johnson
The skies over Greenland, Iceland, and Spain will briefly darken today as continental Europe experiences its first total solar eclipse in over 25 years. Millions more across Canada, the northern US, and northwest Africa will see a partial eclipse. The celestial spectacle has also revived an earthly debate: Do you really need special glasses to [...]