Vice presidential candidate J.D. Vance defended Donald Trump’s comments about firing striking workers at a rally in Michigan, saying Wednesday that Trump was not talking about firing auto workers in the state, but instead about “firing the employees of Twitter.”
“He was talking about firing the Twitter employees who are using their power to censor American citizens,” Vance told the crowd in rural Kent County. “Those people should be fired. If you’re censoring Americans from exercising their First Amendment rights, you should absolutely be fired. Donald Trump is absolutely right.”
The Trump-Vance campaign did not immediately respond to a request for clarification on whether Vance was referring to X workers who were on strike or not.
It is illegal to fire striking employees or employees who threaten to strike, as doing so is a violation of the National Labor Relations Act.
Vance’s explanation of Trump’s comments comes after former President Musk told X in an interview on Monday that he “won’t name the company, but they go on strike and you say, ‘That’s OK, y’all out.'”
“You walk in and say, ‘You want to quit?’ And they go on strike,” Trump said of Musk.
Trump’s comments about striking workers drew backlash from United Auto Workers President Shawn Fain, who called Trump a “strike dog” in a statement attacking him for siding with Musk. The UAW also filed unfair labor practice charges against Trump and Musk on Tuesday over their comments about firing striking workers.
Trump’s comments came as the former president tries to gain a foothold among union members after most unions backed Vice President Kamala Harris after President Joe Biden dropped out of the race.
The comments also angered Sean O’Brien, president of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, who told POLITICO that “firing workers for organizing, striking and exercising their rights as Americans is economic terrorism.”
Vance was careful to note Wednesday that he liked O’Brien, but he was wrong in his interpretation of Trump’s comments. Teamsters has not made an endorsement in the 2024 presidential race.
“I like the Teamsters president,” Vance said. “I think he’s a good guy, but he’s wrong, because Donald Trump didn’t talk about laying off auto workers in Michigan.”
