DEARBORN, Mich. — Without mentioning his predecessor's name, President Joe Biden criticized former President Donald Trump while visiting a Ford Motor Co. plant in Dearborn on Tuesday, saying Trump's rollback of fuel standards delayed an inevitable move to electric vehicles.
Biden, visiting southeastern Michigan for the first time as president ahead of Ford's unveiling of its all-electric F-150 Lightning pickup Wednesday, also said Trump let key tax credits to encourage electric vehicle sales expire and never came through with a much-promised plan to fund improvements to roads, bridges and other infrastructure.
"(They) didn’t do a damn thing," he said of Trump's administration. "They didn’t get the job done."
While president, Trump had moved to reduce or freeze targets to force automakers to increase fuel efficiency, setting off a legal fight with California and other states. With Biden signaling his administration will put gas mileage goals back in place, electric vehicles sales are expected to be a key part of automakers hitting those goals in the future.
Biden also has called for $174 billion to be included in his own infrastructure bill to go toward helping to install some 500,000 charging stations nationwide and encouraging manufacturers and consumers to adopt electric vehicles. That said, some Republicans are wary of the plans and incentives, with electric vehicles so far making up only a small portion of the cars on U.S. highways.
Speaking before Biden, Ford Executive Chairman Bill Ford called the unveiling of the new F-150 — America's best-selling vehicle — "a defining moment" in the history of both the company and the U.S. as it battles climate change. "It ushers in a cleaner future for our country," Ford said.
He also told Biden, who introduced himself at the event as "a car guy," "I promise you it’s going to give your Corvette a run for its money,"
In his 25-minute speech, Biden said it's not only vital for the U.S. to adopt electric vehicles as a way to cut greenhouse gases that contribute to climate change but to ensure that those vehicles are made in America by union workers. UAW President Rory Gamble was among those speaking ahead of Biden, who has made no bones about his advocacy for union jobs being connected to the fight against climate change.
But Biden noted that much of the battery technology and associated supply chains vital to electric cars is controlled by Chinese companies, a circumstance he said must change or American manufacturers — and workers — will lose out.
"Right now, China is leading in this race," he said. "It's a fact. ... We can't let that be sustained. ... They think they're going to win. Well, I've got news for them. They will not win this race. We won't let them."
Biden noted the Senate voted Monday to proceed on legislation intended to combat China's ambitions and potentially invigorate American investments in semiconductors, a worldwide shortage of which has recently crippled the auto industry. He also pointed out efforts to ensure that American-made products are used in government contracts; Michigan Sens. Debbie Stabenow and Gary Peters, both Democrats, are pushing for legislation that would make it harder for government agencies to skirt that requirement.
Dozens of state and local officials and community leaders turned out for the visit, including Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, who got a shout-out from the president, state Attorney General Dana Nessel and Democratic members of the state's U.S. House delegation. Biden was introduced by Angela Powell, a forklift operator for Ford and a UAW member.
The crowd also included Detroit Mayor Mike Duggan, Dearborn Mayor John O'Reilly Jr., Wayne County Executive Warren Evans, former Gov. Jim Blanchard and the Rev. Wendell Anthony, the president of Detroit's NAACP, among many others.
Speaking from a lectern before more than a dozen current and classic Ford vehicles, including the F-150 and the Bronco, Biden — whose father managed car dealerships in Delaware — said he'd had a chance to see the new truck and that he'd "sure like to drive it."
Ford gave him the chance and he took it on a quick spin.
"This sucker’s quick,” he told a reporter as he drove by with the window down.
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(Staff writers Phoebe Wall Howard, Niraj Warikoo and Miriam Marini contributed to this story.)
