Donald Trump, during two events in the Rose Garden, contended audible truck horns on nearby Constitution Avenue were “a sign of love” for him – but they actually were there to protest low shipping rates.
“They’re protesting in favour of president Trump,” he said during an event to give the country an update on coronavirus vaccine development.
“Those are truckers that are with us all the way,” Mr Trump added, making similar comments later in the day as he honoured “heroes” of the Covid-19 outbreak.
Mr Trump’s chief of staff, former North Carolina GOP Congressman Mark Meadows, did visit the truckers on Thursday.
But they were not in the nation’s capital specifically to pay tribute to the president.
Rather, they were here to protest shipping rates that have plummeted during the pandemic. Some experts warn such rates could put some truckers and trucking firms out of business.
Rates for truckers have fallen to five-year lows, prompting warnings from such outfits as DAT, a freight industry firm.
“The current spot rates are extremely low and carriers will not be able to sustain operations very long at these levels,” DAT warned in a recent report.
