U.S. automakers Ford and General Motors will donate $1 million each, plus vehicles, to President-elect Donald Trump’s inauguration next month.
In 2021, Ford gave $250,000 to President Biden’s inauguration and GM gave $500,000.
Policies on tariffs and electric vehicles that are being considered by the incoming administration would likely affect Detroit carmakers, including Ford and GM. The companies have yet to achieve profits on EVs as sales, while growing, have lagged projections.
Republican Trump has threatened significant tariffs on imports from Mexico and Canada, as well as killing an EV tax credit that benefits the two automakers.
Ford CEO Jim Farley told reporters earlier this month he was optimistic that Trump would be open to hearing the U.S. automaker's perspectives on these actions. Similarly, GM CEO Mary Barra said that Trump "listens very intently" based on their past conversations. Both CEOs say Trump and their companies share the goal of strong U.S. manufacturing and employment. (Detroit Fee Press)
"(Given) Ford's employment profile and importance in the U.S. economy and manufacturing, you can imagine the administration will be very interested in Ford's point of view," Farley said.
Other major companies have also announced $1 million donations to Trump’s inauguration, including Amazon and Meta Platforms. OpenAI CEO Sam Altma said he would donate the same amount from his personal funds.
Others include $2 million from Robinhood Markets and $1 million each from both Uber and its CEO, Dara Khosrowshahi. [...]
Hedge fund manager Ken Griffin also said he plans to give $1 million to the tax-exempt inaugural committee, Bloomberg reported. Other donations from finance leaders are reportedly in the works.
Empowered by a decisive electoral victory, Trump has vowed to revamp U.S. economic policy in a way that could have outsized benefits for a few favored industries, like fossil fuels.
At the same time, he has telegraphed the value, both personal and political, that he places on face-to-face meetings and public praise from chief executives of the world's largest companies.
"EVERYBODY WANTS TO BE MY FRIEND!!!" Trump wrote Thursday in a post on Truth Social, the social media app run by his own tech company.
Many of those CEOs have already made, or are planning to make, trips to Mar-a-Lago, Trump's Palm Beach resort and de facto transition headquarters, as they seek to gain influence with and access to the incoming White House.
To that end, Trump's inaugural committee presents a "unique opportunity," said Brendan Glavin, director of research for the money-in-politics nonprofit OpenSecrets, in an interview. [...]
"It really is a great opportunity for them to curry favor with the incoming administration," Glavin said. (CNBC)
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For his 2017 inauguration, Trump raised a record $106.7 million.
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