Inside a Trump Ad Slamming Harris Over the Push for Electric Vehicles

Scaremongering in Michigan, an ad claims that the vice president wants to “end all gas-powered cars” and that her policies would lead to “massive layoffs.”

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Former President Donald J. Trump’s campaign is running this 30-second ad about jobs and the economy in seven television markets in Michigan, spending $952,462 so far, according to AdImpact. The ad denounces Vice President Kamala Harris on a key topic in a state where the auto industry is politically dominant: the rise of electric vehicles.

Here’s a look at the ad, its accuracy and its main takeaway.

On the Screen

Video shows car bodies on a production line, followed by Ms. Harris, wearing a mask, charging an electric vehicle. As more clips of auto production unfold, a photo of Ms. Harris looking perturbed fills half the screen, followed by one of a man in a blue collared shirt with his arms folded unhappily. Headlines, some of them citing right-leaning outlets, bolster the ad’s case against her: “Harris to End All Gas Powered Cars.” “Ford Reports Loss on Every EV Sold.” “GM Scales Back EV Plans.” “Massive Layoffs Hit Michigan.” “Mounting Auto Industry Layoffs.”

The ad then offers a contrast: As a headline promises, “Trump Will Protect Auto Jobs,” he is shown touring a factory, his supporters are shown waving flags and holding signs suggesting they are autoworkers, he is shown pointing to listeners at a speech at a nonunion factory in Michigan, and he is seen at his rallies and shaking hands with construction workers.

Credit…Donald J. Trump for President

The Script

Narrator

“Attention autoworkers: Kamala Harris wants to end all gas-powered cars. Crazy but true. Harris’s push requiring electric-only is failing big. And Michigan autoworkers are paying the price. Massive layoffs already started. You could be next. President Trump’s committed to protecting America’s autoworkers. Standing up to China’s unfair trade. Fixing the economy. And ending inflation.”

Accuracy

Ms. Harris does not want to “end all gas-powered cars,” and the ad wildly overstates the goals of the Biden administration’s initiatives on electric vehicles. In 2021, President Biden announced a goal of having 50 percent of all new vehicles sold be electric powered by 2030. Electric vehicles now account for less than 10 percent of all new cars sold.

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