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Foxconn tells the story Trump wants US to hear: Project is good news counterpoint to Harley
The Financial Times ^ | June 28, 2018 | Patti Waldmeir in Mt Pleasant, Wisconsin

Posted on 06/27/2018 9:24:07 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet

When Foxconn breaks ground on Thursday on a $10bn LCD manufacturing complex in Wisconsin, President Donald Trump will be there to claim credit for securing the Taiwanese group’s promise to deliver 13,000 jobs.

But while Mr Trump helps Foxconn celebrate in Racine county, Wisconsin — a key swing district that helped him win the presidency in 2016 — just up the road at Harley-Davidson, executives will be figuring out who will lose their jobs, after the company said it must offshore production to battle retaliatory EU trade tariffs.

That landed Harley in the presidential doghouse. In a series of early morning tweets on Tuesday, Mr Trump lashed out at the company, gleefully forecasting more offshoring will be the “beginning of the end” for the iconic American brand....

(Excerpt) Read more at ft.com ...


TOPICS: Business/Economy; Culture/Society; Government; Politics/Elections; US: Wisconsin
KEYWORDS: china; foxconn; harleydavidson; jobs; racinecounty; taiwan; terrygou; trump; wisconsin
13,000 good jobs are nothing to sneeze at.
1 posted on 06/27/2018 9:24:07 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

ft.com appears to be a pay site.


2 posted on 06/27/2018 9:34:22 PM PDT by Boomer (Leftism is the Mental/Moral Equivalent of End Stage Cancer)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet
Harley has been hurting, and I understand why they feel that they need substantial foreign sales to survive. That said, their appeal is, in part, the nostalgic rough and ready American image they project. If they lose that American heritage, while chasing foreign markets, they will wind up unsuccessful both in America and abroad. They need to be true to their roots, and add to that some innovation. High torque electric bikes, Harley ‘ninja-type’ bikes, and modernization of their ‘hogs’ - while also producing their classic Harley's.
3 posted on 06/27/2018 9:37:42 PM PDT by neverevergiveup
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

actually, i have no problem with Harley at all. sometimes i wish the President would just take a chill pill. they’re moving to where the labor is. they have to deal with the country where they want to sell.

the problem with the cheap labor express is that they import labor as a quasi gov’t subsidy in order to maximize their profit. after they finish exploiting that labor, legal or illegal, their former workers are then dumped back here on us taxpayers. the company just walks away with profit. meanwhile our entry level workforce is shut out of those opportunities. our indigenous industry is shut down.

If they want cheap labor, they should move their operation to the countries where it is. that’s fine with me.

the cheap labor exploiters can either leave businesses that they can’t sustain with out subsidized illegal or legal cheap labor, or take more reasonable profit and reduce production to fit our local economy, while employing American workers to produce a much higher quality product for the American consumer in America. that improves and maintains American families, culture and society instead of destroying it as these companies now do.


4 posted on 06/27/2018 9:44:33 PM PDT by dadfly
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

HD acted too quickly. Most of the time the impact of tariffs takes years to filter down, and in this case especially when we know Trump is using them as a negotiating tool to get better trade deals with our key trading partners, it is precipitous to react so early. In fact I suspect HD is using the tariffs as an excuse to pull production out of the US that they’ve wanted to do anyway, as those decisions are not made overnight. This isn’t the first time they’ve threatened and maybe it’s time to let them go and maybe feel some pain.

Are HD customers more closely associated with Trump’s America First policy than globalism?


5 posted on 06/27/2018 9:53:51 PM PDT by bigbob (Trust Sessions. Trust the Plan.)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

They didn’t wake up one morning and determine their viability is imperiled because of Trump.

No, a company this size with that many employees had been in negotiations with the country they will manufacture in, settled thingsblime taxes and incentives what the current talent pool is and how many there are to fill specific jobs.

They had to have worked for years to settle on the site, submit business plan, architecture, public infrastructure they will be required to support.

And lastly “Permitting”


6 posted on 06/27/2018 10:05:07 PM PDT by Vendome (I've Gotta Be Me https://youtu.be/wH-pk2vZGw2M)
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To: neverevergiveup

If only Harley would build a true competitive bike against the Goldwing. Not a V twin, not a four, but a similar if not better boxer motor, shed the cast iron parts, make it quiet, comfortable, powerful.
To me a die-hard Goldwing owner the next best bike is the Indian or the BMW, the Indian though is good but still a Vtwin.


7 posted on 06/27/2018 10:31:08 PM PDT by Daniel Ramsey (Thank YOU President Trump, finally we can do what America does best, to be the best)
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To: bigbob

Harley is hardly the only V twin kid on the American block, with Indian and Victory and no name customs.

Why would Harley need to move all overseas? Build export models overseas.


8 posted on 06/27/2018 10:38:41 PM PDT by HiTech RedNeck (Tryin' hard to win the No-Bull Prize.)
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To: bigbob

It’s so much about borrowing the image than knotty issues of trade policy today.


9 posted on 06/27/2018 10:40:22 PM PDT by HiTech RedNeck (Tryin' hard to win the No-Bull Prize.)
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To: bigbob

So much more...


10 posted on 06/27/2018 10:40:47 PM PDT by HiTech RedNeck (Tryin' hard to win the No-Bull Prize.)
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To: dadfly

Trump is vision driven, but he isn’t always the best to deal with the devils in the details. For that reason alone we ought to be careful to remember “in God we trust” rather than “in Trump we trust.”


11 posted on 06/27/2018 10:49:19 PM PDT by HiTech RedNeck (Tryin' hard to win the No-Bull Prize.)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

I hate to see Harley go, but it looks like it has figured its bread will be better buttered overseas. USA chic. Like a Chinese cowboy.


12 posted on 06/27/2018 10:56:06 PM PDT by HiTech RedNeck (Tryin' hard to win the No-Bull Prize.)
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To: Daniel Ramsey

Harleys ca be tuned to be as quiet as any other bike.

People detune them on purpose.


13 posted on 06/27/2018 11:05:34 PM PDT by Secret Agent Man ( Gone Galt; Not averse to Going Bronson.)
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To: HiTech RedNeck

The harley market of buyers is saturated.

The buyer market numbers are not growing, the demo that buys these are older folks and they have to have a lot of money for a new bike. Lots of harleys used for sale on craigslist.

There is tons of product to chose from and younger riders are nt necessarily drawn to harley bikes.


14 posted on 06/27/2018 11:09:13 PM PDT by Secret Agent Man ( Gone Galt; Not averse to Going Bronson.)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet
retaliatory EU trade tariffs???

Bassackwards again! We are implementing retaliatory trade tariffs!

If the Eurowienees keep upping it there will be NO TRADE PERIOD.

Feed em fish heads! Cause they aint gonna get no more bread from US!

15 posted on 06/27/2018 11:49:16 PM PDT by rawcatslyentist ("All that is necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing")
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

13,000 good jobs are nothing to sneeze at.


Jobs which will average 55K at entry levels, plus every benefit known, including paid vacation.

Those jobs are just those in the initial 200,000 sq ft plant itself. All the suppliers, the housing, the stores, the roads ... everything has to be built. More jobs than can be counted or supplied by WI with its 2.9% unemployment rate.

Foxconn is not just another factory plant, but an entire city. Even Silicon Valley may not be its equal when it is all built.


16 posted on 06/28/2018 1:54:44 AM PDT by PIF (They came for me and mine ... now it is your turn ...)
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To: 2ndDivisionVet

H-D screwed the pooch bigly here.


17 posted on 06/28/2018 7:12:52 AM PDT by Arm_Bears (Hey, Rocky--Watch me pull a rabbit out of my hat!)
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To: neverevergiveup

Harleys are great if you want to cruise at 58 mph or have your teeth rattle out of your head.

If you want to go fast, there are much better options.


18 posted on 06/28/2018 8:49:02 AM PDT by willyd (I for one welcome our NSA overlords)
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To: HiTech RedNeck

Amen bro. God put Trump where he is. when i occasionally get frustrated with him, i need remember that.


19 posted on 06/28/2018 9:08:50 AM PDT by dadfly
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