It is going to be hard to stay current on my list of reasons to vote for or against President Joe Biden and former president Trump in the 2024 presidential elections. They are both continually in the national spotlight for strong words and actions that will tip the scales when voters cast their ballots.
Reason Number 3 to vote against President Biden and Trump: Biden became the first president in history to insert himself directly in negotiations between the United Auto Workers (UAW) and the three largest U.S. auto manufacturers. He joined the picket line. It was a mistake. He fails to understand that strikes are forms of economic negotiations. There is no right and wrong. It is an economic transaction.
The president of the United States should care as much about the health of the automakers for fostering prosperity in the country as he does for the health and prosperity of its workforce. He should be offering solutions to the impasse, not cheerleading for one side or the other.
Trump has also taken the UAW side instead of staying impartial. Both are looking for auto worker votes in 2024, but should be aware that only 11% of U.S. workers are unionized. The added reality is that unions get most of their strength in the public sector where unionization is at 33%, five times higher than the private sector workforce.
Unions are desperately trying to showcase their values for workers even as companies go to extraordinary lengths in a hot labor market to recruit and compensate their work forces. When TLC (tender loving care) is the order of the day, unions have fewer abuses and matters to correct.
Long and short, the union vote from the private sector is less of a factor in who wins the presidency than ever before.
Reason Number 4 against Trump: A New York judge has ruled that Trump vastly overstated the value of his real estate holdings. That kind of financial misrepresentation is fraud, and the Trump organization may be paying some huge penalties and may lose its right to do business in New York.
In perspective, Trump inherited most of his wealth from his father, and he has bankrupted at least six companies to the detriment of his lenders, trade vendors and employees. He was never a business genius; but mostly a business loser.
