Is Trump Good For Jobs? Ford Cancels Mexico Plant, Invests In Michigan

Ford canceled plans Tuesday to build a $1.6 billion automobile factory in Mexico and announced it would instead invest $700 million in its Michigan plant, after President-elect Donald Trump lashed out at automakers for investing outside of the U.S.

The giant automaker will no longer pursue its plan to manufacture in San Luis Potosi, Mexico, and instead spend money expanding its U.S. location in Flat Rock, Michigan. Ford CEO Mark Fields spoke with Trump and stated that this decision was partially based on a "more positive manufacturing environment" under the president-elect, who takes office Jan. 20, according to CNN.

"We're also encouraged by the pro-growth policies that President-elect Trump and the new Congress have indicated that they will pursue," Fields said, according to NBC.

Ford's decision to boost production in Michigan, the automobile manufacturing hub of the U.S., would create 700 jobs, Fields said. Factory workers on site reportedly gathered and applauded the announcement. The Flat Rock plant will produce Ford's new electric SUV in 2020 and a self-driving vehicle in 2021. Ford also stated it would continue production of its Focus model at an existing plant in Hermosillo, Mexico.

Trump's campaign pledge to "Make America Great Again" included calls for an increase in domestic manufacturing and ditching free-trade deals that he and his supporters accuse of taking jobs from U.S. citizens by incentivizing businesses to move abroad for cheaper labor. Trump criticized the U.S.' top automaker General Motors in a tweet Tuesday, accusing the company of manufacturing models of its Chevrolet Cruze in Mexico before shipping them to the U.S. He threatened to impose a "big border tax" on the auto giant.

Trump took credit in November for convincing Ford Chairman Bill Ford Jr. not to move a Kentucky plant to Mexico. Trump shared Ford's announcement Tuesday via a Fox News article on Twitter and later posted an Instagram photo in support of his campaign captioned, "‪Instead of driving jobs and wealth away, AMERICA will become the world's great magnet for INNOVATION and JOB CREATION."