Steelworkers Feel 'Gut Punch' as Trump Plans to Block Takeover

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: Newsweek

Published Dec 04, 2024 at 6:26 AM EST


Pennsylvania steelworkers are feeling a "gut punch" after President-elect Donald Trump said he would block the $14.9 billion sale of U.S. Steel to a Japanese company.

On Monday, Trump reiterated a campaign promise, pledging on Truth Social to block the deal. He wrote: "I am totally against the once great and powerful U.S. Steel being bought by a foreign company, in this case Nippon Steel of Japan.

"Through a series of Tax Incentives and Tariffs, we will make U.S. Steel Strong and Great Again, and it will happen FAST! As President, I will block this deal from happening. Buyer Beware!!!"

In the Pittsburgh area, where U.S. Steel employs about 3,500 people, the company's sale to Nippon has proved popular. Following Trump's statement, Jason Zugai, the vice president of the United Steelworkers Local 2227 branch in West Mifflin, southeast of Pittsburgh, said: "For me, yeah, very frustrated with the news that came out last night. I didn't expect that to come out, so that was like a gut punch."

Read more: https://www.newsweek.com/pennsylvania-steelworkers-donald-trump-plans-block-us-steel-nippon-merger-1995300

[Journeyman]

1. Yeah, gonna hear that a lot: "I didn't expect that . . ." . . .

To paraphrase Mango Mussolini, "Voter Beware!!!"

[BoRaGard]

2. "Ha ha, Suckers!" - G.O.P. Felon, Inc.

[sop]

3. Trump is already stabbing his own voters in the back just weeks after the election.

Trump doesn't care if he loses their support, he's a lame duck. The rest of the GOP will suffer the consequences, unless their plan is to rig every election in the future.

[FoxNewsSucks]

16. I'm pretty sure that is their plan.

They've had 3+ decades of practice.

[cstanleytech]

20. Is anyone with more than 2 active brain cells surprised though?

[RobinA]

31. Weird

Anyone who thought Trump would sell USS to Japan probably needs help getting up in the morning. Not only did he say he would block the sale, he's all over the airwaves, tariffs, tariffs, tariffs to protect American manufacturing. While I don't believe much of anything that comes out of his mouth, when it conforms with his much stated plan to Make America Great Again, which conforms with the delusions of his constituents, I gotta believe he's not going to sell the steel industry to those other people.

[Aristus]

32. Trumpanzees have two speeds: "He says what he means!",

and: “He didn’t mean what he said!”

[Old Crank]

4. Why a gut punch?

He said he would block it if elected. They still backed him and now have buyers remorse.
Just wonder how much debt will be run up with tax breaks.

[Cheezoholic]

5. Watch him nationalize it then put one of his billionaire cronies in charge. That's Fascism in it's purist form folks n/t

[Prairie Gates]

6. plato told / him: he couldn't/ believe it(jesus

[...]

sir)it took
a nipponized bit of
the old sixth

avenue
el;in the top of his head:to tell

him

[tanyev]

7. Here they come, Jason.

Zugai said he was a Trump supporter who helped organize trips of steel workers to Trump rallies. He even met with Trump one-on-one and said the president-elect had promised to take another look at the Nippon deal based on the support of the workers.

https://meidasnews.com/news/union-workers-furious-trump-is-opposing-u-s-steel-sale

[uncledad]

8. Gut Punch?

Stump said he was going to shitcan the deal during the campaign, as did President Biden and for good reasons. That VP for LU 2227 has his head up his ass.

[paleotn]

9. Did they vote for Trump?

Is so, fuck them. Reap it, you morons!

[stollen]

10. Get used to it.

[LetMyPeopleVote]

11. Pittsburgh steelworkers who supported Trump aren't happy that he's opposing the US Steel-Nippon deal.

Link to tweet

[Deminpenn]

12. What you don't hear is the reality that US Steel

doesn't want to keep running this facility. If
the Nippon Steel sale doesn't happen, US Steel is going to close the mill and move operations elsewhere, likely down south with non-union workers.

All those Mon towns like Clairton, West Mifflin and the rest will be economically devastated. They will discover Trump only cared about their votes, not them.

[FakeNoose]

33. Pittsburgher here - and yes that has been made clear

Neither I nor anyone in my family have made a living from US Steel, so I have no dog in this hunt. But USS announced (I believe) a couple years ago that they would be shutting down operations in Pittsburgh/Allegheny County even BEFORE Nippon was announced as a possible buyer.

When Nippon came in with a bid along with a promise to keep the local mills & plants operating, it brought new hope for the tradesman's unions and various white-collar employees.

My take on this is that Chump will make a very public about-face and support the sale, as soon as someone from Nippon crawls to Mar-a-Lago and kisses his ring. They just haven't been sufficiently humble yet.

[Deminpenn]

34. For the sake of these already struggling cities, towns, workers and the

businesses and schools those jobs help support, I hope your are right.

[Initech]

13. The Fox News MAGA GQP: Because fuck you, that's why!

[orangecrush]

14. Saw this with Reagan

I was in USWA then.

They voted for their prejudice, then Reagan stuffed it up their asses and broke it off.

[calimary]

15. And how many of them VOTED for him?

Sorry. No pity.

We tried to warn people. We tried to warn everybody and anybody who’d listen. We tried. But they were just SURE that we were exaggerating. We were hysterical. We were just trying to scare people - for the mere love of scaring people.

No. We were trying to save the donald’s potential victims from being cheated, lied to, and thoroughly SCREWED. And unlike him, WE were telling the truth. But they scoffed and rolled their eyes and accused us of lying and misleading and distorting. Wonder how they’re feeling now, as reality looms ahead.

[turbinetree]

17. This is coming from a guy that sat in a meeting behind closed doors with a former Russian spy.............

in Helsinki and these people believed him............JFC.............he is a fucking scab................

[Nigrum Cattus]

18. No one is talking about the unions

The repubs hate unions, overtime, etc. Wait till they start
trying to bust the unions working there.

[AllaN01Bear]

19. you get what you pay for!!!!!!.

[LastLiberal in PalmSprings]

21. At least you were promised that egg prices will go down.

Isn't that enough? Google "voted against self-interest" and see what it says.

[Six117]

22. Vote for a chaos agent

You get chaos.

[Crowman2009]

23. GOPers have a long history of union busting.

Might as well call these steel workers scabs for believing orange shitlers lies.

[wolfie001]

24. I'll bet 70% of the white male members voted for the fat orange felon

I'm Union and these "real men" are always projecting. I like to use the phrase, "stupid jackasses". Just wait until the DOGE starts "fixing" Social Security and Medicare. Can't wait

[travelingthrulife]

25. Well, Jason, you are a dumb ass. Dear Leader TOLD you he was going to do this.

These people are so unbelievably stupid.

[JohnSJ]

26. FAFO

[Beachnutt]

27. The chickens voted for colonel sanders

Now they line up for the chopping block.

IDIOTS!!

[33taw]

28. It seems like a waste of time and money trying to get the union workers votes. Their leaders tell them to vote Democrat

but they don't. They think a billionaire thug is going to give a rat's about them and it never happens.

[yorkster]

29. This is part of why voting for him was so

unforgivable. That gut punch/death blow
of a Trump 2nd term will affect an untold number of people, here in the U. S. and
globally, either indirectly or, in the case of Ukraine and other places, very directly indeed.

[Gore1FL]

30. PATCO supported Reagan.

You'd think by now unions would have a clue regarding what side fucks them over.