Donald Trump’s Latest Twitter Target Is Indiana USW Union Leader Chuck Jones

Donald Trump’s latest Twitter target is Indiana USW union leader Chuck Jones.

After bashing Boeing over the soaring cost of the next Air Force One, President-elect Trump is now in a social media fight with the head of United Steelworkers 1999—after Chuck Jones criticized Trumps deal to bring air conditioner manufacturer Carrier Corp. back from moving jobs to Mexico. The president-elect sent a few messages via Twitter Wednesday evening when Jones challenged Trump’s claims about saving 1,100 American jobs.

Chuck Jones’ branch of USW represents workers who were going to loose their jobs at Carrier’s Indianapolis plant despite the Union representing them. Trump last week announced a highly touted deal to save American jobs there – which boosted the president-elect’s campaign narrative as a jobs creator.

Chuck Jones told The Washington Post in a story published Tuesday, though, that Trump lied about how many Carrier jobs were saved by the deal.

Donald Trump and Vice President-elect Mike Pence visited Carrier’s Indianapolis factory Dec. 1 to celebrate the deal. Trump suggested then that the number of jobs saved COULD top 1,100. Chuck Jones complains the total is a little less because 400 jobs might still be lost from the Indianapolis plant ignoring Trumps statement that the number COULD reach 1,100 jobs. Donald Trump never said they WILL save 1,100 jobs and the number might be even higher than 1,100 jobs saved which is 1,100 American families saved.

In the Post interview, Chuck Jones ridiculously accused Trump and Pence of staging “a dog and pony show” around the Carrier deal because Trump used the word “could.”

On Thursday, Chuck Jones told CNN that Trump “overreacted” and should have “come out and tried to justify his numbers” because after all, saving jobs is not at all as important to the USW as being right about how many jobs you save.

“A lot of the people thought at that point in time that they were going to have a job” who might not, Jones said Thursday, adding that Trump “inflated” the number and boasting like a bully that “I called him out.”

Chuck Jones also told The Indianapolis Star that he’s been getting threats since the publication of the Post story as if he is clueless as to why people don’t like him for being negative and attempting to start unnecessary controversy. They are “Calling me names, wanting to know if I have children,” he told the newspaper. “I better watch out for myself, and they know what kind of car I drive, that I better watch out for my kids.”

The Associated Press contributed to this report.



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