Trump to skip second GOP debate and head to Detroit to court autoworkers instead

Former President Donald Trump speaks at an event in Washington on September 15.

Jose Luis Magana / Jose Luis Magana

Former President Donald Trump will skip the debate stage in California on Sept. 27. Instead, he will head to Motor City that day to join striking union autoworkers as they call for better contract terms from the Big Three automakers, according to a source familiar with the plans.

Trump’s forthcoming trip to Detroit is the latest play in his pitch as an attractive alternative to President Biden, the incumbent Democrat who won the UAW’s coveted endorsement in 2020. Biden also won a solid majority of the votes of union households in that election, helping him carry battleground states including Michigan, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, all states that Trump had won in 2016.

While the UAW has historically endorsed Democratic candidates, the union has so far declined to endorse Biden in his quest for a second term. The union and its new president, Shawn Fain, have said they need to see more from the president before they make any endorsement.