Live updates: Trump calls EVs ‘too expensive’ as Republican rivals get set for second debate

Trump railed against electric vehicles — a major theme of his commentary amid a historic auto workers’ strike — in his speech at a nonunion auto parts factory in Detroit.

“They don’t go far enough and they’re too expensive,” Trump said of electric vehicles near the start of his remarks to the crowd of about 300 people, which mostly comprised of supporters and workers at Drake Enterprises, the nonunion plant.

Trump’s message starkly contrasts with the Biden administration, which has supported transitioning the auto industry away from gas-powered cars.

A roughly 20% chunk of the crowd consisted of United Auto Workers members, according to NBC News.

— Kevin Breuninger

Haley and Ramaswamy turned in noteworthy performances at the first debate that helped propel their campaigns above the middle of the pack.

At the second debate, both candidates are looking to build on that momentum.

Haley, who locked horns with Ramaswamy and threw sharp jabs at Trump and her other opponents, has been on the rise in some recent national polls and surveys of key states.

One poll out this week from the Saint Anselm College Survey Center, for instance, put Haley in second place behind Trump in the first-in-the-nation primary state of New Hampshire.

Ramaswamy, meanwhile, drew much of the spotlight in the first debate as he was dogpiled by numerous other contenders. The 38-year-old political novice also fired off more attacks than anyone else in that debate.

The post-debate shakeup appears to have cut into DeSantis’ once-clear status as the top non-Trump candidate in the GOP race. The most recent Quinnipiac University poll showed DeSantis at 12% nationwide, six points lower than his standing in August and still miles from catching Trump.

— Kevin Breuninger

Outside the Trump rally, small groups of Trump supporters waived flags along a main road, while closer to the factory where the former president will speak was a small drumline with Trump supporters waiving flags nearby.

“Auto Workers for Trump” and “Union Members for Trump” signs were being handed out to attendees and MAGA hats were prevalent in the largely white, older male crowd.

Brian Pannebecker, a retired auto worker who runs a Facebook group called “Auto Workers for Trump, said he assisted in getting current and retired auto workers to the event for the Trump campaign and expects more than 200 people at the event.

Pannebecker, who worked for roughly 35 years at Ford and then at Chrysler, which is now known as Stellantis, said auto workers should vote for Trump because of his efforts with the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement and his stance on EVs compared to President Joe Biden.

“Donald Trump would not be pushing this EV kind of mandate on the companies or on the consumers,” said Pannebecker. “The consumers should be able to decide. Let the companies develop EVs at their own pace and let the government get the infrastructure out there at their own pace as it’s practical. … We shouldn’t be forced by the government to buy EVs, and the companies shouldn’t be forced by the government to build EVs.”

The venue where Trump will speak is an auto parts production facility, which allows little room for the stage or a large audience. It’s a significantly smaller venue than Trump’s visits to Detroit in years past.

Hundreds of chairs were set up in front of where Trump will speak, with bleachers meant for auto workers on the far left and far right of the stage.

— Mike Wayland

The Democratic National Committee is launching two anti-GOP advertisements outside the Reagan Library as seven candidates prepare to debate.

The DNC announced Wednesday that they plan to fly an aerial banner around the debate site right up until the start of the event. The banner will say “GOP 2024: A Race For The Extreme MAGA Base,” according to the DNC.

The committee, which is supporting President Joe Biden’s 2024 reelection effort, also plans to run a mobile billboard around the Reagan Library as the debate takes place.

Similar to the aerial banner, the mobile advertisement tries to link the seven Republican candidates to former President Donald Trump, who is not taking part in tonight’s debate.

— Brian Schwartz

Former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley went on a digital advertisement publishing spree on Wednesday, hours before the second Republican debate in California.

Haley, who will be on the debate stage Wednesday night, published different ads on X and the Meta platforms of Facebook and Instagram. For Haley, tonight’s debate could serve as a crucial moment for her to move up in the polls and keep raising enough campaign cash to stay in the race. Former President Donald Trump leads the GOP primary field with 58% of support, while Haley is at 7%, according to a Morning Consult tracker.

Haley’s advertisement published on her X page Wednesday morning depicts her as a fighter and not a stranger to taking on what she calls “bullies.”

The Haley ads on Meta’s platforms that started running Wednesday ask for donors to give at least $7.99, according to the Meta digital ad library. With that, contributors can get a Haley t-shirt.

— Brian Schwartz

Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C. may not be leading in the Republican primary polls but is going into tonight’s debate leading in ad support.

Scott has seen over $51 million through Wednesday in ad support, according to AdImpact.

AdImpact calculated the total amount spent in support of all seven candidates who qualified for the second debate. The totals reflect how much each campaign and outside political action committees have spent on ads in favor of their candidates.

Second to Scott is Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis with $39 million, followed by former President Donald Trump with $27 million in supportive ad spending.

Trump is skipping tonight’s debate. He leads the Republican primary field with 58% of support, according to Morning Consult.

— Brian Schwartz

Trump said he is on his way to Detroit to deliver a speech aimed at blue-collar workers — especially auto workers, thousands of whom are on strike from top carmakers’ plants as they demand better pay and hours.

But Trump, who seeks the endorsement of the union leading the strike, will be speaking at a nonunion auto parts factory.

The decision drew condemnation from United Auto Workers President Shawn Fain, who called it a “pathetic irony.”

“I don’t think the man has any bit of care about what our workers stand for, what the working class stands for,” Fain said Tuesday night on CNN.

Trump said in a Truth Social post announcing his departure for Michigan, “I LOVE, & WILL SAVE, THE AUTOWORKERS.”

He is scheduled to speak at 8 p.m. ET at Drake Enterprises in Clinton Township.

Trump is skipping his second straight chance to confront, and be confronted by, his GOP rivals in a live televised debate.

His campaign event is purposely scheduled to counter-program the Republican debate.

— Kevin Breuninger

The second Republican debate for the 2024 GOP primary for president is set to kick off Wednesday night at 9 p.m. Eastern Time from the Reagan Library in Simi Valley, California.

The debate will air on Fox News Channel and Fox Business, as well as through Fox’s digital streaming platforms and Rumble.

North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, former New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley, former Vice President Mike Pence, businessman Vivek Ramaswamy and Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., have all qualified for the debate.

Former President Donald Trump is skipping the Wednesday night event.

— Brian Schwartz