Biden defends Goodyear after Trump urges boycott

Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden defended Goodyear tires after President Trump urged Americans to boycott its products after he claimed the company announced a “ban” on his campaign’s “Make America Great Again” attire. 

“Goodyear employs thousands of American workers, including in Ohio where it is headquartered. To President Trump, those workers and their jobs aren’t a source of pride, just collateral damage in yet another one of his political attacks,” Biden said in a statement. “President Trump doesn’t have a clue about the dignity and worth that comes with good-paying union jobs at places like Goodyear — jobs that can support a family and sustain a community.”

He also took a dig at Trump’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic, which has killed more than 170,000 people in the United States, stating the president is “getting distracted by petty political grievances instead of doing his job and stopping the virus.”

Biden’s response came after Trump tweeted Wednesday morning urging Americans against buying Goodyear tires, claiming the company “announced a BAN ON MAGA HATS,” referring to his campaign merchandise.

“This is what the Radical Left Democrats do. Two can play the same game, and we have to start playing it now,” the president added.

Don’t buy GOODYEAR TIRES – They announced a BAN ON MAGA HATS. Get better tires for far less! (This is what the Radical Left Democrats do. Two can play the same game, and we have to start playing it now!).

— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 19, 2020

Trump weighed in following reports that some company employees in Kansas were told not to wear politically affiliated gear, including “Make America Great Again attire.” A local NBC News affiliate in Topeka reported on a slide purportedly shown at a Goodyear diversity training that listed “Blue Lives Matter,” “All Lives Matter,” “MAGA attire” and “politically-affiliated slogans or material” as “unacceptable.” 

Ohio Democrats also slammed Trump over his call to boycott the company based in the Buckeye State. The Akron mayor’s office took a swing at the president over his tweet, and Rep. Tim Ryan (D-Ohio) condemned Trump and called Goodyear an “iconic American company.” 

The Democratic National Committee (DNC) also criticized Trump’s call to boycott Goodyear. 

“Trump’s botched coronavirus response has been catastrophic for American workers. Now he’s making things worse by recklessly calling for the boycott of an American company that employs thousands of workers across the country because of a segment he saw while live-tweeting cable news,” DNC spokesperson Lily Adams said in a statement. “The American people deserve better than a president who is willing to make them suffer for his own political vendettas.”

Ohio is among key battleground states Trump narrowly carried in 2016 that Democrats are looking to flip in November in Biden’s campaign against Trump.