Copyright inquisitr
President Donald Trump tried to rewrite the narrative around a massive immigration raid at Hyundai’s Georgia battery plant, telling reporters he was “very much opposed” to the operation and insisting foreign manufacturers should be able to bring in “experts” when setting up U.S. facilities. Speaking aboard Air Force One on his way to Asia, Trump argued that high-tech factories need specialized labor in the early phases and warned that a sudden purge of skilled workers can hobble production. The raid, carried out in early September, swept up more than 400 workers at the Hyundai-LG battery complex outside Savannah, an enforcement action local media described as one of the largest single-site operations in recent memory. Federal and state agencies converged on the site as part of a broader probe into alleged immigration violations tied to subcontractors supporting the multi-billion-dollar project. Trump’s new line was a sharp pivot from his typical hard line on immigration. He told reporters that when foreign firms build “very complex” equipment, they “have to bring some people in, at least at the initial phase,” adding that battery production is “very dangerous to make.” He went further, saying companies should be allowed to keep specialists in the U.S. “for a period of time” to train American workers, and that “we want them to bring in experts.” The sudden empathy had an obvious diplomatic backdrop. South Korea’s President Lee Jae Myung publicly blasted the raid and warned it could chill investment, a message that landed just weeks before Trump’s planned meeting with him during a swing through Asia. Trump himself has signaled he does not want to “frighten off” investors, even as he continues to champion high profile enforcement actions. Hyundai executives said the operation will delay the battery plant’s startup by two to three months, forcing contingency plans to source cells elsewhere as the company races to meet U.S. demand for electric vehicles. The plant represents a multibillion-dollar bet on American manufacturing and was expected to anchor thousands of jobs in coastal Georgia. Trump’s attempt to assuage allies while cheering enforcement drew swift scrutiny at home. Critics called it a classic two step, publicly lambasting unauthorized workers while privately signaling flexibility for powerful corporate partners. Immigrant advocates in Georgia warned the raid seeded fear far beyond the factory gates, while business leaders fretted over supply chain disruptions and lost momentum at a flagship clean-energy project. On one hand, Trump has flirted with the idea of tailored visas to cover highly specialized technicians, a nod to the reality that some cutting edge tools and processes are still concentrated overseas. On the other, his administration continues to tout raids as a deterrent, even when they hit the very projects the White House hails as proof of a manufacturing renaissance. The President’s own words tried to square that circle, arguing that experts should “teach our people how to do it,” and promising a “phase out” as domestic workers come up to speed. For Hyundai, the message may be too late to prevent immediate pain. For Trump, the risk is political, appearing to chastise his own enforcement agencies just to soothe an angry ally and keep a marquee investment on track. The result is a muddled stance, a president praising tough raids one week, then scolding ICE the next while courting foreign capital.
