Mitt Romney: Jeep will move all production to China

Many thanks to my partner for his Opening Presentation. Jeep is expanding its production into China, not moving American production overseas “Jeep production will not be moved from the United States to China" says Chrysler CEO Since 2009 Chrysler has announced $4.2 billion in investments to produce Jeeps in Detroit, Illinois, and Ohio The company expects to hire 5,700 new American workers by next year to build Jeeps in America A recent article appeared in the Bloomberg News that reported on an announcement that Chrysler would soon begin production of Jeeps in China, to answer growing demand in that market. The explosive Chinese demand for the Jeep brand fueled the investments, according to the article, and that transportation difficulties demanded on-site production. Simple enough. That was until the right-wing blogosphere picked up the story.If a reader were to have only read the first paragraph of the Bloomberg article, then it would have been possible to have misunderstood the point of the story: That Jeeps were selling so well that new production would be required in order to keep up with the increased demand. No jobs were being moved overseas, no production would be moved overseas, no factories in America would be shuttered - only that new production would need to be created in expanding markets. In other words, new factories would be built in China - but no existing production would be moved from the American markets.However, right wing radio and blogs exploded in fury, claiming instantly that Jeep production was "moving" to China. From there, it didn't take long for a viral meme to form around the idea that Jeep factories were closing around the nation, shuttered in favor of cheap Chinese labor. Obama's auto bailout was painted as a failure, whose effects did not save the ruin of the American autoworker - who had just lost the privilege to build Jeeps in America.The Romney campaign pounced on the bad news, triumphantly shouting during a recent rally in Ohio, "I saw a story today that one of the great manufacturers in this state, Jeep — now owned by the Italians — is thinking of moving all production to China." Tragically, this surprise was revealed to workers at a GM powertrain plant.To say the least, the statement got attention.The CEO of Chrysler, Sergio Marchionne, was one of the people that was surprised by Romney's announcement. He was completely unaware that his company was moving any American production anywhere. “Jeep production will not be moved from the United States to China,” he said in response. “Jeep assembly lines will remain in operation in the United States and will constitute the backbone of the brand. It is inaccurate to suggest anything different.” [1] The fact is, that the Jeep brand is doing so well in the United States that production in America will be expanded by 5,700 new workers by next year - expanded, not moved away. [1] As regards to American competition with China in the auto industry, there are no Chinese car models being exported to the United States - but there are models (like Jeep) that are being exported from America to China. [2] In addition to the 5,700 new Jeep assembly line workers that will be added next year, the company expects to invest an estimated $4.2 billion in American investments.Therefore, my argument as of this round is:The claim that Jeep was moving production away from he US to China was a mistake, caused by poor reporting on right-wing blogs. The Romney campaign never corrected the mistake, however, after it was used as a talking point in a campaign speech. Since it was subsequently used in political ads, it has now become a lie. As the CEO of Chrysler, the auto manufacturer that produces Jeep points out, there are no plans to move any American production to China. The new production in China is "new," it is not being taken away from anywhere.[1] http://www.bloomberg.com... [2] http://www.detroitnews.com...