Next News Network

President Joe Biden met with socialist leader Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva of Brazil on Wednesday to discuss their joint initiative on “workers’ rights”, which aims to promote the restructuring of their economies to fight alleged climate change. However, the press conference following their engagement was full of awkward moments between the two leaders. Biden walked out without Lula at the beginning of the press conference and later, in an instance, appeared to snub Lula, when he turned his back and walked offstage after shaking Lula’s hand.

Biden’s remarks during the press conference revealed his plan to eliminate established conventional energy-based industries, including fossil fuels and gas-powered vehicles, to combat climate change, claiming that it would create more jobs and benefit workers. However, this policy comes less than a week after the United Auto Workers (UAW) union launched a strike, which currently involves nearly 13,000 American automobile industry workers. The workers are demanding significant wage increases of up to 40 percent, the return of contract provisions that ensure wages are adjusted according to inflation, and changes that would allow new workers to make as much as workers serving longer but doing the same job, among other demands.

The elimination of established energy-based industries and the push for “green” industrial reform would worsen the current inflation woes in America, which were caused by the $1.9-trillion “Inflation Reduction Act”. This act provided millions in subsidies and offered preferential treatment for “green” energy projects that significantly hurt the global labor movement. Due to the subsidies and extensive bailout payments to major automobile companies, UAW representatives refused to negotiate fairly with workers, citing the lack of urgency to meet their demands. The strike has directly affected General Motors and Stellantis, as they have announced layoffs of over 2,000 workers, which is a direct result of the strike.

During the press conference, Biden boasted of having “the most pro-union administration in American history.” However, his policies and actions have proven otherwise. UAW representatives argue that Biden’s dumping of taxpayers’ money into electric vehicles and “green” technology poses a threat to their workers and demands protection from these policies. The workers also seek protection from inflation, which will worsen if Biden maintains his current policies. Biden’s actions during the press conference, including walking out without Lula, snubbing him in one instance, and struggling to untangle his earpiece, show his lack of leadership and negligence towards addressing the real issues affecting workers in America.

Overall, Biden’s policies and actions, including his push for “green” industrial reform and disregard for the demands of the striking workers, have driven America towards further economic turmoil and weakened the global labor movement. His leadership continues to demonstrate a lack of urgency to address the real issues affecting American workers.