Donald Trump used part of his speech at the Republican National Convention on Thursday night to criticize the UAW and call for the firing of its president, Shawn Fain, as he sought to broaden his appeal to autoworkers, while Fain offered his own pointed remarks about Trump's record.

The former president and Republican nominee for the office hit on some familiar themes, attacking electric vehicles and promising to bring back manufacturing.

But he also specifically criticized the UAW for not preventing factories from being built by China in Mexico with the intent to bring those cars to the United States. Trump, notably, didn't say how the UAW should be intervening.

“The United Auto Workers ought to be ashamed for allowing this to happen and the leader of the United Auto Workers should be fired immediately and every single autoworker, union and nonunion, should be voting for Donald Trump because we’re going to bring back car manufacturing and we’re going to bring it back fast,” Trump said. “They are building some of the largest auto plants anywhere in the world. Think of it. In the world.”

The attack on the UAW leadership, which has endorsed President Joe Biden’s reelection, highlights a key battlefront in the race and showcases differences even within organized labor, as Sean O’Brien, general president of the Teamsters, was welcomed to the RNC earlier in the week. The Teamsters haven't formally made an endorsement.

Fain responds: Trump 'wants to pad pockets' of auto execs

The UAW’s Fain, not surprisingly, and not for the first time, pushed back against Trump and his contention that he’s a champion for the average autoworker.

"Last night, Donald Trump once again attacked our union on a national stage. That should tell you everything you need to know about the man, and the candidate. As we’ve said for many months, he stands for everything we (stand) against,” Fain said in a statement. “He doesn’t want to protect American autoworkers. He wants to pad the pockets of the ludicrously wealthy auto executives. He wants to cut the corporate tax rates of his golfing buddies, and keep the stock buybacks and Wall Street manipulation going.”

Trump touted his record, landing a new trade agreement with Canada and Mexico, and threatened 100% and 200% tariffs in the future, presumably on the cars built by China that would make them unsellable in the United States if they aren’t built in the United States by U.S. workers. Notably, the Biden administration earlier this year announced 100% tariffs on Chinese EVs.

“And remember, USMCA. I got rid of NAFTA, the worst trade deal ever made, and replaced it with USMCA, which is, they say, the best trade deal ever made,” Trump said.

Fain, who called the USMCA disastrous, with jobs continuing to leave the country, also pointed to Trump’s record:

“So tell us why, when Lordstown closed in 2019, when Trump was president, and our members were on strike for 40 days, he said nothing and did nothing. Tell us why Trump pushed to move auto jobs out of Michigan to drive down wages,” Fain said. “Tell us why Trump blamed the 2008 auto crisis on the autoworkers. We’ll tell you why. Because Donald Trump always has and always will side with the billionaire class against the working class.”

The importance of autoworkers in this election cycle has been on display for some time. Last year, Trump and Biden made dueling appearances in Michigan during the UAW's strike against the Detroit Three, with Trump appearing at a nonunion facility in Clinton Township and Biden joining a picket line in Van Buren Township.

Contact Eric D. Lawrence: [email protected]. Become a subscriber. Submit a letter to the editor at freep.com/letters.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Trump, Fain trade barbs over UAW, state of auto industry