Trump Attacks Ford Motor for Outsourcing Car Production to Mexico

— -- Donald Trump today called Ford Motor's plan to relocate a small car assembly plant to Mexico "disgraceful," returning to the topic of the loss of manufacturing jobs that the candidate emphasized yesterday in a visit to Flint, Michigan.

"Ford has announced just yesterday that they're moving their small car production facilities to Mexico," said Trump at the Economic Club of New York. "To think that Ford is moving its small car division is a disgrace. It's disgraceful. It's disgraceful that our politicians allow them get away with it. It really is."

Trump in his visit to Flint this week focused on the contamination of the city's drinking water but also addressed Flint's history as a hub of auto manufacturing. He made a claim -- which he repeated today -- that Flint now bears similarities to Mexico.

"It used to be cars were made in Flint and you couldn't drink the water in Mexico," said Trump. "Now, cars are made in Mexico and you can't drink the water in Flint."

Ford Motor Company CEO Mark Fields announced Wednesday that the company will move its small car assembly from Wayne, Michigan, about 30 miles west of Detroit, to San Luis Potosi, Mexico. The Wayne plant employs about 3,700, according to Ford's website. Workers at the plant are expected to continue to be employed as production there shifts to that of larger vehicles.

In response to Trump's claims, a Ford spokesperson noted that the company was "committed to American manufacturing" and that they've created 28,000 jobs in the U.S. in the last five years.

Concerns about outsourcing have also been a talking point of Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton, who has claimed that Trump himself engages in this practice.

At a visit to the Knotty Tie Company in Denver in early August, Clinton noted that Trump-branded ties, suits and furniture are made in China, Mexico and Turkey, respectively.

"I don't know how you can talk down American workers and American businesses and want to be president of the United States," said Clinton at the time.

But today in New York, Trump continued his claim that if elected, he will end what he calls an economy "of no growth."

"We are going to turn this around," said Trump. "My economic plan rejects the cynicism that says our labor force will keep declining, that our jobs will keep leaving and that our economy can never grow as it did once before.