By Janice Hisle Contributing Writer During back-to-back campaign stops in swing states on Wednesday, Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, told workers that he and former President Donald Trump are championing policies that will boost trucking and manufacturing with the aim to improve the economy for all Americans. “We want truckers to be empowered instead of throttled,” Vance told people gathered at Team Hardinger, a trucking and warehousing company in Erie, Pennsylvania.
Hours later, Vance, the Republican vice-presidential nominee, also campaigned in another battleground state, Wisconsin; there, he spoke at AmeriLux International, a manufacturer and distributor of building materials. In both speeches, Vance pledged that if he and Trump win the Nov. 5 election, they will reverse policies that he said are hurting trucking, manufacturing and the U.
S. economy overall. The policies of President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris have discouraged reliance on fossil fuels and favor electric-powered vehicles.
The result has been increased costs for truckers, and hence, consumers, Vance said. He noted that trucks haul food and goods to stores. “If the truckers are paying more for fuel, we’re all paying more for everything,” he said to the audience in De Pere, Wisconsin.
The American Trucking Association says that a typical long-haul, clean-diesel tractor costs about $200,000, while a comparable electric one costs nearly $500,000. About 95% of all trucking companies are small busi.