Trump Demands Auto Jobs After Signaling Fuel Economy Relief

President Donald Trump is laying out an explicit quid pro quo for automakers: He’ll cut them a break on environmental standards and wants more hiring in return.

“You need to come back and give us big numbers in terms of jobs,” Trump told the chief executive officers of General Motors Co., Ford Motor Co. and Fiat Chrysler Automobiles NV on Wednesday. The Obama administration’s decision to preserve its fuel economy rules “would have destroyed, or further destroyed, the auto industry.”