When news broke late last week that hundreds of workers were detained for immigration violations at the construction site for a large battery plant in Georgia, I quickly posted it to The Morning Dump and moved on to other stories. Not because it wasn’t important, but because I sensed that it would take a few days to have a better sense of what really happened.
The smoke has cleared a bit, and what’s left is an indictment of industrial, educational, and environmental policy at almost every level. It was a goal of the founders that greatness should emerge from the tension between various levels and branches of government and, sometimes, that happens. Lately, it’s felt more like all that exists is the tension, with very little of the greatness.
The old saying was that politics should “stop at the water’s edge,” which is to say that American politicians should present a united front when facing the world. That’s out the window, and now Volkswagen is essentially negotiating with the government to secure a better deal on tariffs in exchange for more investment. I have uneasy feelings about this, but it’s the rational way to respond to the current environment, a lesson that the outgoing Japanese PM has learned the hard way.
Is there a new Škoda? There is a new Śkoda, so of course I’m going to write about it to round out the day.
It’s Just Policy Failures All The Way Down
I am going to attempt to make the conversation around the Hyundai immigration raid a political discussion without it being a partisan one. This is partially because the policy failures inherent in this are not unique to any one party, and partially because you can imprint whatever (mainstream) political belief you have on what happened without being entirely wrong (or entirely right).
If you missed it, the Department of Homeland Security undertook what they describe as the largest single-site operation in the Department’s history when it raided the joint LG/Hyundai battery plant under construction in Georgia. This is a multi-billion-dollar project designed to provide batteries for the Hyundai Motor Group Metaplant America (HMGMA).
Reports vary, but the best I can tell, roughly 475 individuals were detained (but thus far not all charged) for immigration violations. I am used to these stories, which typically involve individuals from Central or South America. I think the fact that most of the workers detained were South Korean has surprised people.
Here’s how the Atlanta News First news agency describes it:
Authorities said most of the workers detained were Korean nationals who either entered the U.S. illegally or overstayed their visas. Many were employed by subcontractors tied to the $7.6 billion project. Hyundai’s electric vehicle plant in Ellabell remains in operation, while LG Energy Solution paused construction to assist investigators.
There’s a lot to unpack here, and it exposes the fundamental contradictions at work in American politics.
The existence of this plant has a lot to do with an expected shift towards electrification and, specifically, a desire by the previous administration to support EVs. While the demand side was being stoked by the Inflation Reduction Act’s battery tax credit (which also included provisions that encouraged American-sourced batteries), the supply side was being encouraged by what’s called Section 45X, which provides a $35 credit per kWh of capacity, and a module credit of $10 per kWh. While hardliners in the Republican Party attempted to kill all of these credits, the distribution of these facilities meant the law was largely creating jobs in Republican-voting areas, so 45X was modified but spared (at least for battery production, wind/solar is another story).
So 45X still exists, and Georgia’s Republican Governor, Brian Kemp, has been very supportive and encouraging of these projects. Georgia stands to probably gain the most by this push towards electrification, as various plants from Hyundai and Rivian could bring a lot of jobs. It’s possible to believe in electric cars and, at the same time, oppose the IRA consumer tax credit. I think it’s a little harder to want EVs and oppose 45X.
And this gets us a little closer to the uncomfortable reality of the situation. America largely invented the underlying technology that makes electric batteries possible, but a lack of investment has made it so that the country requires expertise from Chinese (CATL), Japanese (Panasonic), or Korean firms (SK On and LGES). If America wants to get good at building these things, it’ll have to at least partially match the investments made to develop this industry in other places, and 45X specifically does that.
President Trump himself has basically made the spending of South Korean money in the United States a part of his economic policy, but this raid is already causing concern among South Korean businesses, according to The Korea Economic Daily:
Korean companies with US interests have frozen travel plans and recalled staff already in the US over fears of further raids.
“Korean workers are treated like criminals for building factories that Washington itself lobbied for,” said a company executive in Seoul. “If this continues, investment in the US could be reconsidered.”
The incident underscores a structural weakness in Korea Inc.’s overseas expansion model.
With H-1B and L-1 work visas, which are harder to obtain, in short supply, Korean firms have routinely rotated engineers through 90-day ESTA entries or short-term B-1 visas to meet tight construction schedules.
Industry officials in Seoul warn that unless visa arrangements for skilled Korean employees are settled through bilateral talks, investment timetables worth more than 140 trillion won ($101 billion) across multiple US states will face serious delays and cost overruns.
If you believe there’s a shortage of workers in this country entirely because of a lack of people with the correct skills and education, then this is clear proof. Someone who might sort of agree with you is President Trump himself, who told reporters as much this weekend:
“You don’t have people in this country who know about batteries,” Trump told reporters Sunday as he returned to Washington from watching the US Open tennis final. “Maybe we should help them along and let some people come in and train our people.”
[…]
“We do have to work something out where we bring in experts so our people can be trained, so they can do it themselves,” Trump said.
This is a contradiction within the Trump Administration itself, with some trying to restrict basically all immigration to the United States (the same group trying to up the number of immigration raids), and others trying to make it easier to attract skilled foreign workers and foreign investment.
Are foreign workers only being used because they have more skills in building battery plants? Is this just because of issues with the Trump Administration? Absolutely not. This specific plant had issues with safety and the use of immigrant labor that go back to the Biden years, as reported by local affiliate WTOC:
Darwin Bonilla, a worker’s rights advocate, provides aid to immigrant workers, and came to Bryan County after he says he heard too many reports to ignore. He helped Rincon get in touch with legal help.
This one plant is just a microcosm for all of the unresolved contradictions at the heart of American politics right now. Hyundai, for its part, is putting some of this on its subcontractors:
Hyundai Motor Company is aware of the immigration enforcement action that took place at the construction site of its supplier, the HL-GA Battery Company in Bryan County, Georgia. We are closely monitoring the situation while working to understand the specific circumstances. Based on our current understanding, none of those detained is directly employed by Hyundai Motor Company.
Hyundai is committed to full compliance with all laws and regulations in every market where we operate. This includes employment verification requirements and immigration laws. We expect the same commitment from all our partners, suppliers, contractors, and subcontractors.
The safety and well-being of everyone working at our sites, whether directly employed by us or working for our suppliers, is a top priority. We take our responsibility as a corporate citizen seriously, and incidents like this remind us of the importance of robust oversight throughout our entire supply chain and contractor network.
So far, I would grade Hyundai’s oversight as poor.
Audi Might Build In America If It Gets What It Wants
Dovetailing nicely with the above story, Volkswagen is currently figuring out how much it wants to use the carrot of investment to reduce the stick of tariffs. This is particularly important for the company as its brands use plants in Mexico to keep costs down, and those facilities are facing higher tariffs.
In a long interview with Automotive News, Audi CEO Gernot Döllner lays out what’s going on fairly clearly:
Audi is reportedly going to build cars in the U.S. Will they be made at VW’s factory in Tennessee, the new Scout plant in South Carolina, at a new plant somewhere in the country, or at all three?
The decision hasn’t been taken yet. The discussion around production is led by VW Group. We first need stability regarding tariffs and other U.S. regulations. Once we have that, we will decide whether Audi will get its own U.S. factory. In addition, we will decide whether Audi models could be produced at those other two factories.
Chief Executive Oliver Blume said the tariffs, currently set at 27.5%, have cost the company several billion euros so far this year, primarily impacting its Audi and Porsche brands that lack U.S. production facilities. Speaking at the IAA Munich car show, Blume called the current trade arrangement between Brussels and Washington “asymmetric,” noting that European auto imports face heavy duties while U.S. industrial goods enter Europe tariff-free.
Consequently, VW is depending on its investment strategy in the U.S., as Blume added that talks with the U.S. government have been “very positive.” He also indicated that Volkswagen is exploring the possibility of building a facility for its Audi brand and improving its supply chain and labor force in the United States.
I suppose this is quid pro quo, but isn’t it always?
Japan Is Getting A New PM, Eventually
It’s egocentric to think every other country makes its decisions based on what happens in the United States, but the chaos of tariffs certainly didn’t help the current Japanese PM Shigeru Ishiba, who is reportedly going to step down. Who will replace him? From Nikkei Asia, there are two obvious frontrunners:
Two possible candidates are Agriculture Minister Shinjiro Koizumi, son of former Japanese leader Junichiro Koizumi, and Sanae Takaichi, a former economic security minister who could become Japan’s first female prime minister.
Both were strong contenders for the LDP presidency in 2024 but lost to Ishiba.
Whoever succeeds Ishiba as prime minister will need to find ways to work with opposition parties as the leader of a minority government.
The LDP doesn’t have enough seats in parliament to just appoint whomever it wants, so the pick will also have to win support from minority parties.
The Škoda Epiq Is Cool
If Volkswagen is good at anything, it’s using a platform to support as many different vehicles as possible. This was once derided as badge-engineering, but it works for VW, and basically everyone does it now. This weekend, VW showed the ID. Cross Concept we should get, and now Skoda has shown off the Epiq, which is a small EV crossover we’re definitely not going to get:
Klaus Zellmer, CEO of Škoda Auto, said: “The Epiq show car offers a concrete glimpse into the next addition to Škoda’s successful all-electric family. It embodies the essence of Škoda: modern solid design, a spacious interior within a compact footprint, user-friendly, intuitive digital interfaces, and Simply Clever details that ensure a seamless experience— and above all—at an attractive price point. With the Epiq, we’re taking another step towards making electric cars a practical and compelling choice for everyday drivers. “
Dare to dream with me.
What I’m Listening To While Writing TMD
Let’s go back to “I Need You Tonight” from INXS.
The Big Question
Blughherhhawher, what do you think about all of this?
Top photo: Hyundai
Until you go after the companies giving illigal / undocumented immigrants all you do by kicking immigrants out is create a demand for a new immigrant to move in. These businesses decided they would rather pay immigrants lower wages than hire us citizens yet they go forever un punished!
They are building a battery plant in Ontario and did the same thing – brought in a bunch of people from South Korea to set it up. OK, if North America doesn’t have the skill and we need to import people to do so, then make a training program for local people part of the requirement to approve the foreign workers.
Having said that, if Hyundai doesn’t want to make sure that their employees are not outstaying their visas or work permits, then that is on them, not on any government that enforces immigration status. I have no sympathy for Hyundai in this case.
If the same situation exists as in Ontario, there was no apparent intent for these workers to move to North America permanently, it was a 2-4 year temporary situation to set up the factory.
Hyundai has a culture of only hiring koreans. They have no interest in giving us citizens jobs. They would rather fly in people for korea to work the job for / years and when they get promoted they go back home. The american factories are like the entry level positions of the company.
Being a ice agent has no future, there’s a limited supply of the people you are hired to capture.
If we get a chance to vote in the future and the administration changes one of the first things to happen will be the immediate layoff of some of the ice agents.
If the administration doesn’t change , gee I wonder what these “ice “ agents will be doing for work then?
Making sure my law abiding life is safer? /s
If there is a shortage of quality workers there is the H1B1 program that was meant for this type of situation not for maids and construction workers and truck drivers. But all these workers from what I understand were here illegally. The investment daddy jobs if the jobs are given to illegals. However I think the quality South Korean workers are the exact right immigrants we need bringing in quality immigration instead of gang banger drug dealers. We need to fast track the correct immigrants and make them legal and fast track drug dealers and gang bangers out of the country
We’re taking ‘illegal’ workers out of the work force at record pace.
The claimed goal of this action is to make their jobs available to citizens who want to work.
Why are unemployment claims rising?
This is an aggressively stupid take.
Great album
The first tape I bought with my own money! Once you get past “Guns in the Sky,” it’s all killer (and the next record is non-stop perfection, too).
This band was deceptively awesome. There was a neat bit in the old AVClub that wrote up a nice mix of B-sides (I’m not sure all the embeds still work but one can find the songs if so inclined).
That was definitely an early BMG music club purchase for me LOL.
I’m just gonna continue working in the yard while America own-goals itself repeatedly trying to make immigration hawks and hypercapitalists happy at the same time. This is stupid and I’m tired of rowing upstream against people who prioritize punishment over growth.
With H-1B and L-1 work visas, which are harder to obtain, in short supply, Korean firms have routinely rotated engineers through 90-day ESTA entries or short-term B-1 visas to meet tight construction schedules.
ESTA or B1/B2 visas are not work visas, B1 allows you to do business in the states like attending a conference, training, but not getting paid or contributing to taxes in the United States. They probably noticed a bunch of people from SK traveling on those visas to those locations and it was pretty straighforward it was not for business itself after the raid.
The US government should allow these companies to provide work visas, pay taxes in the US, follow the legal process but the whole USCIS processes take forever, cost a lot of money and right now they are short staffed even more thanks to the current administration.
Facilitating the immigration and visitation process including allowing non-Americans to come to the U.S. for any reason is definitely counter to this Administration’s priorities. If anything, it’s in the Trump Administration’s best interest to grind the naturalization and visa process to a halt to help ICE meet its monthly arrest quotas.
Combined with tariffs and the message is clear: “we want your money but not your people.”
Step one of the naturalization and any visa process includes the payment of a fee, often a rather large one along with signing a document saying you will not try to reverse the charge no matter what. Every person who is IN the system trying to do things the right way has already paid for their (I suppose theoretical now) right to see their case through on the government’s timeline, it’s rarely the applicant that is the one causing a delay. Timelines between steps are measured in lengths of numerous months, sometimes years, not weeks.
It’s true that both parties have failed to address immigration policy in the past, but I feel it’s important to remember that the Democrats under Biden had an immigration bill ready to go with bipartisan support and MAGA swooped in to kill it because Trump wanted to run his campaign on the immigrant bogeyman. Both sides are not equally bad here and it’s totally fair to lay the blame at Trump’s feet. At least until he proposes actual immigration reform that isn’t “lock them all up in
concentration campsAlligator Alcatraz”.I also find it very hard to accuse or assume malice of anyone detained by ICE for any improper immigration charges because of this Administration. The point on Trump killing a bipartisan bill pre-election is extremely important, but so is this admins current actions, actively directing ICE to disappear people as soon as they step out of any hearing at a court. ICE has been directed to hit insanely unrealistic deportation targets, despite the number of border crossings plummeting, so they are actively attempting to kidnap people who are going through the legal process the MAGA crowd claims to hold dear. Beyond the now completely abandoned (constitutionally mandated) assumption of innocence until proven guilty, I’m liable to give any detainee of ICE or DHS the massive benefit of the doubt, because even if they wanted to do things correctly, they’re liable to get thrown into a concentration camp anyways.
They’ve detained enough actual American citizens, never mind legal immigrants, that at this point I assume ICE is in the wrong until proven otherwise.
And if the government needs the Supreme Court to remind them that constitutional rights like due process are to be awarded to ALL accused, I won’t believe a lick of what ICE says about anyone.
ICE has been self selecting for racists and xenophobes since the beginning. We all should remember ICE was a reactionary addition to the government post 9/11. They built this group off the political fear of the time. It was wrong then and has only ever gotten worse. It has been filled with people unfit for other service and as operated in a non constitutional way from the get go. This is another Political ratchet used by the right to tear away freedoms under the guise of safety.
Every ICE agent is wrong every time no matter what they are doing. Their existence is a crime against the country.
Thank you, really, for so simply and readily tearing down a needless and flimsy piece of both-sides’ing.