Politics
Teamsters Union Praises Trump’s Tariffs On Movie Industry: ‘Strong Step’
The International Brotherhood of Teamsters has endorsed President Donald Trump’s decision to impose tariffs on films produced overseas, describing the move as a “strong step” towards ““reining in the studios’ un-American addiction to outsourcing our members’ work.”
In a statement posted to Truth Social on Monday night, Trump announced bold new steps to revitalize the “dying” American film industry. The president pointed to foreign nations who have been luring away studios with attractive incentives and further accused global competitors of launching a “messaging and propaganda” campaign against the United States.
“I am authorizing the Department of Commerce, and the United States Trade Representative, to immediately begin the process of instituting a 100% Tariff on any and all Movies coming into our Country that are produced in Foreign Lands,” Trump wrote. “WE WANT MOVIES MADE IN AMERICA, AGAIN!”
The latest move was met with approval from the International Brotherhood of Teamsters in a joint statement from Teamsters President Sean O’Brien and Teamsters Motion Picture Division Director Lindsay Dougherty.
“For years, Hollywood studios have hollowed out the industry by following Corporate America’s crooked playbook of outsourcing good union jobs. Studios chase cheap production costs overseas while gutting the American workforce that built the film and TV industry,” the statement reads.
“These gigantic corporations line their pockets by recklessly cutting corners, abandoning American crews, and exploiting tax loopholes abroad. While these companies get rich fleeing to other countries and gaming the system, our members have gotten screwed over.”
O’Brien and Dougherty went on to note that the labor union has been sounding the alarm over outsourcing from film studios for years. “If studios want to benefit from American box offices, they must invest in American workers. ”
“We thank President Trump for boldly supporting good union jobs when others have turned their heads. This is a strong step toward finally reining in the studios’ un-American addiction to outsourcing our members’ work.”
While major labor unions have historically supported Democrats, a number of the nation’s most prominent organized labor groups have praised Trump’s tariff strategy. The United Auto Workers Union (UAW) has enthusiastically endorsed the president’s tariffs on foreign vehicle imports, which has already led to an increase in U.S.-based manufacturing from several foreign automakers.
“We applaud the Trump administration for stepping up to end the free trade disaster that has devastated working class communities for decades. Ending the race to the bottom in the auto industry starts with fixing our broken trade deals, and the Trump administration has made history with today’s actions,” UAW President Shawn Fain said last month.
The Teamsters have also praised a number of Trump’s tariff policies after delivering one of the most shocking political decisions of the 2024 presidential election by refusing to endorse former Vice President Kamala Harris. O’Brien, who made history by speaking at the Republican National Convention last summer, explained that Harris refused to sit for a required interview with union leadership in order to receive the endorsement.
“On the fourth question, one of her operatives or one of her staff slips a note in front of me — ‘This will be the last question.’ And it was 20 minutes earlier than the time it was going to end,” O’Brien said during a discussion with Tucker Carlson back in December. “And her declaration on the way out was, ‘I’m going to win with you or without you.”
