Trump Suggests GM, Ford to Shift to Missile Production
President Trump suggested General Motors and Ford could shift production from cars to missiles under the Defense Production Act to confront Iran. The announcement came during a White House meeting focused on military readiness and supply chain resilience.
Background
- President Donald Trump invoked the Defense Production Act (a Cold War-era law that lets the president force private companies to prioritize government orders during national emergencies) to direct General Motors and Ford to shift some of their auto manufacturing capacity toward producing missiles and other munitions for potential strikes on Iran's nuclear facilities.
- The Defense Production Act (DPA) was previously used by Trump himself in 2020 to ramp up ventilator production during COVID-19, and by President Biden to boost semiconductor and battery supply chains — but using it to compel automakers to build offensive weapons for a looming conflict is unusually direct.
- Iran's nuclear program has for years enriched uranium closer to weapons-grade levels; this move signals that the Trump administration is preparing the industrial base for a sustained military campaign, not just a single strike.