Audi chief's appearance at Trump rally sparks outrage in Germany

An appearance by Audi chief executive Gernot Döllner at a US campaign event alongside President Donald Trump has triggered major backlash in Germany, with political and industry figures slamming the VW subsidiary's boss on Monday. Left Party co-leader Luigi Pantisano called for the Audi boss to resign, as the executive faced accusations of actively supporting the election campaign of Trump's Republicans ahead of the November 3 midterms.

At a campaign rally in Georgia on Saturday, Trump unexpectedly announced Audi's plans to build its first US production facility in the state. Döllner, who is a member of the VW group board, then took the stage and thanked the US president for his support. "I think it's clear: Audi chief executive Gernot Döllner must step down," Pantisano told news website t-online.

Pantisano accused Trump of pursuing policies that serve the interests of the rich and powerful, while scorning labour rights. "And then a German chief executive takes to the stage and campaigns on behalf of this autocrat," he said. Criticism also came from Chancellor Friedrich Merz's conservatives, with lawmaker Dennis Radtke describing the appearance as "a campaign stunt for Donald Trump" which was "disturbing and pathetic." While it was understandable for a German company to invest in the US market, Trump's policies are causing massive damage to German industry, he added. 'Political spectacle' Christiane Benner, leader of the powerful IG Metall union that represents German autoworkers, described Döllner's appearance as "highly embarrassing, politically unacceptable and unworthy of the company - but above all of Audi's employees." Following the announcement, Benner had issued a statement welcoming the opening of a new plant in the US.

On Monday, she criticized the Audi chief for violating the company's internal guidelines, which ban the carmaker's employees from making public appearances with parties or candidates standing for election in the three months before a vote. The US midterm elections are next week, with the Republicans' narrow majorities in both chambers of Congress at stake.

Olaf Lies, state premier of Lower Saxony, who is also a member of the Volkswagen supervisory board, also criticized the choice of venue for announcing the new plant. "This display has caused consternation, not only among employees here who fear for their jobs, but far beyond," he said, accusing Döllner of having been "made part of a political spectacle." Volkswagen works council chief Daniela Cavallo has also lashed out at Döllner following his appearance alongside Trump.

"Several minutes full of racism, sexism, xenophobia, transphobia, denigration of democracy - and then one of our top group representatives steps on stage and engages in active campaign support," she said in an interview on Sunday, which was made available to dpa. Döllner responds, says he acted in the company's interest Döllner addressed the criticism in a letter to employees, and Audi posted the content as a "statement on the current situation" on its website.

"An Audi delegation travelled to Georgia to move forward with discussions and negotiations regarding our planned production site. During these talks, we were asked to present our plans publicly together with the President of the United States. We accepted this invitation solely with Audi's best interests in mind," the text read.

However, Döllner also admitted: "At the same time, we acknowledge that the circumstances surrounding the announcement may have been perceived as a political signal. We take this very seriously." He added that the company stood by its values but also bore responsibility for Audi's economic future.

Döllner also defended the decision to build a plant: "Local production in the US is of great strategic and economic importance for Audi." He said the US was the world's second-largest premium market, but Audi's business there was "currently not profitable." Many competitors had already produced locally for years.

"Our own local production will allow us to strengthen our competitiveness, reduce trade and currency risks, and better realize the market's growth potential," he said. Audi also stressed that such an investment is designed for decades and therefore well beyond individual election periods.

In this special situation, it was necessary to adequately consider the company's interest and a specific time window for the project, it said. It was not an expression of party political positioning, it added. Works council to weigh possibility of US plant Works council chief Cavallo took a more sober view of the plans for the US plant, which she said could make sense from a business perspective.

The US market is among the largest and most lucrative in the world and VW's market share there is far too small, she said. Audi intends to invest $4 billion in the Georgia plant, which is expected to produce around 200,000 sport utility vehicles (SUVs) annually and create some 4,500 jobs.

However, the works council representative noted that many questions remained following Audi's announcement, including whether the plant would bring tariff relief for the entire VW group. She said employee representatives would only consider giving approval for a new US factory once there was clarity about its impact on other plants, especially in Germany.

In addition to Audi, the VW group includes the luxury brands Bentley and Lamborghini, as well as the motorcycle maker Ducati. FILE PHOTO - A red traffic light can be seen in front of the Audi rings at Audi headquarters. (is associated with: «Audi chief's appearance at Trump rally sparks outrage in Germany») Daniel Löb/dpa