EXCLUSIVE: Cabinet officials, lawmakers tout Ford’s move to bring Lincoln production home
Ford Motor Company has won praise from Trump administration officials and political leaders for its decision to move production of Lincoln vehicles from China to the United States, a move manufacturing advocates are calling one of the most significant reshoring announcements of President Donald Trump’s second term.
“Ford’s moving Lincoln to the U.S. is possibly the biggest reshoring win during the Trump administration,” the Coalition for Affordability and Prosperity said in a statement to the Washington Reporter. “It is a massive number of good-paying jobs, it’s an example for other industries to follow, and it has received more praise from lawmakers from both parties than any other investment.”
Ford announced last month that it plans to move production of some Lincoln models from China to the United States beginning in 2030, phasing out Chinese imports for the U.S. market.
Acting Labor Secretary Keith Sonderling praised the move in an interview with the Washington Reporter, calling it an example of the reindustrialization Trump promised.
“This is exactly what we want to see,” Sonderling told the Reporter.
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick has also praised Ford’s decision.
“Ford’s got an edge. Domestic manufacturing has an edge,” Lutnick said alongside Ford CEO Jim Farley when the company announced the move.
Lutnick later went further, saying, “Ford is going to rock us with bringing manufacturing back to America.”
The White House also singled out Ford’s Lincoln decision as evidence that Trump’s trade policies are bringing manufacturing back to the United States.
“Ford Motor Company announced it will reshore production of its Lincoln models to the United States, phasing out imports from China and creating thousands of new American jobs,” the White House said. It called the announcement “the latest proof” that Trump’s trade agenda is encouraging domestic manufacturing.
Ford CEO Jim Farley directly credited administration policy with the decision.
“We made this decision as soon as the policy of the administration was set,” Farley said. “We knew exactly what they wanted to do, and we knew exactly what it meant for Ford.”
Michigan Republican Senate candidate Mike Rogers has also praised Ford’s broader effort to bring manufacturing back to the United States.
“The most important thing about tariffs is getting back to Made in America,” Rogers said in an interview discussing the revival of American manufacturing. “Ford is coming back.”
Rogers also pointed to the importance of rebuilding manufacturing employment in Michigan after years of job losses.
“China has been eating our lunch on supply chains, on critical minerals,” Rogers said. “All of this helps realign to make sure that Michigan working families and American working families are manufacturing again.”
Sen. Bernie Moreno (R., Ohio) has similarly pushed automakers to move production away from China. Moreno and Sen. Elissa Slotkin (D., Mich.) introduced bipartisan legislation aimed at strengthening restrictions on Chinese vehicles and technology entering the U.S. market. The legislation advanced unanimously through the Senate Commerce Committee in July.
Moreno specifically pointed to Ford’s decision as a victory after the company committed to moving Chinese-made Lincoln production to the United States.
Ford’s decision would bring production of the Lincoln Nautilus, the company’s primary vehicle imported from China, back to the United States. The Nautilus currently faces a 52.5% tariff when imported from China. Ford sold roughly 34,000 Nautilus vehicles in the United States last year.
Ford already builds the Lincoln Navigator in Kentucky and the Lincoln Aviator in Illinois. The company says it employs approximately 56,300 hourly manufacturing workers in the United States and assembled more than 2 million vehicles domestically last year.
Ford says 83% of the vehicles it sells in the United States are assembled domestically.
