The Details Behind Trump’s Deal With Carrier Revealed

In light of today’s visit by President-elect Trump to Indiana to take credit for saving some 1,100 Carrier jobs from being offshored to Mexico, a recurring question is what was the Trump quid to Carrier’s pro quo to get the deal done.
As reported yesterday, Carrier did issue a press release, perhaps to confirm that it hadn’t merely caved to Trump team pressure, when it said that “the incentives offered by the state were an important consideration” adding that “this agreement in no way diminishes our belief in the benefits of free trade and that the forces of globalization will continue to require solutions for the long-term competitiveness of the U. S. and of American workers moving forward.”
As we further noted, shortly after the deal, questions emerged as to what the motive behind Carrier’s decision may have been. “Was Carrier pressured into doing a deal that was not in the best interest of shareholders of its parent, United Technologies? Was strongarming involved? Did Trump make a major concession as part of a political deal or did Carrier simply bend over backwards to appease the President-elect?” Overnight, The Hill similarly focused on the nuances of the deal, adding that fiscally conservative groups are staying quiet about the deal for the time being. “But if it turns out that Trump and Pence have offered any special concessions to Carrier – either at the federal level or the state level, given that the vice president-elect is still the governor of Indiana – then those free-market groups are likely to cry foul.”
‘The particulars of this agreement haven’t been released, but our position on corporate welfare is well-known and that has not changed,’ said Brent Gardner, chief government affairs officer at Americans for Prosperity. The group is the major grassroots organization within the network of conservative mega-donors Charles and David Koch.

This post was published at Zero Hedge on Dec 1, 2016.