Trump: Environmental regulations are 'out of control'

Environmental regulations are “out of control,” President Donald Trump said Tuesday.

Speaking at a roundtable with automobile industry leaders, Trump announced “a very big push” from his administration to have companies produce products in the U.S.


“Our friends that wanna build in the United States, they go many, many years and then they can’t get the environmental permit over something that nobody ever heard of before,” he said. “And it’s absolutely crazy. I am, to a large extent, an environmentalist. I believe in it. But it’s out of control.”

Trump said his administration will restore manufacturing jobs “big league,” slash taxes “very substantially” and curb unnecessary regulations.

“We want regulations, but we want real regulations that mean something,” he maintained, pledging to simplify the process for auto companies and other manufacturers that want to do business in the U.S.

Trump added that the U.S. will transform from “very inhospitable to extremely hospitable” and expressed confidence that America will go down in history as one of the friendliest nations in the world.

“We’re gonna make a very short process, and we’re going to either give you your permits or we’re not gonna give you your permits,” he said. “But you’re gonna know very quickly. And generally speaking, we’re gonna be giving you your permits. So we’re gonna be very friendly.”

Mark Fields, CEO of Ford Motor Company, later told reporters that the auto executives are encouraged by Trump’s economic policies, including his executive action Monday to withdraw from the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal.

“We appreciate the president’s courage to walk away from a bad trade deal,” he said. “So I think as an industry, we’re excited about working together with the president and his administration on tax policies, on regulation and on trade, to really create a renaissance in American manufacturing.”

In addition to Fields, the roster of auto executives who met with Trump included Mary T. Barra of General Motors Company, former Missouri Gov. Matt Blunt of American Automotive Policy Council, Craig B. Glidden of General Motors Company, Roger Shane Karr of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, Sergio Marchionne of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and Ziad S. Ojakli of Ford Motor Company.

Tara Palmeri contributed to this report.