# German fury over Audi CEO's Trump rally appearance

> Audi's leader faced fierce backlash from politicians and unions after appearing with Trump to announce a four billion dollar U.S. investment.
- Title: German fury over Audi CEO's Trump rally appearance · POLITICO
- Summary: Audi's leader faced fierce backlash from politicians and unions after appearing with Trump to announce a four billion dollar U.S. investment. German…
- Keywords: audi, volkswagen, gernot döllner, donald trump, germany, trade war, automotive industry, ig metall, politics, world, German, fury
- Source: POLITICO — https://politico.eu/article/donald-trump-midterms-germany-gernot-dollner-unions-audi-ceo
- Published: 2026-10-26T12:02:45+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: audi, volkswagen, gernot döllner, donald trump, germany, trade war, automotive industry, ig metall, politics, world
## Audi CEO joins Trump at Georgia rally
Audi CEO Gernot Döllner appeared alongside U.S.President Donald Trump at a campaign rally in Georgia on Saturday.
## German politicians condemn the appearance
Isabel Cademartori, a Social Democratic Party lawmaker and transport policy spokesperson, called it a disgrace.She accused Audi of validating Trump's strategy of using a trade war to shift jobs from Europe to the United States.

> Actively campaigning for an autocrat who is waging a trade war against Germany marks a new low for the VW Group.
## Union leader calls it unworthy and embarrassing
Christiane Benner, first chair of IG Metall, Germany's biggest industrial trade union, said Döllner violated the company's own internal policies requiring political neutrality. She called his actions highly embarrassing and politically unacceptable.

> Döllner is flagrantly violating the company's own internal policies, which explicitly mandate political neutrality in the lead-up to elections.
## Audi defends the investment as business strategy
Audi said in a statement Sunday that the U.S.offers considerable growth potential and local production is central to its comprehensive growth strategy.The company framed the investment as a long-term commitment to the United States.

> The U.S. offers considerable growth potential for Audi. Local production is a central component of a comprehensive growth strategy.
## Key takeaway

German politicians and unions condemned Audi CEO Gernot Döllner for appearing at a Trump rally to announce a four billion dollar U.S. factory investment, calling it politically unacceptable and a betrayal of the company's neutrality policy.