Trump to GM CEO: Keep Ohio plant open -- or sell it

March 18 (UPI) -- President Donald Trump told General Motors CEO Mary Barra Sunday to keep the automotive plant in Lordstown, Ohio, open or sell it to someone who will open it soon to preserve U.S. jobs.

In a series of tweets Sunday and Monday, Trump targeted GM, saying the carmaker should close plants in Mexico or China rather than the United States. He said GM and the United Auto Workers union will start talks in September or October.

"Why wait, start them now! I want jobs to stay in the U.S.A. and want Lordstown (Ohio), in one of the best economies in our history, opened or sold to a company who will open it up fast! Car companies are coming back to the U.S. So is everyone else."

In November, GM announced it would close five plants in the United States and Canada to trim costs by $6 billion by 2020. That included the Lordstown plant.

GM did announce it will keep the Detroit-Hamtramck plant in Michigan open until at least January so it can produce the Cadillac CT6 and Chevrolet Impala.

Last month, the UAW filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court arguing that GM failed to comply with a collective bargaining agreement by closing plants.

The UAW is calling on GM to keep all the plants open.