CLEVELAND — Sen. Bernie Moreno, R-Ohio, joined Cleveland-Cliffs CEO Lorenzo Goncalves to announce a $1000 bonus incentive for Cliffs’ employees who buy or lease a new American-built car made with “substantial Cliffs’ steel content.”

“These are the cars that I would like my employees to buy because the revolution that's going on will be fueled by consumers,” Goncalves said. “American consumers doing the right thing.”

The move comes as President Donald Trump prepares to expand tariffs on all steel and aluminum imports, starting March 12, in an effort to strengthen the domestic steel industry. 

According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor statistics, the number of steelworkers in the U.S. has fallen about 65% between 1983 and 2022.

Economists warn that increased costs caused by tariffs could be passed down to consumers. Meanwhile, Moreno said tariffs are just the first step in expanding domestic manufacturing.

“We don't even make the steel that we need here in America,” he said. “So, the first thing is to get to the point where every amount of steel that we need to produce things in America, we're at 100%. That's the baseline. That’s like worst-case scenario, is that we have enough steel produced to satisfy the demand in America. Then the next step is let's become an exporter of steel.”

Goncalves said he has selected 50 American-built vehicles that are eligible for the bonus incentive, which will run through the remainder of 2025. It includes models from General Motors, Toyota, Honda and a few other companies, that are made domestically, using significant amount of Cleveland-Cliffs steel. 

“The program that we putting in place today is very simple,” he said. “It's a token of appreciation to what President Trump is bringing back to America.”

Moreno said next week he will introduce legislation that would make interest on car loans tax deductible for those who purchase an American-made vehicle.