The Trump administration says a steel tariff will be announced in the next two weeks to preserve American industries. John Stossel says that won't work.
George Bush tried a similar tariff. Steel production hardly rose at all, and 200,000 jobs were lost in American industries that depend on steel.
Trump is also using the 25% tax as leverage to get Canada and Mexico to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA). He calls the current deal "such a disaster."
But Stossel says NAFTA has been good!
Avocados were once rarely eaten in America. They were hard to find in the winter because American producers can't grow year-round. Mexican farmers can, however, and since NAFTA, Americans buy 4 times as many avocados.
American producers weren't hurt much–they still grow roughly the same amount they did before NAFTA. But consumers are much better off.
People think NAFTA harmed manufacturing. Trump points out that "before NAFTA went into effect, there were 285,000 autoworkers in Michigan. Today, that number is only 160,000."
That's true, but it's mostly due to technology, not trade. Robots do work humans once did.
Looking at total production of cars and car parts, American auto output is up since NAFTA.
Stossel points out that trade also enables amazing things like iPhones. Apple gets raw materials from 63 different countries, and sends the raw materials to 34 different countries for processing. Multiple countries then assemble the products. All that helps make phones affordable, and profitable to produce.
Stossel says: Yes, trade hurts some Americans. But it helps many more of us.
By addressing the unfair trade in steel and aluminum, Trump is only setting the stage for shrinking the overall U.S. trade deficits, which would help rebuild U.S. manufacturing industries.
By addressing the unfair trade in steel and aluminum, Trump is only setting the stage for shrinking the overall U.S. trade deficits, which would help rebuild U.S. manufacturing industries.
Roll on, Donald....ROLL ON....you da man.
Time will tell,but I believe you are right on this.
The US Commerce Dept needs to start doing their jobs and taking SERIOUS looks at the US investment banks and the things they do that harm our nation and our security. They are in bed with the communists in wanting to make America art of "Worldwide Government,Inc".
I seem to remember from history class that at the time of our nations birth, we were largely an agrarian society, and we manufactured very little. Our founders wanted us to do a lot more manufacturing, so they instituted tariffs to encourage our nations manufacturing. This was to strengthen our nation's national security ( you cannot fight if you are unable to manufacture your weapons ), and to enhance the nations wealth.
Our manufacturing base grew & grew. By the time of WWII, our nation was the manufacturing giant of the world, enabling us to defeat Hitler & Tojo !! And after the war, we were still an industrial giant. That enabled us to be the strongest military, and to have the largest, wealthiest middle class in the world. That further strengthened our nation.
No one should object to us maintaining that status, EVER !!!!
