Time to Pull Back on Tariffs, US Chamber of Commerce CEO Says
U.S. Chamber of Commerce CEO Thomas Donohue said the same things on trade he's been saying for months -- the tariffs on Chinese goods are paid by businesses, not China; the steel and aluminum tariffs in the NAFTA region have to go; the new NAFTA should be approved -- during his annual State of American Business address. "Now that we’ve struck a deal with Canada and Mexico, the administration must make good on its repeated promise to remove the steel and aluminum tariffs that were imposed in the heat of negotiations," Donohue said in his speech Jan. 10. "This would be an encouraging sign for all of our partners, including those we’re pursuing new market-opening agreements with -- Japan, the EU, and the UK."
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Donohue said trade supports 35 million jobs, and warned that that number could dramatically shrink if our trade policies change. "Limiting trade is self-defeating; leveraging trade is essential to success in a global economy and creating jobs," he said.
"The Chamber supports the administration’s negotiations to address China’s theft of intellectual property, forced technology transfer practices, and other unfair trade and industrial policies," he said. "What we don't support is a trade war, which is being waged through mounting tariffs. Let me be very clear. Tariffs are taxes paid for by American families and American businesses -- not foreigners. Instead of undermining our own economy, let’s work with our allies to apply pressure on China and use the tools provided by U.S. trade and international laws that we helped create."
Where the Chamber broke new ground is on its congressional scorecard. For 40 years, the group has endorsed members of Congress based on how they voted on business priorities identified by the Chamber as important. That will still make up 80 percent of rankings, but starting this year, the Chamber will also base the granting of points on whether a member is sponsoring legislation (or not sponsoring what it sees as anti-business legislation), and will grant points for co-sponsoring favorable legislation with members of the other party. "Lawmakers should be rewarded for reaching across the aisle -- not punished," he said.