It’s time to acknowledge that Donald Trump and Boris Johnson have far more in common than funny hair, and that the movement once known as conservatism—to which both men retain only the barest connection—is taking on a new form, that of an unabashed, xenophobic nationalism. Trump and Johnson have tapped into a profound trend in…
Democrats on Friday voted down an amendment to the party’s platform that would have opposed the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal, avoiding an awkward scenario that would have put its statement of values at odds with President Barack Obama. [Ken Thomas | June 26, 2016 | ABC News] Members of a Democratic National Convention drafting committee defeated…
Former Nucor CEO Dan DiMicco, now an adviser to Donald Trump’s campaign, told CNN on Friday that Britain’s vote to exit the European Union has lessons for the U.S. as it nears its presidential election. [Deon Roberts | June 24, 2016 | Charlotte Observer] “I think what people should be learning from what’s just taken…
Donald Trump delivered what’s being viewed as his first major general election speech today, and he went hard after Hillary Clinton on trade, dismissing entirely her oft-stated opposition to the Trans-Pacific Partnership. [Daily News | June 22, 2016 | Inside US Trade] “If she is elected president, she will adopt the Trans-Pacific Partnership and we…
We’ve got a bit of news from the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC) today, whichokayed duties on imports of cold-rolled steel flat products from China and Japan. [Matthew McMullen | June 22, 2016 | Alliance for American Manufacturing] Last month, the Commerce Department announced anti-dumping duties of 266 percent on this product from China and 71 percent on this product from Japan, plus an additional countervailing duty…
The answer is a resounding “no.” The Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement will not stop Japan’s currency manipulation or that of any other partner country because TPP has no provisions regarding currency manipulation misalignment in its text. The problem of currency manipulation is similar to the U. S. budget deficit that keeps being kicked down the road…
ADVOCATES OF PARTICULAR issues sometimes have to be reminded that presidential elections have consequences. One of the lessons people should learn this year is that so do primaries. [Barney Frank| June 20, 2016 |Boston Globe] If voters deliver a clear enough message in the nominating process, it can determine public policy outcomes even before those nominated…
Regardless of who wins the presidential election in November, the 2016 campaign has already dramatically undermined a major pillar of post–World War II American economic and foreign policy—free trade. [Clyde Prestowitz| June 17, 2016 |Washington Monthly] Hillary Clinton’s current rejection of the same Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) free trade agreement that earlier she had called “the…
This week kicked off with U.S. Trade Representative Michael Froman announcing today (June 20) at the Council on Foreign Relations that the Obama administration is engaged in drafting the implementing bill of the Trans-Pacific Partnership and the other required elements of a legislative package, which Congress could vote on when a “window of opportunity” opens…
Carrier Corp.’s decision to shutter its manufacturing operation on Indianapolis’ west side will cause a domino effect that will wipe out more than 2,700 jobs across Indiana and cost the state’s economy more than $100 million a year, experts say. [Kris Turner| June 17, 2016 |Indy Star] Carrier plans to eliminate 1,400 low- to midgrade manufacturing…