The U.S. sometimes imposes tariffs far lower than other nations impose on us, often for the exact same product. For example, the E.U. levies as high as a 67% tariff on American pork while America only imposes a tariff as high as 6% on E.U. pork.
The United States Reciprocal Trade Act would give the president greater authority to impose tariffs equal to levels other nations impose on us. What is your view of this pending legislation?
There are literally hundreds of similar examples where the trade deals the United States has negotiated over the last 50 years, by leadership of both political parties, have created lopsided results that favor the other nation over America’s domestic economic interests. This can all be traced back to the notion, again shared by most senior leadership members of both political parties, that “The United States has always been successful. So we can afford to make trade deals with such ludicrous terms as a means to help subsidize the economies of other nations.”
This mentality became pervasive in Washington, D.C. after WWII, when the United States was the sole economic super-power in the industrialized world. Political leaders never thinking about the long-term ramifications of what such policies would result in over time. Most politicians only cared about “getting something done” to tout how successful they were to a public generally unaware and uninterested in understanding what these various trade deals contained. So now American products are economically disadvantaged, via the lopsided tariff structures in place, in every major global market we sell into.
Whether it be China, the EU, Japan or most of South America, every trade deal we have entered into, especially those starting with Clinton all the way through Obama, have been designed to help grow the economies of other nations at the expense of our own economy. Example: China’s economy in 1989 was a total basket case. The major form of personal transportation for those living in cities was the bicycle. It was very much a nation struggling to survive via subsistence living (hand to mouth). Thanks to Clinton era trade deals and efforts to allow China into the WTO and the larger global economy, today China is the number two economic power in the world. Most American companies have found it is almost impossible to succeed in China, as their rules require Chinese partners and foreign companies to fully disclose all their proprietary information. Which China then copies and uses to create competitors to the foreign companies at a fraction of the cost. Thus cutting the market for American or any other foreign country’s goods or services to almost nil. Plus to add insult to injury, China is using their economic growth to fuel the growth of their military. Read China 2049.
Thank God we finally have a President who understands the long-term economic and military implications of the intentional incompetence of past Presidents and their adminstrations. Too bad much of Congress and the administrative state cares more about over-throwing President Trump than doing what is in the best interests of the American economy and its citizens.
LET’S SKIP ALL THE LONG WINDED POLITICAL BLA BLA FROM THE USUAL POSTERS AND GET TO THE POINT …
POTUS says “America first” and he means it – I’m in total agreement.
GBA/#TRUMP2020 – Deus Vult !
Don’t forget to fly the Stars and Stripes this 4th.
Well, I agree with both opinion but is very rude to tell others that their expressing ideas or making comments are political bla, bla. Be considerate with those able to make very clear and rational, common sense comments that really show appreciation of the stupid things that politicians do, think and want for our country, and recognize what our president does that benefit all of us.
Free trade benefits all but it must be free on both sides. What POTUS is doing is right but it will be painful to wean the world off our teat. I hope we can stay the course.
I WENT THROUGH THE IMMIGRATION PROCEDURE WHICH TOOK YEARS AND ALL THE MONEY I COULD RAISE!
ITS CORRUPT POLITICIANS (redundant); clintons, biden, mccain, obamas, et al WHO SOLD US OUT!…SOLD UNITED STATES AND AMERICANS OUT!
I WANT TO BUY AMERICAN-MADE PRODUCTS! Rapist(too bad for you if you don’t like what I said) slick willie got payouts from the chinese to give
them the technology they lacked to be able to get their rockets to fly. Recall that they had to blow up their rockets just after takeoff because
they couldn’t control them…well, the clintons changed that in return for dirty money! The clintons should, today, receive the same sentence
as did the Rosenburgs!
Tell me why we need EU pork at all?
Its about time to balance the playing field & stop countries from taking advantage of America.
what took us so long?
This is a start, but won’t solve the problem. The Chinese have used their income tax policy to sidestep tariffs. They tax Chinese companies that sell products inside China, but don’t tax Chinese companies that sell products outside China. Since the US corporate income tax rate is 21%, if all other things are equal, a Chinese company can undercut its US competitors by 21% and still make money. Most foreign governments do similar things, support export industries and tax consumption.
Our tariffs might address their tariffs, but tit for tat tariffs won’t fix our government’s antibusiness policies. The US Government is like a strangler fig. It’s living off capitalism, and at the same time killing it.
A lot of our politicians oppose equal tariffs because they are lobbied…”paid” to do so or they would all be for equal tariffs.
I remember in the 60’s as a child hearing on the radio about trade imbalances. It worried me then. Some of those nations have grown much stronger militarily, developing nuclear weapons that now threaten the US. It is past time we evened the economic playing field.
Other economies have enjoyed the fruits of Americans labor for many years. I am all for charity to those less fortunate but it is past time to give the American people a break. Thanks to President Trump there is opportunity to advance fair trade for all.
It is long past time for standing up for the American people. I am all for charity to the needy but not the greedy. I appreciate that we now have the leadership of President Trump, who is willing to do what it takes to balance trade.
I believe it is possible to have free trade agreements that will benefit all countries.
You are’ talking about hard work,which apparently many folk prefer not to associate with. Why should our GOVT. pay subsidies to sell a product?
Cut it out which do you prefer???. I actually pay a higher price for subsidies.
This President has the best instincts on this of any we’ve had in my lifetime. I trust him to do what’s best for the country IN THE LONG RUN. In that way, we should copy the Chinese who look toward the future and not just at today and tomorrow. The next thing he should do is ban Chinese students from coming to this country for university education. They come here and through the university system, steal our new technology and corrupt our future leaders. Surely, we have no obligation to educate the Chinese or the Iranians or any other enemy of our country. And Foreign PORK? We don’t have enough pigs here? Crazy. Importing Mexican avocados and our stupid water policies toward agriculture have put our avocado farmers out of business in CA…can the government get more stupid than that? I could go on and on but I’m off to play Pickleball…unless the government is taxing fun now!
The U.S. has been taken to the cleaners far to long! The former presidents favorite saying was “level the playing field”. This is the one and only area I will agree with him! (holding my nose of course!)
“…undermines the role of Congress.” Who are you kidding????? Congress has degenerated into a partisan kindergarten that fights over everything and gets nothing done. Maybe we could just throw a few bones in the mess and let them fight over non-effectual bills to keep them out of the real issues for the country. Let the states take care of their own issues. Congress sure can’t.
To me this is a “well duh” issue. Logic says if we buy others goods because they are cheaper, and they don’t buy ours because they are expensive, all we are doing is supporting the others economy and not our own. Then if the demand for our product becomes too small, that business closes. Then we are forced to buy foreign goods. To make America great again we have to support our own economy first, then worry about foreign trade second. Look at all the Chinese products that have harms Americans. Medicines and pet foods that kill comes to mind quickly. Also with all the foreign made computer components, how do we consumers know how secure our electronics are? What better way to get foreign intelligence than to sell the country you want to spy on a listening device, be it a phone or computer?
Didn’t Trump at one time suggest the elimination of all tariffs?
Is the issue more complicated than this? Why would our “economic advisors” allow this to exist? Are any of them still employed (by the US)? Should be fired immediately.
Tariff = tax. Taxes are ultimately paid by people (you and me) and go to the government. Thus tariffs hurt the people. So we can expect some pain from What the Pres is proposing, but to not try to level the field on these trade deals is insane. In the long run things will get better. In the short run things will get a lot worse.
Undermine the role of Congress? What the hell does Congress do, but obstruct the President at every opportunity, and disrespect the Tax Paying American Citizen?
The bill, as I understand it gives the President flexibility. not a mandate. I support that kind of flexibility, at least in the hands of a President like Trump.
I am one of the 112 that voted I am not sure. The reason for that is that I am ignorant on international trade. Although I am a degreed engineer, I have no expertise in international trade, or anything involving governmental trade. There is one thing I have learned in my 64 years of living and working as an engineer, and that is if you make decisions without having a ALL the data, you must make educated guesses, better known as assumptions. And by now we all know that assuming makes an ass out of you and me. Therefore, the validity of a three answer poll on a very specific question is meaningless. Now if the question was “would I like to see the scales balanced on foreign trade” , naturally the answer is yes!
Is this what they call fair trade?
I don’t think so.
Many countries “dump” their products for less than they sell them in their own countries here in the USA to get dollars. Tariffs need to be charged to bring this on a level playing field. It has to be done commodity by commodity and country by country as a function of the exporting country’s local prices. While this has created a major deficit in our balance of trade, our balance of payments stays good as the dollars have a tendency to get reinvested here in the form of our treasuries. Does that mean that those corrupt exporting countries may own us?
It’s a no brainer! Trump, a business man is the only president in my lifetime to address this problem. Of course he doesn’t have a political agenda to guide his decisions, he is a true Patriot who will always put the United States first. Also it’s just common sense.
While I support tariffs that will lead to fair trade and protection of the US economy, your pork illustration is not a example of fair trade. In this case EU is protecting their farmers from US imports. Let’s be seeking win ‐ win deals. In your example the US has a huge advantage in pork so we need to seek deals in products that the EU needs and vice versa. The other advantage of tariffs is they are better than bullets (sometimes). Tarriffs can be used to “encourage ” other nations to see our way of thinking. If Congress was not so dysfunctional there would be no need for this bill. Term limits will fix most of the problem, but that’s another discussion.
What’s good for the goose is good for the gander.
It’s time to level the playing field.
Equal tariffs should lead to no tariffs. A win for America and fair to all.
Corrupt unions have interfered with the capitalist system and have made many US made items must too expensive.
Either free trade or equal tarrifs.
I am sure there are numerous issues to consider when making decisions on tariffs. However they need to be fair and equal. True fair trade is well overdue and the US needs to stop getting the short end of the stick in these trade agreements.
In the Fall of 2016, my wife and I spent 89 days in Costa Rica from Labor Day on because unlike the phony Hollywood types if Clinton won we WERE leaving. The Ticos were very friendly and welcoming. The tariffs on USA goods =not so much. There are only 2-3 stores that offer an expanded variety of food products made in the USA. The best and easiest to understand would be a 759ml bottle of good old Jack Daniels. $18.00 in the USA and $40.00, give or take a buck or two, in Costa Rica. $28.00 for 4 frozen hamburger patties from Chicago. I could go on and on, however you get the picture. On top of this, get ready, the US under the Obama Administration was funding, I am certain the government continues to do so, internment camps full of Cubans and other “refugees” to be “housed” in Costa Rica until according to Ticos in the know” the USA is ready to accept them. There were around 7 camps scattered mostly on the Caribbean side. Did I see them? Nope. We dd not visit the Eastern portion of the Country on the advice of many Ticos.
At any rate, the tariffs imposed on US goods is enormous and this from a Country that relies heavily on the US for military protection and they have no military of their own.
We can only imagine the tariff level from around the world as barriers to “free trade”. It, like most global phrases, is pure B.S. The USA is punished time and again. The President has been talking about the unfairness of trade practices for years and certainly before he even considered running for President. Why? Because it is true.
I oppose tariffs in general. Tariffs do NOTHING to punish a foreign government; all they do is raise prices on goods to American consumers. Plus, what accountability is there to know what tariff income is spent on? I see no transparency in the way tariffs are handled.
It only sounds fair to me but the Democrats will try to stop at every which way they can
It is way to much of a complex issue to be either a yes or no. There are too many elements that can enter into such negotiations. I agree we have been getting stiffed by a number of trading partners and I think The ‘D’ is on the right track.
We should NOT be importing anything, especially commodities, that we produce here in ample amounts.
I am not sure the US should impose tariffs equivalent to other countries. If there is equality in the tariffs, it could result in having more migration of immigrant workers into this country vs allowing them to work in their countries, with their standards of living. We already have infrastructure issues than are far from being resolved.
Other nations charge more and when it comes to the United Nations do not even pay their fair share and expect the US to pay what’s due.
They need to own up on that score and we should charge the same in tariffs that they do to us.
I would normally have voted for not undermining Congress, but they have already managed to do that by themselves…
Of course the President should be able to use tariffs to level the playing field. It’s absurd to think the USA cannot, or should not, use it’s economic power to force other countries to treat us fairly in all respects. We deserve the same consideration, the same respect that any country should get. For years and years we have been subjected to national leadership who have been more than willing to give away our power to everyone, and for what, so they can impose their open borders, socialist, redistributionist theories not only on us but on everyone. Anyone who doesnt think this is a global cabal intent on undermining the USA is naive or ill informed or both.
America First !!!
President Trump is a great negotiator…attempt to get things corrected…if unable, quit importing their product. The E.U. example…Why are we importing their pigs?
It should not be the presidents job to levee tariffs. Don’t we have a commerce dept. or some other dept. to take care of that.
its time to settle scores and make things a little more even. Lets worry about our country a little more and equalize trade. Other countries have had an extreme advantage on the U.S. relative to trade and thanks to our president (Trump, that is) we are now starting to even the score. Praise God for Donald Trump
Generally, I oppose tariffs on imported goods because they amount to a tax increase on the American people in he form of higher prices for those goods. However, they are an important foreign policy weapon if used constructively as President Trump is doing.
I think we must take into account that most EU Countries are the size of one of our States. I think we must be prudent in our Tariffs if we want to do business with the small, individual countries. If we go too far, then both sides lose. We can afford to push for more fair trade agreements with the larger countries that are on an even footing with us – like China, or Russia. We have allowed our own production to stagnate and grown to rely on imports. That kind of thinking doesn’t help our country or its citizens.
It is about time someone stood up for the American people.
We as Christians need to stand up to evil in whatever form it is. The wicked world will run roughshod over us if we don’t. The only reason evil triumphs is because good people do nothing.(Edmund Burke) If you want America to be a 3rd world nation, allow the democrats, media and muslims to just have their way!!! If you want to keep America great, then stand up to evil in all its’ forms!!!