Trump a ‘Total Paper Tiger’ on Trade, Schumer Says

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): Democrats are trying to pressure President Donald Trump to impose tariffs on steel imports.

Protectionism – especially for the steel industry – was a key part of Trump’s “America First” campaign and figured prominently in his early months in the White House, with an April directive launching a Section 232 investigation of the impact of steel imports on national security. The inquiry – which had been expected to be completed by June – still is not done, and Trump said in July that his administration would focus on other issues, such as health care and tax reform, before addressing trade.

As a result, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., announced in late October that he would block two nominations to the Commerce Department until Trump acts to shield American steel manufacturers from imports.

“They’ve just dragged their feet and delayed and delayed,” Schumer told The New York Times. “The bottom line is the president has been a total paper tiger on this issue.”

Schumer and eight other Democratic senators wrote to Trump and Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross on Oct. 26 to urge them to wrap up the investigation and release the report, arguing that, “our aluminum and steel workers are suffering due to the Administration’s inaction.”

“Previous statements by the President and administration officials indicating the imminent conclusion of these investigations has caused a surge in imports,” they wrote in the letter. “This surge, manufactured by the administration’s delays, has resulted in the closure of a factory and has put additional American jobs at risk. We urge you to complete these investigations as soon as possible, regardless of the legislative process on tax reform.”

Courtesy: AIIS