Are there any auto producers which do NOT have domestic assembly and production plants here?
Not sure but we imported $172 billion in autos in the first half of 2015.
So it really doesn’t matter whether they have a token assembly plant here, or whether they assemble parts that are made overseas. It’s the total trade picture. We have a huge trade deficit and high unemployment, and we are losing industries.
A tariff helps rebalance that. It funds the government when American workers aren’t working. And it makes US operations more profitable relative to overseas.