McCain move sparks furor from shipping industry

The Daily Press ^ | 1/16/2015 | Hugh Lessig

[outofsalt]

A proposal from Sen. John McCain has sparked a furious backlash from shipbuilding and ship repair executives who say the plan would cripple their industry and compromise coastal security..

The Arizona senator wants to repeal a key provision of a 95-year-old law that governs shipping in America's coastal waters and between domestic ports. It would strike the requirement that vessels engaging in port-to-port, domestic waterborne trade be built in the U.S. .............. In a news release, the Arizona senator said, "It costs six dollars per barrel to move crude from the Gulf Coast to the Northeast United States on a Jones Act tanker, while a foreign-flag tanker can take that same crude to a refinery in Canada for two dollars per barrel — taking money directly out of the pockets of American consumers."

The backlash across the maritime industry hits home in Virginia, where there are more than 63,000 shipbuilding jobs. Shipbuilding and ship repair are major pillars of the Hampton Roads economy. ....

[outofsalt]

Juan McLame is an idiot. ""Its immediate impact would be a reduction in the number of ships built in U.S. shipyards, which would result in a loss of jobs, a loss of industrial knowledge and skills, and a loss in America's edge in shipbuilding quality and technology," the league said in a statement. "This would mean all ships used by our U.S. Navy, Marine Corps and Coast Guard — which of course will be built in the United States — would have a higher cost per ship due to increased overhead costs, and would have a less reliable industrial base."

[outofsalt]

We could buy our maritime assets from the Chinese, along with everything else, I suppose.

[DoodleDawg]

We’re shipping the rest of our industrial base overseas. Why not ship building too?

[Cringing Negativism Network]

Impeach McCain for this, and bring back American jobs.

Sell-out.

[Lurkina.n.Learnin]

“It costs six dollars per barrel to move crude from the Gulf Coast to the Northeast United States on a Jones Act tanker, while a foreign-flag tanker can take that same crude to a refinery in Canada for two dollars per barrel”

Is this true?

[maggief]

[exit82]

I swear John McCain is the original Manchurian Candidate.

Everything he does is to weaken this nation while appearing to do the opposite.

[9thLife]

Do everything in your power to increase the cost of manufacturing in America. What happens after that is not rocket science.

[albie]

Simply lower the federal tax on gas. Oil companies meka 2 - 4 cents per gallon profit. Taxes are as high as .60 per gallon. Maybe higher That doesn’t make sense...does it?!

[outofsalt]

I don’t know how many oil refineries there are in the North East that would need crude oil. Even if he means shipping refined product, his proposal is penny wise and pound foolish.

(I have to leave the house so I won’t be able to follow the thread till evening.)

[Jack Hydrazine]

It’s not like we’ve exported practically every manufacturing job overseas since after the end of WWII.

Manufacturing is the key area of the economy that actually generates more wealth rather than a service jobs that only moves it around a bit.

[taildragger]

"It costs six dollars per barrel to move crude from the Gulf Coast to the Northeast United States on a Jones Act tanker:

I think the bigger questions are:

* Why isn't it easier to build a refinery in the Gulf Coast and then ship the refined products to the North East?
* After said refinement, that is why isn't then their a Pipeline to ship said refined crude to the North East?
* An even bigger question is what are the Gas and Oil Resources in the North East and why aren't they extracting them?

Perhaps Nimbyism and the EPA are two issues the Senator is forgetting about?

[Cringing Negativism Network]

We have decimated American manufacturing in the last 15 years in particular.

America needs to grow. That means we need to bring back American jobs.

The GOP badly, needs to lead a renewal of American industry.

[Iscool]

Do everything in your power to increase the cost of manufacturing in America. What happens after that is not rocket science.

And just think...We could replace all the taxis in the U.S. with Chinese made Yugos and Chinese drivers...Just look at the money we will save there...

We could lay off the Air National Guard and scrap the planes and hire the Chinese military to patrol the skies of the U.S... Big savings...

[Ben Ficklin]

US oil exports to Canada are at record levels and for several years sweet light shale oil from the Eagle Ford in Texas has been shipped by boat to refineries in Quebec to replace the imported Brent Crude which is expensive. There is also demand for this sweet light crude on the US west coat.

This is really what the Trans-Canada pipeline is about. Import Tar sands oil from Alberta to be refined on the gulf coast, freeing up the sweet light shale oil for export.

Meanwhile, there are large amounts Bakken shale oil moving by rail to both the east and west coasts.

Export baby export.

[Diogenesis]

EXEMPT McCain is always looking out for
HIMSELF (above the Law, of course, like the other EXEMPT)
and the “rebels” that he turned into ISIS with Obola.

[9thLife]

I think NYC is opting for those boxy little Nissan short-bus-looking things.

If gay, green muslim transgenders made cars, I guess we'd be using them.

[oldmomster]

besides killing American shipbuilding industry, another aspect of Jones Act I believe requires 75% of the crew to be American citizens.

now we know what jobs all those somali immigrants will be given.....

[Enlightened1]

You know that slimy sell out rat McCain will get paid bribe money too. Remember too this is the U.S. Senator that collaborated with Al-Qaeda and ISIS.

I don't know about you but it sure feels like our government NO LONGER represents the American People, but SELL OUTS to the highest bidders.

unfortunately most of the highest bidders tend to be foreign governments. The U.S. Constitution is nothing but a pain is thorn to them.

[ConservativeMind]

Interesting points you have, there.

I am more concerned about the build of the ship and the ability of the ship's workers than I am that such ships MUST be built in the US.

We should require these close port-to-port ships be run entirely by American citizens who will care more about ensuring the safety and integrity of their operation.

So on this, I agree with McLame.