I think most free trade advocates would make the argument that national security should not be farmed out to any foreign bidders, lowest bid or not. Some things are worth paying extra for.
To bad the greedy and stupid CEO’s strip mining our country for short term profits didn’t get the memo. China is strategically cleaning our clocks and the free trade crowd says look I made another 100 million so I must be successful. Profits are not everything and collapsing the economic system to prove this point is going to be painful.
Were the companies importing said products LIABLE for said risks, my bet is that they would not be doing this.
“I think most free trade advocates would make the argument that national security should not be farmed out to any foreign bidders, lowest bid or not. Some things are worth paying extra for.”
It is true the military is supposed to source domestically where possible. Unfortunately, huge segments of our industrial infrastructure no longer exist so it is not always possible to domestically source components. The military market is not large enough, even if it pays a premium price, to keep factories for many products running.
One example is the decline of the US textile and apparel business. It is likely the last domestic nylon yarn spinning plant will close within the next five years. With the recent passage of the Korea free trade bill it will be cheaper to import the yarn from Korea than keep the last US factory open.
The consumer “outdoor” industry uses a significant amount of nylon and polyester (tents, packs, clothing, other equipment). Legislation is now being pushed in Congress to eliminate tariffs on import of consumer outdoor products. Once that happens (likely 2013) as both parties are in favor, this source of domestic demand will go away (as will the tariff revenue to the US government for current imports). Say goodbye to domestic production of polyester and nylon yarns. Imagine all of the military products (clothing, parachutes, seating, ropes, body armor, velcro, parts) made from nylon and polyester. Without a consumer demand for domestic products, there will be no manufacturing infrastructure in place to make military products at any price.
Thanks to the loss of domestic manufacturing infrastructure over the past 20 years to Asia, we no longer have the manufacturing capability in place to support a protracted war. If this were 1941, we would be positioned to lose the war as we would not be able to import the raw materials, we would not have the factories in place, and we could not build the factories fast enough.
I’d rather pay $10 more for a domestic tent, $2.00 more for a domestic polyester shirt, or 50 cents more for a domestic plastic bowl than be in a position where this nation’s supply lines would be cut at the beginning of a conflict and the factories would not exist to be converted to war production. In the event of war with China, does anyone believe we will be able to import chips, clothing, tires, and other materials once the war begins?