Posted on 03/02/2018 7:28:44 AM PST by SeekAndFind
President Trump is raising tariffs 25% on steel and 10% on aluminum, claiming that cheap steel from other countries has hurt the American steel industry. His claim, that steel imported at lower prices hurts our steel industry, is certainly true.
But talk show host Mark Levin says Trump's tariffs are crony capitalist gifts for wealthy steel-owners that are bad for the economy as a whole. On his talk show last night, he listed a number of reasons why:
1. Industries that depend heavily on steel, such as auto and airplane manufacturers, will take a big hit. With the increase in the price of steel, they will have to increase the price of cars and planes, reducing sales and profits, and ultimately, these manufacturers will have to fire employees to compensate for the inevitable losses.
2. Industries that even peripherally rely on steel will be affected as well. Just think of any business that needs anything made of steel, whether it be cars, refrigerators, trucks, stoves, computers, or any number of other things. They will all have to raise prices to compensate.
3. The ultimate end purchasers of anything made of steel, or anything made with steel, will have to pay higher prices. Levin frames this as a loss of liberty, which is correct, and, equally important, as a tax that punishes the American people. Every time you pay more for a car or a boat or a can of beans or even a loaf of bread, which is made in an oven, which, guess what, is made of metal, you will have to pay more. Because metal is so ubiquitous in manufacturing, Trump's tax will make you pay higher prices for nearly everything you buy.
(Excerpt) Read more at americanthinker.com ...
bkmk
We need to make steel and aluminum in the USA for national security purposes. Levine is shortsighted.
Hey Mark! The next time you buy a piece of AMERICAN steel or aluminum, and the price is a tad more, chalk it up to the price of America First nationalism. It will do your heart good.
On the other hand, Trumps tax cuts ad regulation reform will more than offset pressure to raise prices on consumers.
What Levin says doesn’t always pan out.
I think Trump is making a lot of sense- when someone taxes your import at 50% you should tax their import at 50%
If they back down then we can remove our tariff too- then EVERYONE wins.
What Levin says doesn’t always pan out.
I suppose he agrees that we should be paying other countries to sell our goods there.
Fair trade HAS A MEANING!
It’s a very complex issue. Part of me thinks it’s very important for the US to make high quality/high grade steel and other metals, in part because it’s a national security issue. We need to be able to make things, including military vehicles etc. with our own materials. Hearing the news yesterday about Putin’s supersonic and nuclear-powered Cruise missiles, and his specific statements that we don’t have anything like this, was disturbing.
Also, clearly some countries have been subsidizing their steel industries and flooding the US with lower cost steel - in order to corner the market and drive American steel producers out of business. It’s not open trade when there is price fixing and underwriting by governments.
Not sure what the best solution is. Maybe American tax breaks and incentive to modernize steel producing plants would be a better way to make American steel more competitive, but it’s a difficult issue.
Trump made this a campaign promise, saying he would do this if elected.
Then, he got elected.
Who put him over the top? The Blue Wall Labor states.
He’s keeping his promise to them, for good or ill.
I don’t recall Mark making that argument when Reagan decided to protect the IC and tech industry
Levin’s position is to offshore all production to be patriotic.
Trumps tax cuts ad regulation reform will more than offset pressure to raise prices on consumers.
April 2016 the EU puts anti-dumping duties on Chinese steel and no one says a word. https://www.usnews.com/news/business/articles/2017-04-06/eu-imposes-anti-dumping-duties-on-chinese-steel
Correction April 2017.
These guys want us to keep financing China as they surpass us. Just act fat, dumb and happy as we get rolled by other countries that put tariffs on us but we, with our “principles” refuse to do the same to them because.....we are stupid and get led around by the nose by greedy men who have their manufacturing plants overseas.
Levin’s position would also include cheaper labor, such as illegals to be more patriotic.
RE: Levin’s position would also include cheaper labor, such as illegals to be more patriotic.
It is the OPPOSITE of what you wrote. I hear him almost everyday on my drive home.
RE: He’s keeping his promise to them, for good or ill.
Mark Levin says for ill.
BTW, there’s one promises he might not meet based on his recent DACA proposal — NO AMNESTY FOR ILLEGALS.
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