Getting America's Trade Policy Back on Track

Thirty-five years ago, the United States exported more goods and services than we imported. That was the last time our nation ran a trade surplus.

Since then, we've been importing far more than we've been exporting. Over the last decade, our annual trade deficit has averaged roughly half a trillion dollars.

American workers are among the most productive and highly skilled in the world. But we are forcing them to compete against countries that undervalue their currency, violate labor laws, abuse human rights, and degrade the environment.

This year alone, the trade deficit stands to cost us over 3 percent of our gross domestic product. That's a loss of more than $400 billion per year. We are exporting opportunity and importing unemployment.

To add insult to injury, our tax code rewards companies that ship jobs overseas. America is losing its manufacturing base, while local businesses struggle to compete with the low price of foreign-made goods. And because of lax standards abroad and inadequate inspection at home, many of the products we are importing are dangerous or even deadly.

Congressional inaction is costing our nation millions of jobs. I propose five steps to reform our trade policy and restore our economic strength:

1. Combat currency manipulators. That is the label we should attach to countries like China. China is keeping the yuan artificially low - devaluing it by perhaps 40 percent - in order to make its products cheaper and ours more expensive. The U.S. government should impose countervailing duties to level the playing field.
2. Negotiate and enforce trade agreements that promote American competitiveness, protect the environment, and preserve the rights of workers.
   
3. Retool the tax code to encourage investments in American producers and American workers.
   
4. Enforce and strengthen laws against intellectual property theft, dumping, illegal boycotts, and other predatory trade practices.
   
5. Require that imported goods be properly labeled and meet U.S. food and product safety standards.

I believe in competition. I know that in a fair fight, America can win. But this fight isn't fair. As our next U.S. Senator, I will push to put our trade policy back on track and more Americans back to work.

 

Comments

[truman dem]

03:26 PM on 04/20/2010

As long as people are fooled into voting against their own interests and are convinced that products made in Asia are superior (for some reason) it will be hard to get our trade policy back in line. People need to STOP BUYING STUFF FROM CHINA AND JAPAN. These nations do not have our best interests at heart. They are predatory, mercantilist nations which do their best at every turn to undermine our economy. For an enlightening read pick up "In The Jaws of The Dragon" It describes the policies of these countries and how our media and political leadership from both parties ignore this danger in the failed economic model of "free" trade. I know that America has remarkable resilience but we cannot bank on dumb luck forever to see us through. Mr. Romanoff at least has acknowleged the problem and therefore has my support. If you want to have a first world economy we can no longer be a country that doesn't make anything.

[Sharon Hanson]

11:12 PM on 04/15/2010

Our world works better when prosperity is shared. The 1% that controls 90%+ of the wealth is not sustainable. We see clearly now the impact these unrepentant capitalists have had by the economic and environmental global disaster they left behind. This is what happens when power stays in the hands of a few and raw capitalism is allowed to run amok in an unregulated environment. They will stop at nothing and will pilferage, maim, murder and create financial products that suck the bounty away from the good of the planet and into their bottomless pockets stuffed but never filled with unjust and unearned wealth.

However, Andrew has a point we need to get our country in order and return the middleclass to prosperity and to a time where respect for our workers meant paying a livable wage. And while that light shines brightly as a beacon of hope to the rest of our sisters and brothers worldwide it will speak loudly in the hope Obama sold us - yes we can. Yes we can change the way we do business in this country, yes we can become a more prosperous country and in the process lead the way for other countries. We’ve accomplished this before and we can do it again but not without taking care of the unbridled power of rogue corporations and banks that deplete the world’s resources and exploit workers worldwide while feasting on their insatiable appetites for acquiring more wealth while suppressing citizens all over the

[oldpotsmuggler]

02:17 PM on 04/15/2010

Who are we fighting? Our major issues result from not being aggressive in the struggle against the ultra wealthy, and you make it sound like we win as long as our working brothers and sisters in this country are okay, even if our "success" comes mainly at the expense of our working brothers and sisters around the rest of the planet. I mean, just because they can't vote in our election, that doesn't make them less worthy of your concern and consideration, does it?