Heidi Alexander: “16 years ago President George W. Bush announced that tariffs would be imposed on steel imports from several countries.…”

“16 years ago President George W. Bush announced that tariffs would be imposed on steel imports from several countries. The goal was to help protect the domestic steel industry. It was a good goal by a well-intentioned President whom I supported, but it backfired. Last week President Trump announced that he intends to impose new tariffs on imports of steel and aluminum for the same reasons. It is a good goal by a well-intentioned President, but I am afraid it will backfire, just as it did for President Bush 16 years ago. Here is the problem: Tariffs are big taxes, and they are big taxes that raise consumer prices. These new tariffs may temporarily save a few jobs in plants that produce steel and aluminum, but they will destroy many more jobs in auto plants that use steel and aluminum. This is especially bad news for Tennesseans because one-third of our State's manufacturing jobs are auto jobs, with more than 900 plants in 87 of our 95 counties. Anything that threatens to destroy or damage auto jobs is of grave concern to Tennesseans. It will now be cheaper for some Tennessee auto parts suppliers to move outside the United States, buy steel and aluminum there, and then ship finished parts back to this country. These new tariffs will hurt more than U.S. auto manufacturers. The President indicated this morning that a final decision hasn't been made.…”