Dennis Kucinich: “Mr. Chairman, the Kucinich-Visclosky amendment corrects a significant flaw in the administration's manufacturing policy.…”

“Mr. Chairman, the Kucinich-Visclosky amendment corrects a significant flaw in the administration's manufacturing policy. Let us review recent history. During President Bush's term, manufacturing has shrunk, factory jobs have decreased, steel companies have closed; 13 steel companies and 14.6 million tons of capacity have been shut down since this administration took office. Cheap foreign imports are up. The trade deficit is up. This was a $549 billion drag on the economy last year, and that is a record. In other words, on this administration's watch, the manufacturing base of our economy has eroded. Now, it happens that much of American manufacturing occurs in a few States, and we are in an election year when those States get some attention. After ignoring the deterioration of American manufacturing for most of its term, this administration wants voters to believe that it cares, so the President announced just last month the creation of a Manufacturing Council. The purpose of the Council, according to a news release, is to 'work with the Commerce Department to advocate, coordinate and implement policies that will help U.S. manufacturers compete worldwide.' The Council is comprised of CEOs from a number of industries. However, it is marred by the omission of any union representative or, surprisingly, steel industry representatives. Apparently, we have to remind the administration about the importance of steel.”