Sen. Joe Manchin on Friday urged Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross to conclude the investigation into steel and aluminum “dumping” by China and other countries, arguing that U.S. producers need to be protected from unfair foreign competition.
“In the months since the investigations began, steel imports have only increased as foreign suppliers have rushed to dump additional product onto the American market in anticipation of the investigation’s conclusion. This state of affairs is hurting American workers and companies, who cannot be asked to continue bearing the cost of inaction here. I urge the administration to bring these investigations to a close and provide a meaningful remedy to protect our nation’s steel and aluminum industries from such egregious dumping practices,” the West Virginia Democrat said in a letter dated Friday to Ross.
Manchin’s letter, which takes it as a given that China is violating trade rules by dumping its products at artificially reduced prices, argued that “our national security” was at stake because otherwise the nation’s industrial base would be reliant on countries that “do not always share our foreign policy goals.”
In April, the Commerce Department opened a sweeping probe into how foreign trade in steel has affected national security and the U.S. economy, citing section 232 of the 1962 Trade Expansion Act. Under the act, the administration must complete the investigation within 270 days.
“Other countries have made a living taking advantage of the United States,” President Trump said at the time.
