TheOtherView
Now is time for Bush to fix mistake, end tariffs

The World Trade Organization ruled Monday that U.S. steel tariffs are illegal and ordered the taxes terminated “without delay.” The European Union has threatened to start a massive trade war if the United States refuses.

What a perfect time, then, for President Bush to finally reverse a shoddy and widely criticized decision his administration made 20 months ago.

Bush and his advisers claim the tariffs were necessary to give the steel industry, which had lost more than 50,000 jobs since 1999, some breathing room to restructure. Bush’s critics claim the taxes were all politics, an attempt to curry favor from steel-heavy states that would be critical in the congressional and presidential elections.

But whatever the reason, the tariffs deeply offended even America’s staunchest allies. And who could blame them for believing Bush when he claimed to be a champion of free trade and free markets? Russia, which stood to lose $1 billion from having its steel exports blocked, responded in kind by cutting off American poultry exports. Russia claimed salmonella had been found in recent shipments. But the fact the ban hit American poultry producers to the tune of almost $1 billion made it obvious the American ally was seeking revenge.

Perhaps the wrecking of international relations and the undermining of the administration’s credibility would be worth it if these heavy-handed taxes did what Bush claimed they would do: strengthen the economy.

But they haven’t. A study by the Consuming Industries Trade Action Coalition in February estimated the tariffs had cost 200,000 manufacturing jobs. And in September, the International Trade Commission reported the economy lost $680 million due to the steel taxes.

The largest irony, though, is that if the tariffs were indeed nothing more than just a bald attempt to solidify his voter base in the steel industry, then Bush’s plan backfired. The United Steelworkers of America, the largest steel union, endorsed Rep. Richard Gephardt, D-Mo., over Bush for president, because his policies were preferable to the “reactionary policies of the current administration.”

For the good of the country and its manufacturing industries, it's time for Bush to end the steel tariffs immediately.

This is a staff editorial from the Iowa State Daily at Iowa State University.
This column was distributed by U-Wire.