[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 43 (Monday, March 12, 2018)]
[Senate]
[Pages S1632-S1633]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]

      By Mr. FLAKE:
  S. 2538. A bill to prohibit an increase in duties on imports of steel 
and aluminum; to the Committee on Finance.
  Mr. FLAKE. Mr. President, when these ill-conceived tariffs were 
announced last week, I said I would introduce legislation that would 
immediately nullify this very unfortunate exercise in protectionism 
before it could wreak havoc on our economy.
  If implemented, these tariffs will do just what tariffs have always 
done. They will lead to job losses and will stymie economic growth. 
What is worse, the President's attempt at flexibility in the form of 
poorly defined exceptions only serves to harm the economy further by 
creating uncertainty. Tariffs are bad enough on their own; tariffs 
married with uncertainty are even worse.
  Can you imagine the President saying one day, ``Well, I think that 
Australia is moving in ways that we think are good in this area or 
that, so I am going to lessen the tariffs that we impose on steel and 
aluminum for Australia''? The next day it is Brazil. ``If it does this 
or that that is unrelated to these tariffs, I might lift tariffs or 
lessen the burden of tariffs on that country.'' Yet, a week later, if 
Brazil makes another move, the President might seek to reimpose or to 
make the burden heavier. That simply doesn't work if you are trying to 
achieve economic growth and if you are trying to convince countries to 
enter into trade partnerships with you. Particularly when you are 
dealing with our allies, that is no way to treat your allies.
  I understand free trade is sometimes a challenge. I understand that 
it is a challenge on the campaign trail, certainly. It is often easier 
to point to a shuttered factory and blame trade or immigration or some 
other convenient scapegoat other than what is usually the case--
modernization or mechanization or something that has meant that we have 
increased productivity or simply the best allocation capital in order 
to facilitate trade.
  We have to aggressively negotiate both bilateral and multilateral 
trade deals if we are to catch up. If we fail to do this and continue 
to withdraw from the global marketplace, we are going to be left far 
behind. We saw this with regard to the Trans-Pacific Partnership. We 
pulled out of those negotiations, and the other 11 countries involved 
simply went on their own and left us behind. That has meant, in 
particular, countries in Southeast Asia, which would like to be a part 
of our trade orbit, have had no choice but to be more reliant on China. 
That doesn't serve our interests at all.
  We have to remember we represent just 20 percent of the world's 
economic output. We represent just 5 percent of the world's population 
or just less than that. If we don't trade, we don't grow. You can be 
pro-growth or you can be pro-tariff, but you can't be both.
  Those who have reservations about these tariffs ought to support this 
legislation that I am introducing today to

[[Page S1633]]

nullify the tariffs. Those who have expressed admiration for free trade 
or supply-side economics ought to support this bill as well. Those who 
are happy with the economic growth that we have recently achieved and 
are interested in seeing it continue ought to support this bill. We now 
have a better climate for economic growth on both the regulatory side 
and the tax side. If we enter a trade war, we risk reversing those 
gains we have made.
  We in Congress cannot be complicit as this administration courts 
economic disaster in this fashion. I urge my colleagues to join me in 
exercising our constitutional oversight and to invalidate these 
irresponsible tariffs.

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