[Congressional Record Volume 164, Number 121 (Wednesday, July 18, 2018)]
[Senate]
[Page S5048]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]



                                Tariffs

  Mr. President, I came to talk about trade.
  Is the United States taken advantage of by other countries? You bet 
and especially China. We have been letting them get away with it for 
years, but you don't try to correct that situation by suddenly saying, 
I am going to impose a tariff, as the President has, on imported steel 
and aluminum: 25 percent on steel and 10 percent on aluminum.
  What happens then is, for the people who use those products in 
manufacturing, whatever their business is, that is going to cause the 
cost of those goods to go up. The consumers are going to be the ones 
who get hurt. By the way, what that is going to do, again, is the 
extreme. If you do this, the person who is offended is going to do this 
and do it more.
  That is exactly what is happening in this trade war that is suddenly 
starting to hurt all of us. In reaction to steel and aluminum tariffs 
that the United States has imposed, good friends of ours, major trading 
partners of ours--I am keeping China in a different category. I am 
talking about the European Union; I am talking about Canada, one of our 
closest friends; and I am talking about Mexico. In retaliation for what 
we are doing to them, they are now retaliating and putting tariffs on 
other goods. They are putting tariffs on everything, not only for steel 
and aluminum but from washing machines to lobster, whiskey, and cheese.
  We are starting to see the consequences of these moves. People are 
starting to hurt. This Senator has heard from many businesses in his 
State that are starting to get hurt. In Florida, we are seeing the 
harmful effects of these tariffs. Mind you, it is not just the 
Budweiser Brewery that I visited several months ago in Jacksonville 
that produces 3.3 billion aluminum cans a year. Of course, the cost of 
those cans are going to go up, and it is going to be the consumer who 
pays, but it is going to affect others in the restaurant industry, the 
medical device industry, the marine manufacturing industry, and the 
auto parts industry.
  Let me tell you about the cost of these auto parts that we have to 
import and those made here domestically. Because of the increased costs 
of steel or aluminum, the cost of those parts are going up. Maybe the 
dealer that services your car and replaces parts is one thing, but what 
about the individual entrepreneur, like the auto mechanic shop that has 
to buy its parts that all of a sudden has to charge more? The big guys 
that deal in many more automobile repairs can spread that cost over a 
lot of people, but that poor individual auto mechanic shop is getting 
hurt. It is happening right now, and they are losing business.
  Take, for example, the marine manufacturing industry. Manufacturing 
boats is a big industry in Florida. It is worth $121 billion a year in 
Florida, which is 650,000 jobs in Florida and tens of thousands of 
downstream jobs in Florida and nationwide. The industry in our State 
alone provides over $10 billion in annual economic activity. All of 
those businesses are really getting hurt because the European Union, 
Canada, and Mexico--three big export markets for the boat 
manufacturers--are getting orders cut because of the retaliatory 
tariffs of 25 percent from the European Union. They are not going to 
sell any more boats to European customers if they have to pay an extra 
25 percent. They will go elsewhere where they can get it cheap, and 
that means 10 percent extra costs in Canada; 15 percent in Mexico.
  What is that going to do? There are jobs in that boat manufacturing 
industry that will go away. They are brands that you might recognize 
like Nautique, Bryant, and Bass Cat. They are all brands of one 
company, Correct Craft, that I visited in Orlando this week. They 
manufacture boats and engines in factories across the country, with 
their headquarters in Orlando.
  The President's tariffs have increased the production costs 
considerably because of the cost of aluminum and steel that goes into 
those boats. To add insult to the already existing injury, they are 
being hit with these retaliatory tariffs from other countries where 
they sell their goods.
  There is no sugarcoating it. We are in the midst of a full-blown 
trade war. If this thing gets out of control, it can take us into an 
economic recession like the Smoot-Hawley tariffs did in the recession 
that led to what is known as the Great Depression. If we continue down 
this path without an exit strategy, we are going to regret it.
  Already, our boat manufacturers in Florida have lost tens of millions 
of dollars in canceled orders. Regal Marine Industries had $4 million 
worth of orders fall through. The company estimates it will lose $13 
million this year because of these tariffs, and that will wind up 
costing people their jobs. It is no small thing.
  This is what happens when you get excessively extreme, when you get 
partisan, when you act like you know it all, when you improvise your 
way through a complicated world and don't have a well-thought-out plan 
of how to get out of this mess. Again, with bipartisan consensus, it is 
the nature of the politics that we have to rein in.
  There is also the story of Micro Stamping, which is the sole supplier 
of high-grade surgical equipment. That equipment is used in the 
treatment of breast cancer. Micro Stamping is contemplating shutting 
down because the President's trade moves are stopping it from getting 
the specific type of steel it needs to manufacture the equipment.
  What about Hale Products? It is up in Ocala. It is also being crushed 
by the tariffs. It makes fire suppression equipment. Since the cost of 
the tariffs is passed down to the end consumer, it says the tariffs 
will make it harder for municipal fire departments--that are already 
facing stiff budget constraints--to buy the new, lighter weight 
lifesaving firefighting equipment. This will have repercussions beyond 
the company's immediate business needs.
  It is worth noting that what is going on is doing lasting damage to 
our strategic alliances. The U.S. Government--this executive branch--is 
treating our friends like enemies and is giving comfort to our 
adversaries. This is no way to run a country. We should be working with 
our allies to address our global challenges. We ought to be advancing 
our shared interests, not just in trade but in national security and a 
range of things.
  Before we escalate these things and they get out of hand, we need to 
think a little bit more about what we are doing, why we are doing it, 
and if we are doing it the right way. This Senator is saying we are not 
doing it the right way. What we are doing is sending a message that 
America is closed for business. I don't think that is what we want to 
do.
  I urge my colleagues to join this Senator in shining the light of day 
on the hard truth of what happens when you go along and make things up 
without having a clear plan for success, which is exactly what this 
trade war right now is a product of. That kind of approach doesn't work 
for the USA; it doesn't work for Florida; and it doesn't work for the 
vast majority of hard-working everyday Americans. I think it is time to 
come to our senses.
  I yield the floor.
  The PRESIDING OFFICER (Mr. Gardner). The Senator from Missouri.