CHARLES: U.S. STEEL PRODUCTION
BOOMING BECAUSE THERE’S STILL
TARIFFS PUT IN PLACE BY
PRESIDENT TRUMP, ACCORDING THE A
RECENT OP-ED THAT SAYS EVEN AS
SOME PUNDITS AND ECONOMISTS SAY
AMERICA’S STEEL INDUSTRY IS IN
DECLINE, FOR THOSE WHO
UNDERSTAND THE STEEL INDUSTRY,
IT’S CLEAR THE ADMINISTRATION’S
TARIFFS HAVE GENERATED A BOOM IN
STEEL INVESTMENT AND A SHIFT TO
NEWER TECHNOLOGIES THAT ARE
CREATING HIGHER PAYING JOBS FOR
THOUSANDS OF NEW STEEL WORKERS.
THE AUTHOR OF THAT PIECE, CHIEF
ECONOMIST AT THE COALITION FOR A
PROSPEROUS AMERICA, JEFF FERRY
JOINS ME NOW.
I TOOK A LOOK AT SOME DATA FROM
THE INDUSTRY AND EVEN THE RAW
STEEL PRODUCTION, WHICH BOTTOMED
IN 2016, HAS BEEN ON A STEADY
INCLINE.
HOW DID THIS HAPPEN?
>> WELL, I THINK THE STEEL
TARIFFS PLAYED A CRUCIAL ROLE IN
THE REVIVAL OF THE U.S. STEEL
INDUSTRY.
I DON’T THINK YOU CAN AVOID THAT
FACT.
THAT’S A CENTRAL FACT THAT IN
2018, THE TRUMP ADMINISTRATION
PUT 25% TARIFFS ON IMPORTED
STEEL AND THE INDUSTRY HAS BEEN
ON A TEAR EVER SINCE.
CHARLES: IT’S INTERESTING TO ME,
THE USUAL SUSPECTS WERE UPSET
WHEN THIS WAS ANNOUNCED.
THERE WAS A COMBINATION
OBVIOUSLY OF THE DEMOCRATS,
MEDIA BUT ALSO GOOD
OLD-FASHIONED, YOU KNOW,
REPUBLICAN OR CONSERVATIVE
BUSINESS OWNERS, BUSINESSES, THE
BUSINESS ROUNDTABLE, CHAMBER OF
COMMERCE AND EVEN FOLKS THAT
BELIEVE IN THE ORTHODOXY OF ADAM
SMITH.
WHAT IS IT THAT THEY MISSED
ABOUT ALL THIS, THAT THEY GOT
WRONG?
>> WELL, YOU KNOW, A LOT OF
THE -- THESE BUSINESS TYPES AND
THE OLD-FASHIONED CONSERVATIVES
AS WELL AS MOST THE DEMOCRATIC
PARTY SUBSCRIBE TO WHAT I CALL
FREE TRADE RELIGION.
IN OTHER WORDS, THEY BELIEVE IN
FREE TRADE WITHOUT ANY EVIDENCE
OR FACTS TO SUPPORT THEIR CASE,
AND SOME CASES, FREE TRADE IS
BETTER BUT IN THE CASE OF STEEL,
WHAT YOU HAD FOR THE LAST 20
YEARS IS THE CHINESE DUMPING A
HUGE AMOUNT OF SUBSIDIZED,
UN-ECONOMIC STEEL ON THE WORLD
MARKET THAT’S DEPRESSED THE
ENTIRE WORLD MARKET AND IT’S
MADE STEEL MAKERS IN THIS
COUNTRY AFRAID TO INVEST.
NOW, IN MARCH 2018, DONALD TRUMP
TOOK OFFICE AND HE ALSO
APPOINTED WILBUR ROSS SECRETARY
OF COMMERCE AND WILBUR ROSS, AS
YOU MAY KNOW, USED TO OWN A
LARGE STEEL COMPANY AS AN
INVESTOR AND SOLD IT, SO THOSE
TWO MEN KNEW A LOT ABOUT THE
STEEL INDUSTRY AND THEY KNEW
THAT IF YOU COULD FIND A WAY TO
TELL THE STEEL INDUSTRY HEY,
LOOK, WE’RE NOT GOING TO LET
FOREIGNERS DUMP SUBSIDIZED
PRODUCT IN THIS MARKET, THAT
STEEL COMPANIES WOULD GO AND
INVEST AND THAT’S EXACTLY WHAT’S
HAPPENED.
IF YOU SAY WHAT DID PEOPLE MISS,
I COME BACK TO FREE TRADE
RELIGION.
PEOPLE HAVE ALL SORTS OF
FALLACIOUS BELIEFS ABOUT TRADE
AND TARIFFS.
THE MOST EXTRAORDINARY OR THE
BEST LEARNING, I WOULD SAY, FROM
THE LAST TWO YEARS IN THE STEEL
INDUSTRY IS THAT YOU CAN LEVY A
25% TARIFF AND NOT RAISE PRICES
OF A GOOD AND I SAY THAT BECAUSE
STEEL PRICES IN 2019 WERE
ACTUALLY SLIGHTLY LOWER THAN
THEY WERE IN 2017, BEFORE THE
TARIFF.
JUST THINK ABOUT THAT.
STEEL INDUSTRY’S HEALTHY, STEEL
CONSUMERS ARE BETTER OFF BECAUSE
THEY ARE PAYING ROUGHLY THE SAME
PRICE FOR STEEL AS THEY WERE
BEFORE THE TARIFFS, BUT NOW
THEY’VE GOT A U.S. STEEL
INDUSTRY THAT’S ABLE TO INVEST
AND MEET THEIR NEEDS BETTER THAN
EVER BEFORE.
THEY’VE GOT MORE SECURITY THAN
BEFORE BECAUSE AS LONG AS THESE
TARIFFS CONTINUE AND LET’S HOPE
THEY DO, THE STEEL INDUSTRY WILL
CONTINUE TO GROW AND INVEST IN
NEW TECHNOLOGY PROVIDING BETTER
QUALITY STEEL.
IN OTHER WORDS, LIGHTER WEIGHT,
STRONGER STEEL BECAUSE THAT’S
WHAT WE GET AS THESE COMPANIES
INVEST IN NEWER TECHNOLOGY.
CHARLES: THAT’S EXACTLY WHAT MY
NEXT QUESTION WAS GOING TO BE TO
YOU.
THESE NEW TECHNOLOGIES.
HOW DOES THAT HELP US WITH
RESPECT TO BEYOND ECONOMIC
FREEDOM?
I HATE TO SAY IT, BUT MAYBE ONE
FORM IS THINK ABOUT REBUILDING
OUR MILITARY OR WARSHIPS AS
CHINA’S MILITARY GETS STRONGER.
I THINK NO MATTER WHAT, IN THAT
CIRCUMSTANCE WE ALWAYS WANT TO
BE ABLE TO PRODUCE THESE THINGS
OURSELVES RATHER THAN WAIT ON
IMPORTS.
WE LEARNED A TOUGH LESSON WITH
COVID-19 AND SOME KEY MEDICAL
INGREDIENTS THAT AREN’T MADE IN
THIS COUNTRY, EITHER.
>> OUR COALITION, WE FIGHT DAY
AND NIGHT TO RE-SHORE SOME OF
THESE CRUCIAL INDUSTRIES.
STEEL, WE ALREADY GOT
SIGNIFICANT CAPACITY.
WE NEED TO BUILD IT UP AND WE
NEED TO BE STRONG IN EVERY TYPE
OF STEEL BECAUSE AS YOU SAY,
STEEL IS ESSENTIAL FOR NATIONAL
SECURITY AND STEEL IS NO LONGER
YOUR GRANDFATHER’S STEEL, LIKE
THE STEEL IN THE MODEL T.
TODAY THERE ARE 100 DIFFERENT
VARIETIES OF STEEL, DIFFERENT
ALLOYS AND VARYING APPLICATIONS.
IN MILITARY THERE’S A WHOLE HOST
OF APPLICATIONS.
THINGS USED IN --
CHARLES: WELL --
>> -- AND YOU NIEDEED REALLY
STRONG --
CHARLES: THE GOOD NEWS IS THAT