A MAJOR U.S. SOLAR COMPANY IS CUTTING JOBS FOLLOWING
TRUMP'S DECISION TO IMPOSE LARGE OR HIGH TARIFFS ON PRODUCTS
NECESSARY TO BUILD SOLAR PANELS HERE IN THE UNITED STATES.
THE REASON WHY THEY ARE DOING THAT IS BECAUSE OF THE FACT THAT
IT IS INCREDIBLY EXPENSIVE TO IMPORT THE NECESSARY MATERIALS
IN ORDER TO MANUFACTURE AND INSTALL THE SOLAR PANELS
AND KEEP IN MIND, BEFORE THE TARIFFS WERE ANNOUNCED THEY
WERE PLANNING ON EXPANDING THEIR U.S. BASED FACTORY.
THEY WERE GOING TO ADD JOBS AND
NOW THEY ARE UNFORTUNATELY
CUTTING JOBS.
BY THE WAY THOUGH, THOSE ARE NUMBERS FROM THE DEPARTMENT
OF ENERGY IN APRIL 2017, SO THE NUMBER COULD'VE ACTUALLY
INCREASED A LITTLE BIT SINCE THEN, BUT IT DOES NOT MATTER.
THEY ARE LAYING PEOPLE OFF AS A RESULT OF THESE TARIFFS.
FIRST OF ALL, SOME CONTEXT HERE.
THEY ARE WORRIED THAT THE INDUSTRY AS A WHOLE IS
GOING TO LOSE 23,000 JOBS.
THAT IS A LOT OF JOBS TO LOSE.
TRUMP WAS ASSESSED WITH COAL AND IF YOU WATCH THE REPUBLICAN
CONVENTION AS WE WERE FORCED TO DO, IT WAS NOT JUST TRUMP
GOT ONE SPEECH AFTER ANOTHER, IT WAS LITERALLY, WE TALKED
ABOUT IT DURING THE CONVENTION.
WAS THE NUMBER ONE TOPIC AT THE CONVENTION DIET WAS BIZARRE.
COLD, COLD, COLD THAT WE'RE GOING TO BRING COLE BACK.
THERE WAS ONLY HUNDRED AND 63,000 JOBS IN COLD NATIONWIDE.
THERE IS 260,000 JOBS IN SOLAR NATIONWIDE.
HUNDRED THOUSAND MORE, THE SOLAR INDUSTRY IS WAY LARGER THAN
THE COAL INDUSTRY BUT A, ALMOST NO ONE EVER TALKS ABOUT
THEM AND BE, NOW, EVEN IF YOU WERE TO BRING COLE JOBS
BACK WHICH HE HAS AN, COAL MINES ARE CLOSING ALL OVER THE
COUNTRY AND I TALKED ABOUT IT AND SOME REPUBLICANS ARE
NOW DISILLUSIONED AND THEY ARE LIKELY THOUGHT HE WAS GOING
TO BRING IT BACK.
WHY ARE YOU GOING OUT OF YOUR WAY TO COST SOLAR JOBS?
YOU COULD SAY IT'S BIZARRE AND COUNTERPRODUCTIVE BUT IT COULD
ALSO BE THAT IT IS NOT COUNTERPRODUCTIVE FOR THEIR
INTEREST.
THE FOSSIL FUEL INDUSTRY SUPPORTS DONALD TRUMP IN
THE REPUBLICAN PARTY WITH A TON OF DONATIONS.
CAN I GIVE YOU THE NUMBER, BECAUSE I THINK IT IS
PRE-RELEVANT.
THIS IS THAT NECESSARILY DONATIONS TOWARDS TRUMP BUT
HIS DONATIONS TOWARDS LAWMAKERS THAT ARE LIKELY TO SUPPORT
TARIFFS LIKE THE ONE THAT TRUMP AND POST.
UTILITIES HAD SPENT $50 MILLION BETWEEN 2011 AND 2016
TO BLOCK CLEAN ENERGY IN JUST SEVEN STATES.
THAT INCLUDES ALASKA, CALIFORNIA, FLORIDA,
MICHIGAN, OHIO, OREGON, AND WASHINGTON.
LUCKILY, CALIFORNIA WAS NOT PERSUADED BY THAT MONEY
BECAUSE THE SOLAR INDUSTRY DID EXPAND CONSIDERABLY IN
CALIFORNIA BUT THESE TARIFFS ARE HAVING AN IMPACT AND SO IT
IS NOT LOOKING GOOD FOR RENEWABLE ENERGY IN THE US.
AND THIS IS NOT A CLEAR-CUT LIBERAL VERSUS CONSERVATIVE
ISSUE.
ON TRADE, THE BOUNDARIES ARE BLURRED, SO I KNOW THAT
SOME FOLKS WANT MORE PROTECTIONISM.
WHAT I ALWAYS SAY IS, WELL, IT DEPENDS.
SO AND THEN FREE-TRADE GUYS ARE LIKE, IF YOU ARE FOR FREE
TRADE, YOU ARE FOR ALL OF THESE AGREEMENTS.
NO, IT DEPENDS.
WHAT IS IN THE AGREEMENT?
IN THIS CASE, FOR THE SOLAR PANEL MANUFACTURERS IN
AMERICA, IT HELPS A LITTLE BIT, TARIFFS, BUT FOR THE
PEOPLE PUTTING THE SOLAR PANELS IN WHICH IS THE HEART OF THE
INDUSTRY WHICH IS MUCH LARGER, IT REALLY HURTS THEM SO
YOU'VE ACTUALLY DONE MORE DAMAGE IN THIS CASE.
NOW IN THE DEALS LIKE TPP, THE PROBLEM WAS THAT IT HANDS
OVER OUR SOVEREIGNTY TO COMPANIES.
LESSONS THAT THE RULES, NOT TO THE ADVANTAGE TO US CITIZENS OR
EVEN THE CITIZENS OF THE OTHER COUNTRIES WE'RE DEALING WITH BUT
TO THE ADVANTAGE OF SOLELY THE CORPORATIONS WHICH MAKES NO
SENSE BUT THAT DOESN'T MEAN THAT EVERY PROTECTIONIST MEASURE
MAKES SENSE BECAUSE IT CERTAINLY DOES NOT AND THIS ONE DOESN'T
AND NEITHER DOES THE STEEL AND ALUMINUM TARIFFS HE JUST
ANNOUNCED TODAY WHICH THEN IMMEDIATELY TANKED THE MARKET.
AND WE'RE GOING TO TALK ABOUT THAT MORE DETAIL IN JUST A
MINUTE BUT I ALSO WANT TO DRAW SOME ATTENTION TO A WOMAN
NAMED DEBBIE DOOLEY.
SHE IS A GUN TOTING TRUMP SUPPORTER.
SHE IS AS CONSERVATIVE AS CAN BE HOWEVER, THE ONE THING SHE
DISAGREES WITH TRUMP AND CONSERVATIVES ON IS THE
ISSUE EVER DOABLE ENERGY.
IN FACT, SHE IS FIGHTING RATHER AGGRESSIVELY TO SUPPORT
RENEWABLE ENERGY IN THE UNITED STATES, SPECIFICALLY SOLAR
ENERGY.
SHE EVEN CREATED SOMETHING KNOWN AS THE GREEN SEA COALITION.
SHE IS PRESIDENCY PARTY.
THE GREASY COALITION TO START CONVINCING OTHER CONSERVATIVES
THAT RENEWABLE ENERGY IS THE WAY TO GO SO I WANT TO GIVE HER
SOME CREDIT FOR THAT BECAUSE EVEN THOUGH SHE APPEARS TO
BE AN ANOMALY AT THE MOMENT, SHE COULD HAVE SOME VERY POSITIVE
IMPACT ON THE CONSERVATIVES WHEN IT COMES TO THESE ISSUES.