Tom Reed (left) and Donald Trump
WASHINGTON – Chautauqua County’s representative in Congress says he support President Donald Trump’s plan to impose tariffs on steel and aluminum.
On Tuesday Rep. Tom Reed (R-Corning, NY 23) held a conference call with regional media, saying he supports the president’s call to impose a tax of 25 percent on imported steel and a 10 percent tax on aluminum.
“Overall I am supportive of what the president trying to do in regards to the imposition of these tariffs,” Reed said. “What I think is afoot here is an effort to send a message to our trading partners is that we’re going to put America’s interests just as equally on the table as our trading partners are and we are going to negotiate our future trade agreement in a much more aggressive and vigorous manner to protect critical industries that make up the American marketplace.”
Reed also said that he’s heard concerns from some local manufacturers in the district, but says he believes the move will better position manufacturing operations in the long run.
“There has been some concerns expressed and it has been consistent with what has been widely reported across the country, in regards to supply chain disruptions, retaliatory actions by trading partners, the lack of ability to secure supply chains to allow them to operate, and I full understand that… but the reality is we cannot maintain the status quo and expect things to change,” Reed said.
Reed’s support of the president counters some of his Republican colleagues in the House, including Speaker Paul Ryan, who’s already come out against the plan.
“Obviously I am challenging where the House and the speaker and leadership want to go, but I’m comfortable with that because I believe in the outcome that will be achieved here. It will be better for the folks back home and the American people as a whole and I am supportive of this disruptive affect that the president is engaging in,” Reed said.
The tariffs can be imposed unilaterally by the Trump administration because they are an executive function of the president and not of Congress.
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