Roger Milliken and Others Seek Help for the Textil
Greenville, SC, April 12--The nation's trade policies have led to an economic crisis for U.S. manufacturers and Congress must confront China to avoid further loss of American jobs and increased trade deficits, Spartanburg textile magnate Roger Milliken and other manufacturing officials said, according to the Greenville News.
In assailing U.S. policies, they said a new fair-trade debate is needed because the North American Free Trade Agreement and similar pacts such as the Central American Free Trade Agreement pending in Congress won't work.
"There is concern what's happening in our economy, that we obviously are being hurt badly by very poor trade legislation," Milliken said during a meeting with editors and reporters from The Greenville News.
"Let's put all of these kinds of issues on the table," said author-economist Pat Choate, who was Ross Perot's running mate in the 1996 presidential campaign.
"Let's then have a discussion about what are our goals, what role do we want for trade and how are we going to structure agreements to do trade," he said.
Current trade policies have devastated U.S. manufacturers, including the textile and apparel industry, according to the American Manufacturing Trade Action Coalition.
There are 1.4 million fewer manufacturing jobs than when the economic recovery began in November 2001, according to figures presented Friday by the trade group. U.S. wages are stagnant -- with real wages at 1972 levels -- and trade deficits have exploded since the landmark North American trade agreement between the United States, Mexico and Canada took effect in 1994 to eliminate or lower tariffs.
China, the trade group said, is a communist country that uses illegal currency devaluations, illegal subsidies and non-performing loans from state-controlled banks to create a trade advantage.
"The way to deal with China is to acknowledge that they have an absolute advantage in the marketplace and their trade directly with the United States needs to be regulated," said Auggie Tantillo, executive director of the manufacturing trade coalition.
The United States has a $158 billion trade deficit with China, according to the Government Accountability Office. Imports from China total an estimated $196 billion, while exports amounted to about $38 billion last year, GAO officials said.
"It's not just simply this region. It's not simply the textile industry that is being affected," Choate said. "It's across all industry, including our most advanced technologies."
"We're going to run probably a $35 billion or $40 billion trade deficit in advanced technology products, the most advanced products," Choate said. "A good part of that, perhaps $30 billion of that deficit will be with China this year."
The manufacturing officials applauded the Senate's strong support this week for a proposal, sponsored by Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., to place a 27.5 percent tariff on Chinese products if China does not revalue its currency. The amendment to a bill authorizing State Department and foreign aid programs cleared a procedural obstacle on a 67-33 vote, but no vote was taken on the amendment itself.
Graham, co-author with Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., said they agreed to withdraw their amendment after receiving a written promise from Senate leaders that they would get a vote on their freestanding bill no later than July 27.
"This is significant because, as we interpret it, it means that the word has gotten to the beltway (in Washington)," Milliken said.
Choate said that "it also recognizes that the trade agreements that we have are not free-trade agreements."
"A free-trade agreement can be written in one sentence: there'll be no impediment whatsoever to the free movement of goods and services between the United States and the nation of X," he said.
