Republicans in U.S. Congress slam Trump probe of auto imports
24/05/2018 18:37
By Richard Cowan and Susan Cornwell
WASHINGTON, May 24 (Reuters) - Some of President Donald
Trump's fellow Republicans in the U.S. Congress said on Thursday
that his administration's national security investigation of car
and truck imports amid a trade spat with China is being pursued
under false pretenses and could hurt U.S. consumers.
Trump said on Wednesday that ongoing U.S.-China trade talks
would need "a different structure" because they appeared "too
hard to get done."
Shortly after, the Commerce Department launched a probe of
auto imports under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of
1962 that could lead to new U.S. tariffs similar to those
imposed on imported steel and aluminum in March. urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL2N1SV121
Higher tariffs could be particularly painful for Asian
automakers, including Toyota Motor Corp 7203.T , Nissan Motor
Co 7201.T , Honda Motor Co 7267.T and Hyundai Motor Co
005380.KS , which count the United States as a key market.
Congressional Republicans said it was unclear what Trump was
aiming to accomplish with the probe, warning it could result in
U.S. job losses, and with some suggesting it was a political
tactic ahead of midterm elections in November.
Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman Bob Corker said
there was "no reason" to conduct a national security
investigation of auto imports.
"This appears to be either an attempt to affect domestic
politics ahead of the election or for some other transactional
purpose regarding ongoing trade discussions. This is a dangerous
course and should be abandoned immediately," Corker said in a
statement.
Corker is a Republican from Tennessee, where Volkswagen,
Nissan and other auto-related manufacturers have assembly and
production plants.
Pennsylvania's Republican Senator Pat Toomey said on Twitter
that Trump was making the move "under the false pretense of
national security" and that it "invites retaliation."
In the House of Representatives, Kentucky Republican Andy
Barr, who has a Toyota factory in his district, said he wants to
know what Trump seeks to accomplish.
"Toyota Kentucky is as much of an American manufacturing
company as Ford in Louisville," Barr told Reuters. "It's an
American subsidiary of a Japanese parent, but it is an American
company. There needs to be a level playing field."
Republican Representative Roger Williams, who owns a
Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep auto dealership in Weatherford, Texas, said
any tariff on auto imports would negate the positive impact of
the new Republican tax law on consumers, and increase costs for
U.S. car manufacturers that buy foreign parts.
"They're world vehicles. Parts are made everywhere and
they're put together somewhere," Williams told Reuters.
Senator Orrin Hatch, the finance committee chairman who
shepherded the tax law through that chamber, called the Trump
investigation of auto imports "deeply misguided."
"For most Americans, cars are the second largest purchase
they make, after their homes. Taxing cars, trucks and auto parts
coming into the country would directly hit American families,"
Republican Hatch said in a statement, urging Trump to "remain
focused on addressing China's trade practices."
It was not yet clear whether lawmakers might try to act if
the administration eventually imposes new tariffs on foreign
auto imports.
(Reporting By Richard Cowan and Susan Cornwell; additional
reporting and writing by Amanda Becker; Editing by Bill Berkrot)
((amanda.becker@thomsonreuters.com;))