Key Trade Issues

Immigration
America's relative openness to immigration strengthens our economy by providing a growing and flexible workforce for U.S. industry, especially the dynamic high-tech sector. It also provides a haven for those fleeing poltical, religous or ethnic presecution.

Outsourcing and Offshoring
Offshoring brings better jobs to Americans and helps increase the productvity of our industries.

Steel Protection
The steel industry is a poster-child for the abuse of U.S. trade laws, and its latest "crisis" is further proof that the interests of steel producers are furthered at the expense of consumers and steel-using industries.

The Benefits of Globalization
The evidence is compelling that trade and investment liberalization increases competition and productivity and raises living standards in nations that open themselves to the global economy.

Technology and Trade
Given that nations have devoted considerable time and energy to lowering barriers to international trade in other sectors, it only makes sense that they work to lock in the current beneficial state of affairs online.

Trade Deficit and Imports
Fears about the deficit spring from the mistaken belief that imports harm workers and industry. The current US trade deficit is not the cause of bad things in our economy but rather a result of rising investment and comsumer incomes.

Trade, Democracy, and the War on Terror
As trade and globalization have spread in the last 30 years, so too have democracy and political and civil freedoms. In particular, the most economically open countries today are more than three times as likely to enjoy full political and civil freedoms as those that are relatively closed.

Trade Politics
The traditional reciprocity model of trade negotiations is outdated and should be abandoned for a new model of "coordinated unilateralism." Also: Is your Congressman a free trader?

U.S. Antidumping Law
The U.S. antidumping law is one of the "dirty little secrets" of U.S. trade policy, unfairly punishing foreign firms for unexeptional business practices routinely engaged in by American companies.

U.S.-Canada Lumber Trade
Trade in softwood lumber is the United States' largest trade dispute with its largest trading partner. The current softwood lumber agreement (SLA) should be allowed to expire in 2001.

Unilateral Sanctions
In today's fluid global marketplace, the failure of unilateral sanctions has become apparent: sanctions alter trade patterns at the expense of U.S. producers without altering the behavior of the target nation.