American-made steel and aluminum are vital for our defense. Unfair imports put them at risk.
We've written quite a bit about the Trump administration's ongoing national security investigations into unfairly traded steel and aluminum from countries like China and Russia. With the Commerce Department expected to unveil its steel investigation findings as early as this week, it's a good time to re-examine why American-made steel and aluminum matter so much to our national and economic security.
Brigadier General John Adams, U.S. Army (Ret.), sent the following email to Alliance for American Manufacturing supporters this week to explain the issue and encourage them to take action. Take a look below, and be sure to join us in telling President Trump and Congress to utilize all available tools to safeguard these vital industries.
We’ve all heard a lot about Russia lately.
But did you know that steel and aluminum imports from Russia — and other countries like China — are putting our security at risk?
Steel and aluminum are vital for America’s national defense and critical infrastructure. But a flood of unfairly traded imports has led to dozens of plant closures and tens of thousands of layoffs.
We do not want to have to rely on potential adversaries like Russia or China to get the steel and aluminum we need to build our aircraft carriers, battleships, tanks and fighter jets.
Right now, the Commerce Department is reviewing whether steel and aluminum imports threaten our national defense. Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross is likely to send recommendations to the White House by the end of June, and the president could act.
Steel and aluminum manufacturers and workers cannot wait much longer.
There’s now just one American smelter that can produce the high-purity aluminum needed for the F-35 fighter jet. There’s now just one U.S. steel manufacturer who can make high-end grain-oriented electrical steel, essential for transmission and distribution transformers for all types of energy.
It’s because of foreign imports, many of which are heavily subsidized and even government-owned. These imports are dumped into the U.S. market at prices far below fair value.
American companies operate in a free marketplace. They can’t compete against the Russian or Chinese government! Many steel and aluminum makers have closed plants, laid-off workers or gone out of business entirely.
If we don’t step up, America’s entire steel and aluminum industries could disappear. We’d have to rely on Russia and China for our national defense needs. Can you even imagine?!?
Thanks,
Brigadier General John Adams
U.S. Army (Ret.)