Stimson Statements: Olson, Reinsch Analyze US Withdrawal from TPP
In the wake of President Donald J. Trump signing an executive action today that withdrew the United States from the negotiating process of the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) — a trade agreement between the U.S. and 11 Pacific Rim countries — experts from the nonpartisan Stimson Center released the following statements. The withdrawal from TPP comes as President […]
A Trade Perspective on Trump’s Inaugural Address
By William Reinsch I was going to write about something else this week, but President Trump’s inaugural address compels me to comment on that instead. It was not your typical address focused on optimism and national unity. The fact that it tracked his campaign speeches so closely suggests that this is someone who is not […]
A Fork Stuck in the Road
By William Reinsch Green Day’s lyrics perhaps best describe the trade landscape we currently face, “Another turning point, a fork stuck in the road.” Today’s column is about choices and their consequences — consequences that sometimes occur long after the choice is made, sometimes without us even knowing they have happened. An excellent case in […]
William Reinsch quoted in Morning Consult on Commerce Department
The people holding the three major trade-related positions in the incoming Trump administration will help form a barrier between the president-elect and trade enthusiasts in other economic appointments, according to several analysts. -snip- That strategy has some drawbacks. Stimson Center distinguished fellow Bill Reinsch noted that the Commerce Department deals with a wide range of non-trade issues […]
Help Wanted on Manufacturing Jobs
By William Reinsch Last week I discussed my confusion about the actual state of the U.S. economy. My conclusion was that while it may not be as good as the Democrats say it is, it is almost certainly better than what Donald Trump said it was. Indeed, one of the likely political ironies of the next several […]
William Reinsch quoted in Wall Street Journal on Import Tariffs
Workers at a struggling paper mill in rural Madison, Maine, cheered in 2015 when the U.S. government slapped an import tariff on a type of magazine paper made in Canada. -snip- “The lesson is the same one we’ve seen many times,” said William Reinsch, who works on trade policy at the Stimson Center and was […]
The Glass is Half Full! Or Half Empty!
By William Reinsch I confess. I’m confused. Certainly not for the first time — it happens more often than I admit. During the recent campaign we heard two widely varying views of the U.S. economy. To Donald Trump, things were terrible and getting worse. For President Obama, things were getting better every day after a […]
William Reinsch quoted in Politico on Private Sector Announcements and Investments
NEW YORK — Nearly a month before Donald Trump won the White House, Japanese conglomerate SoftBank pledged to invest billions of dollars in the U.S. economy. -snip- “The lesson for companies is it’s better to just shut up and go with the flow than to launch a correction,” said Bill Reinsch, a fellow who works on trade […]