[PEN-L:4604] trade and war

[Bill Burgess <burgess@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

The current war is not about trade, but I can't help feeling it is time to
remind ourselves about the historic connections here.

On March 17 a big majority of the House of Representatives voted to impose
curbs on steel imports into the United States.

United Steelworkers of America (USWA) president George Becker said:
"Steelworkers and steel communities hold dear the notion that America's
trade policies should benefit Americans first. That may be a novel idea in
some quarters. But it was a winning idea today in Congress."

Ultra-rightist candidate for the Republican nomination for President,
Patrick Buchanan, said the vote was "a powerful message to the White House
that we must stand with American steelworkers against foreign regimes that
kill their jobs and destroy their towns by illegal steel dumping." He
added, "The day of economic patriotism has returned to America."

Occasionally we all find ourselves saying the same thing as reactionaries.
Usually easy to distinguish our positions by bringing in other aspects of
the question. Is Becker saying anything to make sure steelworkers and their
families distinguish between his "Americans first" line and Buchanan's
"economic patriotism"?

What is the difference, really?

Bill Burgess