02/16/12 Tuesday, the day of Vice President of China Xi Jinping’s visit with President Obama in Washington, D.C., Congressman Joe Donnelly renewed his call for congressional action to end the Chinese government’s unfair practices that make Chinese products artificially cheap, leading to a loss of American jobs.
“We must crack down on the Chinese government’s unfair practices that make their products artificially cheap because this practice leads to a loss of American jobs,” said Donnelly. “Right now, Hoosier manufacturers are at a disadvantage because the Chinese government is not playing by the rules. I firmly believe we have the best workforce and the best products in the world. Now is the time to stand up for the American workforce and American products, especially as Vice President Xi Jinping visits the U.S.”
Donnelly is a co-sponsor of The Currency Reform for Fair Trade Act, H.R. 639, which has 230 cosponsors from both sides of the aisle, but has not yet come up for a vote in the House. Donnelly has urged House Republican leadership to allow a vote on this bill. The Senate version of this bill, The Currency Exchange Rate Oversight Reform Act of 2011, S. 1619, passed in October of last year, by a bipartisan vote of 63 to 35.
In September of last year, The Economic Policy Institute released a study showing that between 2001 and 2010, the U.S. lost 2.8 million jobs, including nearly 62,000 jobs in Indiana, due to the expanding trade deficit with China. To read the Economic Policy Institute’s report, click here.
