Let Expiring Tariff Exclusions Lapse, Pro-Trump Group Urges USTR

Leaders of the Coalition for a Prosperous America, a nonprofit allied with President Donald Trump’s trade views, urged U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer to let lapse the Section 301 tariff exclusions on Chinese imports when they expire Dec. 31 and not renew them. The tariffs “have proven a vital and useful tool in addressing the Chinese Communist Party and its countless illegal acts relating to stealing and acquiring US intellectual property,” wrote CPA Chairman Daniel DiMicco and CEO Michael Stumo Thursday. USTR granted the exclusions in response to interest groups and businesses that said the exemptions were necessary “to avoid widespread economic harm,” DiMicco and Stumo said. “We know now that this alarm was unfounded.” The tariffs have given the U.S. treasury a “windfall” exceeding $70 billion, virtually all from importers’ margins, not the American consumer, they said. The granted exclusions gave importers “ample time for supply chains to move out of China,” they said. Lighthizer’s office didn’t comment.