Updated November 2018
With Donald Trump making significant moves on U.S. trade, in particular, ending American participation in the Trans-Pacific Partnership, imposing tariffs on goods from just about every key trading partner and now seeing the shuttering of American car manufacturing plants which he claims is due to low tariffs on imported vehicles, it is interesting to look back in time and see what his Vice President, Mike Pence, had to say about international trade before he jumped aboard the "Trump Train".
With Donald Trump making significant moves on U.S. trade, in particular, ending American participation in the Trans-Pacific Partnership, imposing tariffs on goods from just about every key trading partner and now seeing the shuttering of American car manufacturing plants which he claims is due to low tariffs on imported vehicles, it is interesting to look back in time and see what his Vice President, Mike Pence, had to say about international trade before he jumped aboard the "Trump Train".
Here's a record of Mike Pence's votes on key
trade and trade-related issues while he was in Congress:
He voted positively on
trade promotion deals with Columbia, Panama, South Korea, Peru, Oman, Chile,
Singapore and voted against the 109th Congress House Joint Resolution 27 which would have
seen the United States withdraw from the agreement that established the World
Trade Organization which, interestingly, was sponsored by Bernard Sanders
(VT-I). He also voted against House Joint Resolution 50 back in the 207th
Congress; this bill would have denied an extension of China's normal trade
relations with the United States as shown here:
This, in particular, is
interesting given his boss's antipathy toward trade with China.
In addition, he voted in favour of House Resolution 3009 aka the Andean Trade Preference Act Extension back in 2002 which granted duty free status to products from Bolivia, Columbia, Ecuador and Peru among other things.
Here is a tweet from Governor Mike Pence back
in September 2014 when he recommended the swift adoption of the TransPacific
Partnership, the deal that the President just killed:
Given his inconsistencies
on trade from his time in the House of Representatives and as the Governor of
Indiana to what his boss is now doing, it certainly appears that Mike Pence was
willing to sell his soul to get access to the core of Washington, particularly
given that Donald Trump has never hidden his trade agenda.
Posts
Pence was not all that popular with those of us living in his home state of Indiana. When he agreed to run with Trump he was facing a growing "Pence Must Go" movement. A web search shows pictures of the group's protest.
ReplyDeletePence is far more conservative and Republican than Trump. He did, however help get Trump elected and does a good job of staying on message. In some ways it proves Trump is far more tolerant of others than most people think.
Pence is just kissing You-know-what to advance the ReThuglican agenda which amounts to Fascism For All. He knows that when the ReThugs have established Fascist control over all areas of our government, they will be able to do whatever they want about trade. Right now they are making side deals with China. And if anyone except loyal ReThug followers and TeaBags think Pence didn't know about Mike Flynn's ties to Russia....
ReplyDeletePence is like the majority of Trump's administration! He is biding time until DJT chokes himself with his own tongue. Evidenced his recent actions to apply for a PAC for himself! He isn't as "silent" or "ignorant of the goings-on" as he is acting to be! You can confidently bet the farm that he knew about Mike Flynn, EARLY on. It's ridiculous that he claims that he didn't! It just chips away at his credibility...which I suppose means nothing to anyone nowadays. smh
ReplyDelete