Key Vote Alert – “NO” on Customs Bill (HR 644)

KEY VOTE ALERT

“NO” on Customs Bill (HR 644)

The Club for Growth urges all Senators to vote “NO” on final passage of the Trade Facilitation and Trade Enforcement Act of 2015 (HR 644).  A vote is expected tomorrow at 12 noon EDT.  This vote will be included in the Club for Growth’s 2015 Congressional Scorecard.

Our largest objection to this bill is the currency language that was added during the committee markup conducted earlier this year.  This new language would designate currency manipulation as a prohibited export subsidy, and thus, allow the government to take remedial action against the foreign country in question.

This is nothing but naked protectionism that is anti-growth.  It would incite a nasty trade war that no country would win and that could inflict significant harm on the American economy.

Separately, the Club is generally supportive of the policies in the Trade Preferences Extension Act of 2015, but the vote will likely not be included in the Club’s scorecard.  Likewise, the Club will not score the motion to proceed to H.R. 1314, but we will consider amendments to that bill as they are debated.  Specifically, if there is an amendment to strike TAA from the bill, we will score in favor of that.

Our Congressional Scorecard for the 114th Congress provides a comprehensive rating of how well or how poorly each member of Congress supports pro-growth, free-market policies and will be distributed to our members and to the public.