Weblog
03/15/02 10:39 PM: EU Plans Tariffs! Yay!
EU plans tit-for-tat tariffs in key US election states
“Brussels is planning to hit imports from key states targeted by the Republicans in this year’s mid-term elections in revenge for President Bush’s decision to slap heavy tariffs on European steel producers.
Amid signs of an escalating transatlantic trade war, a senior European official warned Washington yesterday that a failure to offer compensation for the $2bn in lost steel sales would trigger retaliatory tariffs from Brussels on American products.
Top of the list would be citrus fruit from Florida – the state which after accusations of electoral foul play won Mr Bush the 2000 presidential election – and American steel from Ohio, West Virginia and Pennsylvania, all seen as key battlegrounds for the Senate in the November elections.
Officials said the measures were still under consideration and would only be imposed if the US failed to compensate European industry for the Bush adminstration’s decision last week to impose tariffs of up to 30% on steel imports.”
What was Bush thinking when he put these tariffs in place? Who knows. I guess he just wants to make sure people don’t think he’s doing a good job.
