Pascrell, Ways and Means Colleagues Demand Oversight of Trump’s Trade Policies

WASHINGTON, DC – Today, U.S. Representative Bill Pascrell, Jr. (D-NJ-09), the Ranking Member of the House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Trade, Rep. Richard Neal (D-MA-01), the Ranking Member of the Ways and Committee, and 14 of their committee colleagues wrote a letter to chairman Kevin Brady (R-TX-08) demanding that the full committee conduct greater oversight of the Trump administration’s trade policies on the heels of the administration’s announcement that it would impose tariffs on another $200 billion of imports from China.

Decrying the committee’s lack of oversight, the members emphasized that any hearings “will not be successful unless representatives of the Administration are testifying before the full Ways and Means Committee to explain its erratic approach.”

To date, the Trump administration has imposed tariffs on more than $80 billion of imports entering the United States.  In response, America’s trading partners have imposed their own tariffs on nearly $60 billion of U.S. exports, with a focus on impacting U.S. agriculture.  Several nations are deciding whether to formally challenge U.S. tariffs at the World Trade Organization.

“In the meantime, with the proliferation and rapid escalation of tariffs, the U.S. economy and the global economy are on edge.  We cannot pretend that this is business as usual.  The Administration owes answers to Members of the Ways and Means Committee and, more importantly, to the American people about its trade policy goals and whether or not they are working,” the letter concludes.

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