Senator Tammy Baldwin is looking to bring federal spending back to American companies.
Baldwin is adding Buy American language to an upcoming water infrastructure bill, and says these provisions should actually be in more federal spending plans. “Seems like we’ve made a commitment in some parts of federal government and not others. And we could certainly do a better job.”
She says companies like Neenah Foundry in Green Bay rely on government contracts to stay in business, and that cheap steel and labor from overseas is forcing American companies out of the market.
According to Baldwin, these efforts are better way to do business with American companies than using tariffs. “When you look at all our tools and compare it to setting down tariffs, I think Buy America policies are much more effective and much more focused.”
That “focused” part is key to Baldwin, who says that recently enforced tariffs against Canada, Mexico, and the EU will only hurt businesses in the long run. “Right now I do not see those tariffs being used in a targeted way. There’s going to be a lot of unintended consequences.”
A previous version of the measure made it through the Senate before the language was stripped by House Republicans.