Echoing concerns from other politicians as well as business and industry groups, Governor Scott Walker is asking President Donald Trump to walk back controversial tariffs on key metals.
“I believe the president and others were well-intentioned in saying that they wanted to look out for American steelworkers and people involved in aluminum. The irony is that it may have just the opposite effect,” Walker said in Janesville on Friday.
The Republican governor said tariffs on steel and aluminum could force jobs in Wisconsin and the U.S. to move to places like Canada. “My hope is the president would respectfully rethink that position,” he said.
Wisconsin’s Republican U.S. Senator Ron Johnson also has concerns. “The president’s announcement that he plans to levy higher taxes on materials that Wisconsin’s manufacturers and consumers purchase is concerning” Miller-Coors, a major Wisconsin employer, has said the action will cause aluminum prices to rise, and likely to lead to job losses across the beer industry.
“I get what the president was tying to do, I appreciate him trying to look out for the American worker,” Walker said. “I want to look out for workers here in this state. But I want to do so in a way that actually works.”
Walker made his comments Friday at United Alloy in Janesville, where company founder Tom Baer announced plans for 66 additional employees over the next three years, as part of a $15 million expansion project.