The Wall Street Journal huffs and puffs about currency manipulation concerns.
Happy Trade Day!
Yes, it’s unofficially Trade Day on Capitol Hill, as committees in both the House and Senate are marking up and holding hearings on the Trade Promotion Authority (fast track) legislation necessary before big ol’ honking trade deals can be presented for an up-or-down vote.
That means if you’ve got an issue or a grievance, now’s the time to air it. And it also means that if you like Trade At All Costs like the Wall Street Journal’s editorial board does, now’s the time to write a misinformed editorial about the legitimate concerns of some legislators.
Tuesday evening the Journal cranked out such a piece, criticizing Sen. Rob Portman for his concerns of currency manipulation, and it’s a doozy. So while waiting for Congress to slog along through its trade agenda today, we once again busted out the red pen and corrected some unforced errors. Behold, the first paragraph:
NOTE: Sen. Portman is a former United States Trade Represenative and a Republican. And a "protectionist," now, it would appear!
NOTE: As we noted last week, the currency language in the Senate bill won't do much as currently constructed.
NOTE: There are a lot of well-respected economists — like Simon Johnson, Fred Bergsten, and Art Laffer, none of whom can waved off as "protectionists" — who think currency is a serious issue.
NOTE: Johnson himself told a House hearing a few months ago that now is the perfect time to address currency.
IN CONCLUSION: This whole editorial is a bummer, and you can read it here. Currency is a serious issue for American manufacturers. It's a shame to see a body as astute as the Wall Street Journal editorial board dismiss these concerns out of hand.