U.S. Senator Claire McCaskill met with auto workers from the St. Louis region to discuss the importance of protecting Missourians and ensuring their voices are heard as the federal government is negotiating various trade policies.
"Our auto workers and so many other hardworking Missourians in manufacturing jobs could certainly benefit from changes to our trade agreements, but as negotiations continue, I'm watching like a hawk to make sure Missouri workers get a good deal," McCaskill said. "So I'm working hard with my colleagues across the aisle to ensure Missourians in industries across our state like the folks I met today have their voices and concerns heard loud and clear in our trade negotiations."
McCaskill met this week with Missouri workers from the General Motors Wentzville Assembly Plant.
McCaskill has been a strong advocate on behalf of Missouri workers. Last year, McCaskill raised with U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross her concerns that the Administration is looking into using national security trade laws to impose strict tariffs on imports of steel and aluminum, which could impact many Missouri companies.
McCaskill has consistently advocated for American and Missourian manufacturing. In 2016, after urging from McCaskill on behalf of Bull Moose Tube Company and EXLTUBE, the International Trade Commission voted 4-2 to level the playing field for Missouri and U.S. manufacturers by finalizing duties against foreign steel pipe and tubing producers found to be illegally dumping in the international market.
McCaskill is fighting to provide Missourians a voice in the renegotiation of NAFTA, the nation's largest trade agreement, with a plan that would force the U.S. Trade Representative to create an online public comment portal that is easily accessible and readily available to the public, to ensure that Missourians can provide their input on the trade renegotiations.
Since NAFTA was enacted in 1993, Canada and Mexico have been Missouri's top export destinations. In 2015, $1.3 billion in Missouri auto exports were sent to Canada and Mexico, which was 93 percent of all auto exports from the state.