“Trump Plans to End Key Trade Preferences for India and Turkey.” This morning’s Bloomberg article leads with:
President Donald Trump has announced he plans to end key trade preferences for India and Turkey, in the latest move by the U.S. to counter what it calls unfair trade practices.
Trump notified Congress on Monday in letters of his “intent to terminate” trade benefits for both countries under the generalized system of preferences. The notification starts a 60-day countdown before the president can take the action on his own authority, the U.S. Trade Representative’s Office said in a statement.
Their designation under the program allows duty-free entry of about 2,000 products including auto components, industrial valves, and textile materials. The president can still walk back his notice to terminate the preference programs if the two countries satisfy the concerns of his administration.
India was the largest beneficiary of the program in 2017 with $5.7 billion in imports to the U.S. given duty-free status and Turkey the fifth largest with $1.7 billion in covered imports, according to a Congressional Research Service report issued in January.
Titanium Section 232 investigation launched by the Commerce Department. That in yesterday’s press release. More in last night’s Wall Street Journal article.
Monthly Treasury Statement to be released at 2 PM today. Look for the January statement here. It was delayed by the government shutdown. CBO will post its Monthly Budget Outlook at 2 PM Thursday here.
Debt Limit X-Date of “this fall” estimated by the Bipartisan Policy Center. That in yesterday morning’s Roll Call op-ed. Exactly when will depend upon how taxpayers react to the Tax Cut and Jobs Act and on how expensive this year’s natural disaster prove to be. Congress is eyeing a budget resolution or other legislation that would raise the debt limit and the spending caps. The hard part will be to keep unrelated legislation off of it. The battle over this could easily run until September, but leaders hope to move it this spring.
President Trump’s Schedule (EST):
1:45 PM: Signs an Executive Order, a “National Roadmap to Empower Veterans and End Veteran Suicide.”
More in this morning’s Military Times article.
President Trump’s FY20 Budget is expected next Monday. Look for a $750 b. defense budget without raising the $576.156 b. defense budget cap with a massive $174 b. in Overseas Contingency Operations, while cutting nondefense discretionary spending, currently at $629 b., to its $542.096 b. cap. There’s now way either party in either house of Congress can live with that nondefense discretionary spending cut, so we will see a lengthy battle over the caps, which could be resolved this spring, or, more likely, in September.
“Senate Joins House in Staying Away From Earmarks.” This morning’s CQ Roll Call article stated:
Senate appropriators don’t plan to revive earmarks this year, following the House’s lead set late last week, Jennifer Shutt reported. “I don’t see that happening right now. The House has just spoken,” said Senate Appropriations Chairman Richard C. Shelby, R-Ala.
Shelby referred to a letter that House Appropriations Chairwoman Nita M. Lowey, D-N.Y., sent colleagues last week announcing that the chamber wouldn’t bring back such congressionally directed spending in fiscal 2020. Earmarks have been effectively barred in both chambers since 2011.
“I think if the House would have changed their rule, we would have had to reconsider,” said Sen. Roy Blunt, R-Mo., a senior appropriator. “But I think it’s unlikely that the Senate takes the lead there.”
