How will this play in Pittsburgh?

The President does the right thing and lifts the steel tariffs: Facing the threat of a trade war, President Bush on Thursday lifted 20-month-old tariffs on foreign steel, a move that will hurt steelmakers in states critical in next year’s election. To soften the blow, the administration announced a beefed-up monitoring program to guard against ...

By , a professor of international politics at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University and co-host of the Space the Nation podcast.

The President does the right thing and lifts the steel tariffs:

The President does the right thing and lifts the steel tariffs:

Facing the threat of a trade war, President Bush on Thursday lifted 20-month-old tariffs on foreign steel, a move that will hurt steelmakers in states critical in next year’s election. To soften the blow, the administration announced a beefed-up monitoring program to guard against a sudden flood of foreign steel coming into the country. Bush said the tariffs had been imposed to give the domestic industry critical time to modernize and to protect jobs. “These safeguard measures have now achieved their purpose, and as a result of changed economic circumstances, it is time to lift them,” Bush said in a statement.

This will not go over well in Pennsylvania — but it may give the President a boost in Michigan. UPDATE: For how it’s playing in Pittsburgh, click here (Thanks to alert reader P.S.!).

Daniel W. Drezner is a professor of international politics at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University and co-host of the Space the Nation podcast. Twitter: @dandrezner

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