from Bill Still
According to the Boston Globe, the New Balance shoe company – famed makers of high-end running and tennis shoes – was pressured by the Obama Administration to not criticize President Barack Obama’s pet trade deal, the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) as it was being considered by Congress.
The bill is now dead until a new Congress convenes next year, and depending on the outcome of November’s elections, the prospects may turn even worse for TPP.
New Balance officials have now revealed that they were offered a sweet deal with the Pentagon if they would not criticize the giant trade deal.
“… they were told the Department of Defense would give them serious consideration for a contract to outfit recruits with [their] athletic shoes.”
The TPP would have gradually phased out tariffs on shoes made in Vietnam. But this would have made imports from that nation ridiculously cheap and jeopardized American jobs at the New Balance plants in New England.
However, no order was ever placed, and now New Balance believes the entire deal was a false promise by the Obama Administration to lure them into supporting TPP before Americans woke up and came to their senses.
New Balance is one of a handful of shoe companies that still makes some its shoes in America.
New Balance CEO Rob DeMartini tried to justify their previous silence on Obama’s TPP deal:
“We wanted to compete for a big piece of business that we are very confident we can win in.”
But an official company press release was much stronger. According to Matt LeBretton, the Vice-President of Public Affairs for New Balance:
“We swallowed the poison pill that is TPP so we could have a chance to bid on these contracts,…We were assured this would be a top-down approach at the Department of Defense if we agreed to either support or remain neutral on TPP. [But] the chances of the Department of Defense buying shoes that are made in the USA are slim to none while Obama is president.”
New Balance is now speaking out on the way the administration is trying to entice American business to sell out their country for a short-term profit that brings longer-term disaster to American workers.
Keeping the tariff on shoes imported from Vietnam will eventually encourage shoe companies to bring back jobs to America.
To become Partner #616: www.billstill.com, then Click “Subscribe”.
According to the Boston Globe, the New Balance shoe company – famed makers of high-end running and tennis shoes – was pressured by the Obama Administration to not criticize President Barack Obama’s pet trade deal, the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) as it was being considered by Congress.
The bill is now dead until a new Congress convenes next year, and depending on the outcome of November’s elections, the prospects may turn even worse for TPP.
New Balance officials have now revealed that they were offered a sweet deal with the Pentagon if they would not criticize the giant trade deal.
“… they were told the Department of Defense would give them serious consideration for a contract to outfit recruits with [their] athletic shoes.”
The TPP would have gradually phased out tariffs on shoes made in Vietnam. But this would have made imports from that nation ridiculously cheap and jeopardized American jobs at the New Balance plants in New England.
However, no order was ever placed, and now New Balance believes the entire deal was a false promise by the Obama Administration to lure them into supporting TPP before Americans woke up and came to their senses.
New Balance is one of a handful of shoe companies that still makes some its shoes in America.
New Balance CEO Rob DeMartini tried to justify their previous silence on Obama’s TPP deal:
“We wanted to compete for a big piece of business that we are very confident we can win in.”
But an official company press release was much stronger. According to Matt LeBretton, the Vice-President of Public Affairs for New Balance:
“We swallowed the poison pill that is TPP so we could have a chance to bid on these contracts,…We were assured this would be a top-down approach at the Department of Defense if we agreed to either support or remain neutral on TPP. [But] the chances of the Department of Defense buying shoes that are made in the USA are slim to none while Obama is president.”
New Balance is now speaking out on the way the administration is trying to entice American business to sell out their country for a short-term profit that brings longer-term disaster to American workers.
Keeping the tariff on shoes imported from Vietnam will eventually encourage shoe companies to bring back jobs to America.
I’m Still reporting from Washington. Good day.