MSCI: Election shows restless voters want swift, decisive action

This election cycle is clear evidence that voters want a new direction for the economy and the country, and are looking for lawmakers to finally take strong action on trade, tax reform and infrastructure, M. Robert Weidner, III, president and CEO of the Metals Service Center Institute (MSCI), Rolling Meadows, Ill., said today.

“Voters delivered a resounding message to Washington,” said Weidner. “Americans now want President-elect Donald Trump and Congress to act decisively, with new and creative ideas that address the economic insecurity they feel. Lawmakers of all political stripes must resist the temptation to let the election’s rancor and partisan rhetoric, or the unproductive and dispiriting focus on investigations, to carry over into the new year. It’s time for presidential and congressional leadership. Good public policy now must take precedent over politics.”

The industrial metals supply chain—companies involved in the production, wholesaling, and primary processing of steel, aluminum, stainless, copper, and brass—provides approximately 2.4 million jobs that pay about $55 billion in wages, generates approximately $170 billion in annual economic impact, and around $64 billion in tax revenues. To help its members continue to provide jobs with good wages and benefits, MSCI has outlined a robust, bipartisan policy agenda, which includes ensuring:

• Future free trade agreements include efforts to address currency manipulation and unfair trade practices;
• Tax reform addresses both corporate and small business tax rates;
• A pro-growth/pro-manufacturing economic plan;
• The transition to a new energy economy is focused on spurring private sector investment, not on writing regulations that impose huge costs on businesses and consumers; and
• Washington doesn’t ignore the country’s growing infrastructure investment needs, its need for revisions to the Affordable Care Act, and its need for immigration reform.

“Nearly a decade of sub-par economic growth is unacceptable. When the economy isn’t growing, it’s American workers who suffer the most,” explained Weidner. “It's time to come together to streamline our tax code, stop currency manipulation, and spur private investment in American infrastructure, including investing in America’s energy future. When the men and women elected Tuesday take office in January, they must focus on these issues, and find solutions. We look forward to working with the new administration and Congress to achieve a prosperous, thriving industrial metals industry.”

For more information on MSCI’s policy agenda, visit MSCI’s website.