POLITICO Quotes Clete Willems on China PNTR Revocation Threats

For its article “Congress warned against China trade ‘kill shot’,” POLITICO quoted Akin lobbying & public policy partner Clete Willems. The article looks at pending GOP-led legislation to end China’s “permanent normal trade relations,” or PNTR, which would increase tariffs on Chinese goods. It also quotes Robert Lighthizer, who served as U.S. Trade Representative during the Trump administration, as saying that PNTR should “absolutely” be taken back from China, as it “was a mistake.”

Quoted from a discussion hosted by the Washington International Trade Association, Clete, who served in the Trump administration as Deputy Assistant to the President for International Economics, said, “Everyone listening needs to recognize that this is a legitimate policy threat. Second point: I think we have to realize how catastrophic it actually would be … This is a kill shot in the relationship.”

Clete noted that revoking PNTR would have a bigger impact than Trump’s imposition of tariffs on more than $300 billion worth of Chinese goods under Sec. 301 of the Trade Act. He gave as an example the fact that there are no 301 tariffs currently on seven of the top 10 U.S. imports from China, whereas, were PNTR revoked, all 10 of those items, including cell phones, related household goods, and routers, would face tariffs of 35% to 40%.