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Public demonstration of paper-trail voting machine options set for Feb. 27

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Goodbye to police scanner chatter? County radio upgrade could end public’s ability to listen

<p>WILKES-BARRE &#8212; At a press conference Wednesday in Washington, D.C., with bipartisan members of the U.S. Senate, small business owners and farmers, grassroots campaign Tariffs Hurt the Heartland released a new study that warns of the further economic damage &#8212; including the loss of nearly 1 million jobs &#8212; if trade wars escalate.</p><p>The report, prepared by Trade Partnership Worldwide LLC, shows how increased and additional tariffs would reduce American jobs, the average American household&#8217;s income and the gross domestic product.</p><p>&#8220;This report shows what the trade threats this administration has made would actually mean for American families and communities,&#8221; said Tariffs Hurt the Heartland spokesman and former Congressman, Dr. Charles Boustany. &#8220;The trade war is already creating enormous economic loss, and this report shows how much worse it could get.&#8221;</p><p>U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Lehigh Valley, took part in the press event.</p><p>Toomey said trade is good for America, and good for Pennsylvania. He said more than 1.4 million jobs in Pennsylvania are supported by international trade and jobs in export-related industries tend to pay more &#8212; 18 percent higher wages on average.</p><p>&#8220;Trade wars are very dangerous,&#8221; Toomey said. &#8220;Tariffs, as have been observed, are taxes payed by consumers. And when you raise the cost of imports, you impede trade, you raise costs for consumers and tit-for-tat tariffs as a negotiating tactic can be very dangerous.&#8221;</p><p>Toomey went on to say, &#8220;Very briefly, the impact on Pennsylvania is very real from the steel tariffs that were imposed under President Trump&#8217;s direction in provoking section 232 of our trade law which purports that the trade with Canada and Mexico in particular in steel and aluminum are somehow a threat to national security.&#8221;</p><p>The report, which also includes analysis for all 50 states, shows the near-term perils of increasing tariffs to 25 percent on March 1, as the administration has said will happen if no agreement is reached with China. The study finds that the increase to 25 percent, coupled with tariffs already in place and retaliation, will reduce employment by more than 934,000 jobs, cost the average family of four $767 and reduce GDP by 0.37 percent.</p><p>The study concludes: &#8220;By any measure, the imposition of tariffs by the United States &#8230; is a net loss for the U.S. economy and U.S. workers. An examination of all the ways in which such tariffs, accompanied by retaliation by U.S. trading partners, affects purchasing and hiring decisions demonstrates that on balance U.S. farmers, manufacturers, services providers and their workers experience greater losses than gains. In some instances, the tariff actions erase all of the anticipated gains from tax reform.&#8221;</p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Toomey </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/web1_toomy1_faa-1.jpg</photo0><caption0>Toomey </caption0><photoCredit0></photoCredit0></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><subheadMeta>GDP, household income would also take hit</subheadMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Bill O&#8217;Boyle</p><p>boboyle@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Bill O&#8217;Boyle at 570-991-6118 or on Twitter @TLBillOBoyle.</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Study: Americans will lose nearly 1 million jobs if trade wars continue