Trump tells America's solar workers "you're fired!"

Press startement from Beyond Nuclear on Trump decision to approve solar import tariffs.

January 24, 2018

“In signing off this week on a 30% tariff on imported solar cells and panels, mainly from China, President Trump has effectively told thousands of American solar industry workers ‘you’re fired!’ In doing so, he could seriously harm one of the country’s most successful and flourishing employers.

“In 2016, the US solar industry was responsible for one in 50 of all new jobs. It had become the most rapidly growing US industry, scaling up 17 times faster than the US economy. 

“Now, despite his professed but hollow commitment to American blue collar jobs, President Trump has instead likely eliminated at least 23,000 of them this year alone, with the possibility of that number eventually soaring to 88,000, according to the Solar Energy Industries Association.

“In his continued pattern of throwing his base under the bus, President Trump has decided to kowtow to two bankrupt foreign US-based companies — Suniva and SolarWorld Americas — who successfully petitioned the International Trade Commission last September to approve import tariffs on solar cells and panels that they claimed cut into their market.

“But far from providing a boost to the US solar industry, the removal of cheap Chinese panels from the market will slow growth and installation and increase costs to consumers, putting a dent in every area of the U.S. solar industry.

“Worse still, the Chinese are likely to retaliate by reinforcing their own import tariffs on polysilicone from the U.S., hitting that industry hard as well.” (Linda Pentz Gunter)

More here and here.