"Buy American" is quite a dividing sentiment. Some believe that it fosters expansion of industry within the US.
Most experts agree that this is incorrect and it's actually too difficult to buy an "American" product as most of the items manufactured here are also created from components from other countries.
And, looking back to the Great Depression, protectionism (exemplified by the Smoot Hawley Act) only worsened the situation.
"Canadian Trade Minister Stockwell Day asked U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk today to “explore” such a deal, which would permit Canadian suppliers to continue to bid for U.S. local and municipal governments, despite "Buy American" provisions in the current U.S. economic stimulus plan. The two countries already have an agreement governing reciprocal access to government contracts on a federal level.
Although the idea has been widely discussed, this is the first time that the Canadian government has brought the idea directly to the Obama administration."
Canada, as one of the largest trading partners with the US, is influencing the policymakers to at least encourage trade with our neighbors up north by including Canadian access to the federal stimulus contracts.
Am I the only one that's lost here? So, buying from Canada is OK, but when we buy from Mexico, Central America, Europe, or anywhere else it hurts our manufacturers and eliminates jobs... mmmkayyy...
Read more at the Journal of Commerce: Canada Asks for Talks on 'Buy American' Issue
