US Raw Steel Production Rose Last Week

US raw steel production rose 1.3 percent last week as mills operated at an ACUR of 72.8 percent. In the corresponding week last year mills operated at an ACUR of 78.5 percent. Thus far this year mills have operated at an ACUR of 72.3 percent down from77.3 percent in the like period last year.

No industrial economic news of note to report on this week for some reason, so this will be a shorty…

Mortgage rates have bumped up to around 4%.

The House vote on TPA (Trade Promotion Authority) is scheduled for Friday, is a key political test for Congress…Thursday as we went to press Democrats and labor were making a last ditch effort to kill it. But if a GOP majority puts the bill on President Obama’s desk (the president is in favor), the moment could mark the start of a return to the politics of economic growth heading into the 2016 election….Reviving so called fast-track trade authority is a first step toward a return to the politics of growth over redistribution…But freer trade is about more than increased exports or market share…Open trade is more crucial for the imports that force US firms to stay competitive….Passing the trade bill will also open the way to a Pacific trade pact involving 12 nations that are some of the world’s fastest growing markets….It’s never easy to predict a major policy turn, and we’ve been too optimistic before. But Republicans have to start somewhere and Friday’s trade vote is a down payment on their political sincerity and growth agenda. Mr. Obama will soon be yesterday’s man. The Republican Congress has a chance to set tomorrow’s agenda.”

~Wall Street Journal

Review & Outlook 6/12/15

In the afternoon:

President Barack Obama suffered a major blow Friday in his bid to complete a Pacific trade deal, as opponents of the accord derailed a fast-track bill by voting against a worker aid program that was a key bill component…The vote dashed immediate hopes of the White House and House Republicans to win the bigger prize: passage of a fast track trade bill.”

~WSJ

Boy, anything that could be good for the American economy and Americans is crushed by the liberal agenda. The labor unions brought pressure to bear on the legislators. Nancy Pelosi…she’s not a crook. Duh…

Hillary is still in the shadows, she doesn’t say much, if anything, and refuses to answer questions from the press. Presidential? I think not.

ISIS Continues to March On

The president has decided to send another 400 troops to Iraq as advisors. Thing is, only around 100 of those will be advising, the rest are security for the 100. Now that is a commitment to “ultimately degrade and destroy” the enemy.

Have a great weekend…. God bless America!

Buy American made products whenever you can, it’s good for you, good for your friends and neighbors and good for our country.
If you are hiring…try to hire a veteran…. they are loyal, disciplined, hardworking…and they deserve our support.

Remember these tidbits as the election cycle grinds on:

  • Fast & Furious-Americans killed by guns supplied to the drug cartels…by the Department of Justice-Eric Holder presiding. The president was clueless. No one held accountable
  • Benghazi: Four Americans killed in an assault described as the result of a viral video. This was proved to be a false narrative. This was in fact, a planned act of terror. The president was clueless. No one even knows where he was as this went down. No one held accountable
  • “At this point, what difference does it make?” Hillary Clinton as Secretary of State
  • The IRS targeting of conservative groups and individuals. No one held accountable, Lois Lerner is on paid vacation and has refused to testify. The president was clueless. No one held accountable
  • Hillary using a private server for correspondence during her term as Secretary of State against the orders of the president. She thought “it would be more convenient…” Though the records were due when she left office, they were not submitted, subpoenas were issued, which she ignored for two years. Finally, she released 30,000 of some 60,000 alleged emails then she deleted the rest of the emails and will NOT turn over the server for investigation.