Former President Trump made “Buy American and Hire American” a priority.  During his administration, the United States made some progress.  Then the pandemic hit.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, “The nation's international trade deficit in goods and services increased to $74.4 billion in March from $70.5 billion in February.”   That’s almost double what it was a year ago.  About three-quarters of that deficit is in consumer goods.

No wonder there is a container shortage.  No wonder we have port congestion.  The macro-economic measures tell the story.  President Biden talks about “resilient, diverse, and secure supply chain.”  Politicians can talk about it.  American industry needs to build it.