Trump pushes ‘Buy American, Hire American’ policy in Wisconsin

President Donald Trump signed an executive order Tuesday directing federal agencies to implement the “Buy American, Hire American” rhetoric of his campaign.

“The buy and hire American order I’m about to sign will protect workers and students like you,” Trump told a crowd of technical students and manufacturing employees at the headquarters of Snap-On Tools, a Wisconsin-based manufacturer. “It’s America first, you better believe it. It’s time. It’s time, right?”

The order, which Trump signed after delivering his remarks, looks to bolster protections for certain American-made goods and calls for a review of the H-1B visa program for skilled workers, with the goal of reforming the program, senior administration officials said.

Trump said the order would “aggressively promote and use American-made goods and to ensure that American labor is hired to do the job.”

Lauding American “grit” and “craftsmanship,” Trump once again embraced the populist rhetoric that fueled his campaign during his remarks Tuesday, decrying the World Trade Organization as “another one of our disasters” and also calling the NAFTA free trade deal a “complete and total disaster.”

Senior administration officials who briefed reporters Monday touted the executive order as a “historic step” that would help protect American manufacturers and American workers whom the administration believes have been hurt by lax enforcement of “Buy American” laws and employers abusing the H1-B visa program.

01:17 - Source: CNN

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