Steel, aluminum tariffs will increase costs of cars
President Trump indicated he would impose 25% tariffs on steel and aluminum imports to bring back high-paying manufacturing jobs to the United States.
Economists studied the tariffs he imposed on these imports during his first administration, and the tariffs did indeed increase the number of jobs in steel and aluminum manufacturing; the only problem was the ripple inflation effect on other manufacturing processes that use steel and aluminum.
Cars, planes, and other products will cost more, reducing demand and putting a further drag on an economy already weakening and heading toward a recession.
RAY ZAVACKI, DECATUR
Bloated government needs reducing
I do not understand why people are so upset at Musk for finding so much fraud, waste and abuse of our tax dollars. How many people over 100 years old still have active Social Security numbers? Now, an active number does not mean they are still collecting benefits, but it does not mean they have stopped, either. Also, an active number is open to all other forms of abuse from all the various forms of welfare. In my mind, “Ghost” employees in government are a real problem, too.
I am glad to see responsible adults finally taking the helm and trying to rein in government. Our national debt has become a ticking time bomb that costs us a fortune. People can scream all they want, but eliminating fraud, waste, and abuse must be the first step in saving money that should not be spent. The only real shocker is just how much there is in government. All the fraud and waste exposed to the public cannot be “unseen” and will be remembered for a long time to come.
In my mind, our current government is a bloated, out-of-control beast that must be controlled, as painful as it may be.
STEVE CRONON, CUMMING
EVs are better for the environment
In her March 7 “Steering Column” post, Renee DeGross Valdes writes, “Though they do not contribute to air pollution during their operation, EVs are not purely good for the environment.” What is “purely good”?
Since EVs have no tailpipe emissions, we can only assume she is referring to emissions associated with manufacturing the EV battery and generating the electricity for charging. When it comes to the environment, “purely good” is a meaningless measure. What we know, thanks to groups like the International Energy Agency - which measure such things - is that an average midsize EV produces less than half the “cradle-to-grave” CO2 emissions of a typical internal combustion engine vehicle (19.7 vs. 41.9 tons), taking into account vehicle and battery manufacturing, charging, and tailpipe emissions. The U.S. Department of Energy has similar findings. Pure or not, EVs are clearly better for the environment.
MAURICE CARTER, COVINGTON
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