Congressman Bradley Byrne (AL-01) is praising President Donald Trump in regards to the U.S. Treasury Department on Monday officially declaring China a currency manipulator.
This came after the Chinese yuan fell to a more than 10-year low against the American dollar the preceding night.
“In recent days, China has taken concrete steps to devalue its currency, while maintaining substantial foreign exchange reserves despite active use of such tools in the past,” a Treasury Department statement advised, per Fox Business. “The context of these actions and the implausibility of China’s market stability rationale confirm that the purpose of China’s currency devaluation is to gain unfair competitive advantage in international trade.”
Treasury’s actions followed tweets by the president on the subject from the same day. Trump has also been vocal on Chinese trade and currency practices in the past.
China dropped the price of their currency to an almost a historic low. It’s called “currency manipulation.” Are you listening Federal Reserve? This is a major violation which will greatly weaken China over time!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 5, 2019
….used currency manipulation to steal our businesses and factories, hurt our jobs, depress our workers’ wages and harm our farmers’ prices. Not anymore!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 5, 2019
Trump added, “China is intent on continuing to receive the hundreds of Billions of Dollars they have been taking from the U.S. with unfair trade practices and currency manipulation. So one-sided, it should have been stopped many years ago!”
In a statement to Yellowhammer News on Monday, Byrne emphasized that he agreed China needs to be held “accountable for their rouge actions.”
“For too long, presidents have just talked about China’s corrupt and unfair trade practices that hurt American and Alabama workers,” Byrne decried. “China has taken advantage of us left and right.”
“Now, President Trump has finally put his foot down and said enough is enough,” he concluded. “I will always work with President Trump to stand up for American workers and hold China accountable for their rouge actions.”
Byrne has consistently been a vocal supporter of Trump on standing up to China.
The Coastal Alabama congressman is a Republican candidate in the state’s 2020 U.S. Senate race, along with former Auburn University head football coach Tommy Tuberville, Secretary of State John Merrill, former Alabama Supreme Court Chief Justice Roy Moore and State Rep. Arnold Mooney (R-Indian Springs).
The GOP nominee will likely go on to face incumbent Senator Doug Jones (D-AL), who has called Trump’s trade policy regarding China “another administration disaster.”
A recent report concluded that Alabama is one of the states with the most at risk in America’s trade war with China.
Sean Ross is a staff writer for Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on Twitter @sean_yhn
