Slaughter Chides Bush for Ducking Buffalo Color Dumping Case

Jul. 18–WASHINGTON — Congresswoman Louise M. Slaughter, D-Fairport, on Wednesday chastised the Bush administration for ignoring a two-year-old case against Chinese dumping brought by Buffalo Color Corp.

Slaughter said the Commerce Department has refused to act on evidence that Chinese manufacturers are evading an earlier U .S. sanction by transhipping indigo to this country through South Korea and Mexico.

“Given that you just returned from a trip to China promoting more trade,” Slaughter wrote to Commerce Secretary Carlos M. Gutierrez, “I am particularly troubled that the Department is refusing to enforce existing trade laws to save the last domestic producer of indigo dye used to make blue jeans — especially since illegal Chinese price dumping drove Buffalo Color into bankruptcy.”

Slaughter said she has complained personally to Gutierrez office about Buffalo Color’s bankruptcy but that he has not responded to her.

Slaughter echoes concerns voiced in October, 2003, by Sen. Charles E. Schumer, D-N.Y. about China’s dumping below-cost indigo on the market, forcing Buffalo Color, the last U.S. producer of the product into bankruptcy.

Buffalo Color, she said, “has lined-up U.S. investors that are committed to resurrecting the company — but only if its case is resolved and the transshipping is stopped. I, therefore, urge you to immediately complete your investigation and fully enforce the anti-dumping order.”

With the Republican-controlled House poised to pass the Central American Free Trade Agreement, Slaughter said the behavior of the government raises doubts about whether the administration will enforce any trade laws.

Meanwhile, the U.S. Business and Industry Council denounced what it called the failure of the government’s trade mission to China to make any progress.

USBIC President Kevin Kearns characterized the weak performance by U.S. Trade Representative Rob Portman, Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez, and Agriculture Secretary Mike Johanns as a “continuing, do-nothing-to-upset-the-Chinese approach.”

“The White House has tried to delay action in Congress on a host of legislative initiatives aimed at halting the surge in Chinese exports into the U.S. by claiming that such measures would upset negotiations,” Kearns said. “But the negotiations are going nowhere because Beijing believes Washington is a paper tiger. Too many American companies and jobs have been destroyed by China’s predatory actions.”

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