Is a Law Protecting Unions Hurting the Oil Spill Cleanup Efforts?
David Asman: Well, did you hear about this? Foreign countries offering to send technology and equipment to help clean up the Gulf, but there is a law here protecting unions that is standing in the way. A law that the president could wave right now. Steve, why isn’t he? Steve Forbes: Precisely because he does not want to offend the unions. It’s called the Jones Act, which wrecked the maritime industry in this country, so ships here have to have American crews and be built in American yards. It sounds like it would protect American jobs, but it destroyed them. Take the cruise industry for example. It’s illegal to take a ship from New York to Miami unless it was built in the yard here, which most of them aren’t because they’re not competitive. It destroyed jobs and it’s slowing the clean-up. If he got rid of that law he could bring in foreign ships and foreign equipment. But the President won’t do it out of fear of domestic politics. Stephane Fitch: I can’t speak for the President but it
