The growing trade war between the U.S. and China, along with other countries, will produce “a little pain along the way.”
But Linda McMahon, head of the Small Business istration, said Wednesday while visiting a San Diego business that the end result will be positive for the nation and the global economy.
“It’s not an instant process, that’s for sure,” she said, when asked how long it will take to resolve disputes on tariffs and other trading rules. “For sure, conversations, negotiations, are going on and both sides will put on the table what they are willing to do. But the end will be good for not only our country but, as I say, the global economy.”
President Trump has announced plans to slap tariffs on $50 billion worth of Chinese goods and up to $400 billion more if China retaliates. Other tariffs have been announced against steel and aluminum coming in from Canada, Mexico and the European Union and those trading partners have announced plans to retaliate, dollar for dollar.
McMahon, who with her husband developed the World Wrestling Entertainment company, is a member of Trump’s Cabinet and plans to visit all 68 SBA district offices by the end of the year. After about an hour in San Diego, she proceeded to Orange County before returning to Washington, D.C. She will be back in California Friday to visit more businesses in Los Angeles.
Many small businesses hope to expand international imports and exports, but rising tariffs threaten to stymie that growth and, some economists warn, to retard job growth if tariffs lead to higher prices and less consumer spending.
“The president’s rule is America first,” McMahon said, “and we are working hard to make sure that our country is positioned to stay No. 1 in the global economy, to be able to defend our nation, by our industries at home, to make sure we are not caught short.”
That goal fit neatly into the mission of the company McMahon visited in Barrio Logan, VetPowered, and its nonprofit Workshops for Warriors, where veterans are trained to manufacture and maintain heavy machinery and components.
About 40 mostly active-duty military personnel were present during McMahon’s trip. They are preparing to leave the military and seek new jobs in industry and Navy and Marines allow them to get training during their final months of duty.
Company President Hernan Luis y Prado, 47, a former Navy hospital corpsman, founded the training program in 2008 with the hope of growing it to 1,500 manufacturing specialists per year and duplicating the program across the country. The cost of $20,000 per student is covered by donations and profits from his VetPowered plant. The active-duty military students continue to receive their regular pay while on the program.
McMahon heaped praise on the Luis y Prado’s operations and encouraged his students to seek full-time jobs and start their own companies in the future.
“This is the most impressive training facility — with the thought behind it, how it operates, the precision with which it operates,” she said. “It is the best thought out and best run.”
Luis y Prado said his company has received nearly $2.5 million in SBA loans to buy 2.5 acres next to the current operation on Main Street, where expanded training facilities will be built over the next two years if city permitting goes as planned.
The local SBA office guaranteed 834 loans worth $424.5 million in the 2017 fiscal year and received 230 contract offerings, worth $920 million, from federal agencies, according to its latest local bulletin.
VetPowered has received a $30 million contract from SPAWAR, the Navy’s research installation in Old Town, and other work from the Navy to fabricate ship’s parts that cannot be ordered from the original manufacturers.
The company also has contracts with Tesla and SpaceX, Luis y Prado said. He showed off a golf cart in his factory equipped with long-lasting Tesla batteries. He also showed McMahon a laser-printing machine that he used to print out a laser-cut business card for her.
Roger Showley is a San Diego freelance writer. He can be reached at (619) 787-5714; and [email protected]
