Donald Trump’s steel tariffs have helped some US steel producers. Now they are helping Trump back.
The president, who broke with tradition to start raising money for his 2020 re-election bid on his first days in office, has received at least $80,000 in contributions from the steel industry. Most were made after Trump announced the tariffs in March.
Donors include political action committees (PACs) associated with steel companies such as Nucor, whose earnings have been boosted by the tariffs. PAC’s can donate up to 10,000 to a candidate for both the primary and the general elections, according to the Federal Election Commission (FEC.) Here’s a list, based on the latest FEC reports:
Nucor, along with United States Steel and AK Steel, has been trying to block efforts by steel importers to get the Trump administration to lift the taxes in individual cases, according to the New York Times. Nucor, AK Steel, and US Steel have publicly objected to hundreds of exemption requests—including about half of the cases that were ultimately denied. Nucor’s chief executive John Ferriola told the newspaper that imports that can be substituted by products that his company makes in the US should be subject to the tariffs.
He personally has donated $5,400 to the Trump 2020 campaign, the maximum amount allowed currently by the FEC. Other steel industry executives are pitching in as well.