U.S. Rep. Tom Reed says the America First trade policy and the tariffs that come with it will be beneficial in the long-term.

“We put tariffs on the table as part of the president’s initiative of putting an American first and American interest on equal footing when it comes to American trade policy going forward with our trading partners,” Reed said. “And as those tariffs have gone out, they’ve obviously caused great concern to many folks who are used to well-established status quo type of trade policies. I am glad to be able to highlight today that this new tool in our tool box is leading to some positive results.”

Reed mentioned an announcement from China that came out on Tuesday regarding the opening of the market to more automobiles and steps being taken to protect intellectual property. He said South Korea also changed its policy recently regarding trading steel and dairy. Reed said he has also gotten word that NAFTA negotiations are now proceeding.

Reed said when it comes to Chautauqua County, he sees opportunity for economic gains due to the tariffs.

He said one of the largest employers in the county is Cummins Engine, which could see improvements due to the tariffs.

“Many of the engines there manufactured in Cummins find their way into the international marketplace, in particular, the South Korean marketplace,” Reed said. “To have access to more of that market and a level playing field means more products, in my humble opinion, in the long term that could be coming out of that facility that could be leading to more opportunities for Chautauqua County residents in regards to job opportunities that are always associated with increased demand and increased growth.”

Other products on the agricultural front like grapes and dairy are “in a prime position” to take advantage of the new trade policies.

Reed said with the tariff situation, there are also concerns of short-term negative impacts.

“You have tariffs potentially being deployed on products that are going to be imported to America,” he said. “Those tariffs translate to potentially pressures on consumers, on people, when they purchase those items at the marketplace. The bottom line is, long-term, this is going to make us stronger as a country in regards to having the ability to make it here and sell it around the world. The more we can get our trade balance closer to even and not run these trade deficits long-term, I think that bodes well for the American worker longer-term.”

Regarding the testimony of Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook chief executive officer, to the House of Representatives Committee on Energy and Commerce, Reed said he is not involved in the committee, but will be paying attention to what is said.

“What I’m looking forward to in the testimony is that any questions about privacy of users of Facebook and other technology companies are put forward into the spotlight of congressional review,” he said. “Hopefully folks will come away with an acknowledgment that Facebook and others recognize that they have an obligation to respect that privacy and make sure that individuals are giving their consent in an informed way when they want to share data about their use of these technologies.

Reed said he is interested to see what comes out of the testimony.