Could the timing of President Obama’s decision to crack down on China’s export restrictions be politically motivated? The president announced today that the U.S., the EU and Japan will finally challenge Beijing’s export restrictions on rare earth materials used in tech products in a case before the World Trade Organization. But some find it curious that Obama’s taking this action today, the day of a contentious GOP primary – especially because the president has seemed to schedule many of his major announcements and events on big GOP primary days.
USA Today reports:
White House officials said today it is coincidence that President Obama announced a new trade law case against China on the same day as Republican primaries in Mississippi and Alabama. …
“The president’s schedule is a complex organism,” Carney said. “This was the appropriate day to do it.” …
Last week, Obama held a news conference the same day as the Super Tuesday contests. Last month, he spoke to the United Auto Workers the same day as the GOP primary in Michigan, the nation’s car making capital.
The administration’s World Trade Organization case deals with Chinese restrictions on rare earth minerals necessary to make high-tech products.
