President Biden plans to sign an executive order on Monday requiring government agencies to increase purchases of American-made products, Reuters and The Wall Street Journal reports. The policy is part of the "Buy American" initiative Biden promised during his campaign. Biden reportedly hopes to harness the purchasing power of the U.S. government, the biggest buyer in the world, to boost domestic manufacturing and supply chains hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic. Biden's Buy American initiative shares some elements of former President Donald Trump's domestic preference policy under his America First plan, which centered around tariff hikes targeting China and other trading partners.
Canada's foreign minister, Marc Garneau, said Sunday that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had expressed concerns to Biden about the Buy American program in a Friday phone call. A senior Biden administration official told the Journal that Biden's order seeks to strengthen the U.S. supply chain, after the COVID-19 pandemic highlighted critical weaknesses. "We remain very committed to working with partners and allies to modernize international trade rules to make sure that we can use our taxpayer dollars to stir investments in our own countries and strengthen supply chains," the official said.
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