Trump Has Hard Time With "Buy American, Hire American"
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WASHINGTON (CBSMiami) - He's preached it on the stump and while in the Oval Office, "Buy American, Hire American."
President Donald Trump, however, has the same problem as president as he did as a candidate when it comes to putting that rhetoric into action. For him, it's more of a "do as I say, not as I do."
On Tuesday, President Trump traveled to Wisconsin where he signed an Executive Order that reinforces existing law to make certain federal dollars give priority to American-made goods.
"We are going to do everything in our power to make sure that more products are stamped, with those wonderful words, made in the USA," Trump told a crowd of technical students and manufacturing employees at the headquarters of Snap-On Tools in Kenosha.
The order, which Trump signed after delivering his remarks, looks to bolster protections for certain American-made goods.
The president's America first motto doesn't match the reality of business practices that made him millions. Many Trump-branded products are manufactured overseas, mostly in China.
It's a family thing. Many of the outfits sold under the name of his daughter, and White House aide, Ivanka are also manufactured abroad, mainly in China. While Ivanka Trump no longer runs the company, she remains the owner and profits from it.
The order signed by Trump also calls for a review of the H-1B visa program which allows companies to hire skilled foreign workers. The White House argues that the program undercuts American workers.
President Trump has used the visa program to hire foreign workers at this properties for many years. Just two months ago, he applied for an H-2B visa for "foreign national services" at his golf club outside New York City.
When he was running for president, then-candidate Trump said he routinely hired seasonal foreign workers for his Mar-a-Lago resort in Palm Beach because it was almost impossible to hire American workers.
"It's very hard, either they're not qualified, and one of the big things, it's a seasonal job," he said.
Critics argue that if Trump raised his wages, Mar-a-Lago jobs would be attractive to workers from countries other than Haiti and Romania.