At the same time President Trump put a Hold on Congressionally Approved Military Aid to Ukraine, his Administration wanted to Delayed Restoring the Nation’s Trade Privileges, and Senate Democrats want some Answers. “It would raise grave concerns both domestically and internationally if U.S. trade policy were used as a bargaining chip to achieve partisan political ends,” Sens. Ron Wyden (D-OR) and Robert Menendez (D-NJ) Wrote to U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer.

Ukraine’s Participation in the “Generalized System of Preferences” (GSP) Program, which allows Developing Nations to Avoid Import Tariffs on some Products, had been Partially Suspended by the Trump Administration in 2017 Due to Concerns about Digital Piracy and Intellectual Property Violations.

Over the Summer, Lighthizer Recommended Restoring Ukraine’s Participation by One-Third because the Country had Addressed some of the Concerns that had Led to its Suspension. But then National Security Adviser John Bolton Warned him that Trump would Reject the Move, and Lighthizer Withdrew the Recommendation.

After The Washington Post Reported on that About-Face, Wyden and Menendez followed up.

They want to Hear from Lighthizer about any Discussions of U.S.-Ukraine Trade he might have had with Trump, Rudy Giuliani, and Ambassador to the European Union Gordon Sondland, Two key figures in Trump’s Pressure Campaign against Ukraine.

In particular they want to know if Lighthizer was told to Press Ukrainian Officials on “Trump’s desire for assistance in investigating one of his political opponents or their family members or unsubstantiated theories related to Ukraine’s involvement in the 2016 U.S. election.”

Finally, One-Third of the GSP Benefits were Restored to Ukraine just last week.










NYC Wins When Everyone Can Vote! Michael H. Drucker