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The Blog of America’s Business "America’s Business with Mike Hambrick" is the popular, weekly national radio program that tells the great story of manufacturing in the United States. Building on nearly a full year’s experience, we’re working to expand our presence on the Internet, beyond the usual – and very popular – podcasts and downloads. On this page, we’ll be bringing separate audio segments from recent programs, hitting the top issues of the day. Thinking of it as "America’s Business Blog," with lots more to come very soon. Click here to bookmark America's Business in your browser Interested in joining the NAM? Click here for more information.

October 1, 2007

Mitt Romney

"What we’re going to have to do is look on both sides of the equation of energy and that is: Additional sources of energy from nuclear to new oil sources to biofuel, biodiesel, liquefied coal, gasified coal, ethanol…the whole range of additional sources of energy. Of course renewable sources of energy like wind power… all of those things are going to have to be brought to bear. At the same time, we’re going to have to put in place measure to increase dramatically the efficiency of our use of energy and conservation measures."

Soundbite: Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney

Full Program: Mitt Romney Speaks with America's Business

With energy as a major topic of congressional debate, we find that Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney, former governor of Massachusetts, was already talking about supply and demand back in our interview with him in November 2006. America needs both new sources of energy – nuclear power, renewables, liquefied coal – and increased efficieny, achieved through new research and development. This 11 minute segment also features Romney outlining his positions on technology and innovation, workforce training, the need for tort reform, taxes, government spending and his landmark healthcare plan in Massachusetts. His views remain remarkably fresh and of high interest to U.S. manufacturers.

Posted by Mike Hambrick at 10:42 AM | Click here to comment | Send to a Friend
Tagged: conservation , efficiency , energy , energy sources , Mitt Romney , renewable , research and development , supply and demand , taxes , U.S. manufacturers

September 19, 2007

Senator Sam Brownback: Control Spending

Senator Sam Brownback (R-KS) is running for the Republican nomination for president on a platform that includes strong suport for fiscal rectitude and reform, cutting spending and making taxes more fair. He highlighted its key components in a recent interview on "America's Business with Mike Hambrick."

“I have an economic pro-growth position; I have an optional flat tax, personal social security account. And changing the way we spend money, because you have to change the way we spend it in order to cut the wasteful government spending that drives all of us crazy.”

Soundfile: Click here to listen to Senator Brownback discuss Congressional spending.

Soundfile: Click here to listen to the full program.

Posted by Mike Hambrick at 4:09 PM | Click here to comment | Send to a Friend
Tagged: flat tax , Sam Brownback

September 13, 2007

Bill Graves: American Trucking Associations

Bill Graves, the president and CEO of the American Trucking Associations, is helping lead an NAM-founded coalition, the Alliance for Improving America’s Infrastructure. The former governor of Kansas, he joined America’s Business with Mike Hambrick to explain the impact of inadequate infrastructure on the trucking industry and the U.S. economy.

“We are burning fuel while we are waiting in traffic. We are idling and adding to the already recognized environmental problems that we face as a nation. We are using up valuable hours of service that a driver is allowed by law to be behind the wheel. To squander those, if you will, sitting idle is not a good use of that human resource, the human capital. And of course, at the end of the day we’re also perhaps missing some delivery deadlines that are critically important to the business community.”

Soundfile: Click here to listen to Bill Graves explain how America's aging infrastructure affects our trucking industry.

Soundfile: Click here to listen to the full America's Business radio program!

Posted by Mike Hambrick at 1:21 PM | Click here to comment | Send to a Friend
Tagged: American Trucking Associations , infrastructure , trucking

August 31, 2007

U.S. Trade Representative Susan Schwab

The U.S. Trade Representative, Ambassador Susan C. Schwab, took time from her busy schedule immediately before leaving for this weekend's Asian-Pacific Economic Cooperation Summit in Sydney, Australia, to visit with "America's Business." Important free-trade agreements are -- or at least should be -- on the congressional agenda this fall, and Ambassador Schwab outlines the benefits for manufacturers and the U.S. economy in adopting these agreements.

Ninety-five percent of the world’s consumers our outside our borders, which is a good start. If you want to sell you have to go where the consumers are and they are out there. So that’s first and foremost vitally important to manufacturers. Trade and open trade, let’s face it, makes us more competitive. We take down barriers; you know we negotiate to reduce barriers overseas; any American business person would prefer to meet the competition abroad first. You would rather see the competition abroad first, meet the competition abroad before they show up here. And when they show up here or when we are competing with them in third country markets, it’s nice to have access to cheaper inputs.

Posted by Mike Hambrick at 12:31 PM | Click here to comment | Send to a Friend
Tagged: APEC , Susan C. Schwab , U.S. Trade Representative

August 28, 2007

Representative John Boehner: Spending and CAFE

I expect they (Democrats) are going to send a bill down that will be a big major spending bill that will be vetoed and we will be in a major fight over just how much spending and how much of the American tax payer’s wallet we are going to get into.

Soundfile: Click to listen to Leader Boehner's comments on the possibility of the Democrats sending a major spending bill.

Boehner also discusses topics ranging proposed free trade legislation, the American economy, climate change and the 2008 presidential election. On the controversial topic of vehicle fuel-efficiency standards, he says,

When it comes to CAFE, I think the proposal that was passed in the Senate, that’s being sponsored by Miss Pelosi and Mr. Markey from Massachusetts will wreck America’s economy…I think that’s very bad for our country.

Soundfile: Click to listen to Leader Boehner talk about CAFE standards.

Posted by Mike Hambrick at 11:00 AM | Click here to comment | Send to a Friend
Tagged: CAFE standards , Ed Markey , John Boehner , Nancy Pelosi

August 24, 2007

Senator Charles Grassley: The Farm Bill and Taxes

News on the tax, investment and agriculture front at "America's Business Blog" today, thanks to an extensive interview with Senator Charles Grassley, the ranking Republican on the Senate Finance Committee.

In an interview this week on "America's Business with Mike Hambrick," the Senator registers his opposition to provisions in the House-passed farm bill, H.R. 2419, to apply $7.5 billion in taxes to U.S. operations of foreign companies.

“The Senate Finance Committee is going to have to speak on this issue, and I believe that most Republicans and some Democrats would be opposed to it – not dealing with the tax issues of raising money for agriculture, but dealing with the fact that this violates our tax treaties. And if we are going to have changes in our tax treaties, they should be negotiated in order to keep our credibility with other people, because we’re going to want further tax treaties down the line."

Listen to the full Senator Grassley interview. A transcript is available here in .pdf format.

And to listen to this week's entire "America's Business with Mike Hambrick," please click here.

Posted by Mike Hambrick at 11:36 AM | Click here to comment | Send to a Friend
Tagged: Charles Grassley , farm bill , H.R. 2419 , tax treaties

James Fallows: Pollution, Currency, and the Future

We complete our two-part interview with James Fallows, national editor of the Atlantic Monthly, whose cover story in the July/August issue profiled China's manufacturing might, its failings and the challenges it poses to the U.S. manufacturers. One place where China economic rise could have a serious impact, a damaging one, is on the world's environment, Fallows reports:

"The central government for the last couple of years had talked a good line about the need for environmental protection, and many outside observers think that the central government to a degree means it. Actually getting it done is a whole different thing. Surprisingly, the Chinese central government is much weaker than the U.S. central government. I think this is a genuine world emergency. I worry much less about China’s manufacturing threat or its military threat, I worry a lot about its environmental threat."

Listen to this soundbite by clicking here.

You can listen to the full interview by clicking here, and we have a transcript of this segment available here.

Click here to listen to the America's Business Program.

Posted by Mike Hambrick at 11:35 AM | Click here to comment | Send to a Friend
Tagged: Atlantic Magazine , Chinese manufacturing , James Fallows , Shenzhen

August 21, 2007

Drew Greenblatt, Marlin Steel Wire Products

Marlin Steel Wire Products is a Baltimore manufacturer of wire products -- baskets, racks, etc. -- that found itself struggling in the face of new, price-cutting Chinese competition. So what did its new owner, Drew Greenblatt, do? He adapted, adopting new business strategies and finding new customers, with the emphasis on quality and a quick turn-around. His company's success recently drew the attention of the Washington Post's Sunday Magazine, in a smart profile, "Not Made in China: A Baltimore Manufacturer Triumphs Over His Global Competition"

In an April 2007 segment, Drew calls in to "America's Business with Mike Hambrick" from the factory floor. Listen to an audio clip of that here.

Posted by Mike Hambrick at 2:59 PM | Click here to comment | Send to a Friend
Tagged: Drew Greenblat

August 17, 2007

James Fallows: China Makes, the World Takes

A special "America's Business Blog" entry today, with a full interview segment and transcript from our discussion with the Atlantic Monthly's James Fallows, author of the July/August cover story, "China Makes, the World Takes." Fallows describes the thrust of his story:

"[In] the long run China is obviously the country the United States needs to contend with and needs to deal with, and we would be crazy, we the United Sates, to think that everything is just going to go along on autopilot. But I tried to argue that at least until now, until 2007 and for the next year or two, this has been a more mutually beneficial relationship than I thought before coming here. And I should say that I am by nature something of a protectionist. I think that there are pernicious aspects of a lot of industrial policy in the rest of the world and the U.S. needs to defend itself.

We have the first of a two-part interview with Fallows this week on "America's Business with Mike Hambrick." It's really a fascinating interview in which Fallows highlights some amazing things about China -- one province has more factory workers in it than the entire United States -- and identifies as well the many serious problems of Chinese manufacturing: "So rule of law is very weak, intellectual property violations are rampant, there are some factories that are really terrible and hellholes and slave labor, and there are some government subsidies, too."

Fallows sees the good and the bad, the promise and the threats, the shades of gray...and red.

Click here to listen to the entire interivew.

We have a transcript of the conversation here (.pdf file).

And to listen to this week's entire "America's Business with Mike Hambrick," please click here.

Posted by Mike Hambrick at 10:23 AM | Click here to comment | Send to a Friend
Tagged: Atlantic Monthly , China trade , James Fallows

August 14, 2007

James Fallows, Atlantic Monthly

“But I try to argue that at least until now, until 2007 and the next year or two...this has been a more mutually beneficial relationship than I thought before coming here. And I should say that by nature I am something of a protectionist. I think there is a pernicious aspect of a lot of industrial policy in the rest of the world and the U.S. needs to defend itself, but in this case most of the companies doing exporting from China are American companies that have set up their manufacturing places in China. So, the jobs at roughly 100 dollars a month are going to people in China, but the profits and most of the value that comes from this is going to American companies.”

James Fallows has the cover story in the July/August edition of The Atlantic Monthly, “China Makes, the World Takes,” assessing the state of Chinese manufacturing and how U.S.-based manufacturers and policymakers should respond. Is China a threat? A benefit? And how will China shape the U.S. manufacturing economy in the years ahead. Fallows shares his thoughts in an extensive interview with “America’s Business” host Mike Hambrick.

Soundbite: James Fallows on the state of manufacturing in China.

Listen to the America's Business Program this weekend to hear the full interview!

Posted by Mike Hambrick at 4:39 PM | Click here to comment | Send to a Friend
Tagged: Atlantic Monthly , China , James Fallows , Manufacturing

August 10, 2007

Fighting Back Against China

“We’re able to be on par with them about price. We are not going to beat them on price, but we do beat them on innovation, quality engineering, support; all those other issues that come into play. Everybody always thinks it’s always just about price. It’s not just about price. And the challenge is to make it so it’s not just about price.” – Stewart McMillan, President of Task Force Tips on how they deal with Chinese competition

Stewart McMillan is president of a leading manufacturer of fire-suppression equipment, the Indiana-based Task Force Tips – a world-class business, one that Chinese competitors wanted not just to emulate, but to supplant. Faced with the tough Chinese challenge – even involving counterfeits of his products – Stewart McMillan fought back and succeeded by offering the best product and service on all fronts.

Soundbite: Stewart McMillan, President of Task Force Tips on how they deal with Chinese competition

Full Program: Click here to listen to America's Business with Mike Hambrick.

Posted by Mike Hambrick at 12:07 PM | Click here to comment | Send to a Friend
Tagged: China , Chinese counterfeiting , Task Force Tips

August 8, 2007

NAM Launches Infrastructure Coalition

“As horrible as the bridge tragedy in Minnesota was, it really brought home the importance of a reliable infrastructure. Roads, bridges, airports, harbors: They’re the foundation of a strong economy for any nation. But we’ve now seen that they’re also a matter of life and death. That’s why the NAM is forming a coalition to work on a national infrastructure strategy. Plans are coming out of the Congress, out of the Department of Transportation, but manufacturers’ expertise is necessary. We’ve got incredible experience and knowledge that we can draw on when it comes to infrastructure. We need a modern, reliable and safe infrastructure, not just for the economy, but for the safety of our citizens.”

The National Association of Manufacturers today announced formation of the Alliance for Improving America's Infrastructure, a coalition to develop a national infrastructure strategy. In this audio file, NAM President John Engler explains the impetus for the new coalition, the role of manufacturers, and the importance of a reliable infrastructure for the economy and the safety of the U.S. public. Click here to learn more about the Alliance for Infrastructure Improvements.

Soundbite: John Engler on the NAM's new infrastructure coalition.

Posted by Mike Hambrick at 4:16 PM | Click here to comment | Send to a Friend
Tagged: Alliance for Improving America's Infrastructure , Infrastructure , John Engler , Minnesota bridge collapse

August 7, 2007

The Skeptical Enviromentalist

“I honestly think he really does believe what he is talking about and that he feels very strongly about it. I’m simply asking the fairly sensible question, “Is this the right way to go about it?” Are we actually going to spend a lot of money doing fairly little good? His proposals have the tendency of saying, let’s spend vast amounts of money on climate change that will actually end up doing a little good, but not very much good. So you got to ask yourself, is that the right way to go?”

Soundbite: Bjorn Lomborg on Al Gore's approach towards global warming.

Full Program: Listen to full "America's Business" program here.

Posted by Mike Hambrick at 9:19 AM | Click here to comment | Send to a Friend
Tagged: Al Gore , Bjorn Lomborg , global warming , Skeptical Enviromentalist

August 6, 2007

HHS Secretary Michael Leavitt

“We use the word value a lot. Value is the intersection of quality and cost. If you know how much something costs, it’s also important to how good it is. And right now people don’t know how much it costs and they don’t know how good it is and if they have that information we know they’ll make better choices.” – On value driven healthcare.

Giving health-care consumers the information they need to make informed decisions is a key to “value-driven health care,” a strategy that goes hand-in-hand with private-sector efficiencies. Health and Human Services Secretary Mike Leavitt is a leading advocate of the value-driven approach, and he explains the principles in an interview on “America’s Business with Mike Hambrick.”

Soundbite: HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt on value driven healthcare.

Full Program: Listen to full "America's Business" program here.

Posted by Mike Hambrick at 10:58 AM | Click here to comment | Send to a Friend
Tagged: Human and Health Services , Mike Leavitt , Value driven healthcare

August 1, 2007

New EPA Ozone Standards

Mike Hambrick: "Well if the standards change, what are the states going to have to do?"

Mayor Grace: “You have a whole new set of guidelines that would be imposed on all the aspects, not only industrial but also governmental agencies. It’s very confusing in that we have not seen what the effects of the present standards have on reducing the emissions in the ozone.

Soundbite: Mayor Grace on EPA ozone standards.

Full Program: Listen to Mayor George L. Grace speak on America's Business.

Posted by Mike Hambrick at 4:36 PM | Click here to comment | Send to a Friend
Tagged: EPA , Katrina , Mayor Grace , Ozone Standard

July 31, 2007

Jackpot Justice!

"The costs of the tort liability system which is embedded in every price that we pay for every product; all of our insurance costs are higher as result of the liability costs, all the price that we pay for goods and services are higher and for example, about 5,000 – 6,000 dollars of the price of every new automobile is just for liability expenses."

"Jackpot Justice” is a term used to describe the mindset often afflicts the public’s view of the U.S. civil justice system: It’s just a big lottery and you might as well take a shot, hoping to hit the big payoff. That attitude and the legal system that rewards it have real costs that drag down the economy. Lawrence McQuillan, director of business and economic studies at the Pacific Research Institute, calculated those costs at an astonishing $865 billion per year in the study, “Jackpot Justice: The True Cost of America’s Tort System.” And everyone of us pays the price. (The American Justice Partnership has a full range of materials on the study available here.

Soundbite: Dr. Lawrence McQuillan on how tort costs affect the price of goods we buy.

Full Program: Listen to the complete findings of the Jackpot Justice report.

Posted by Mike Hambrick at 10:16 AM | Click here to comment | Send to a Friend
Tagged: Jackpot Justice , Lawrence McQuillan , Pacific Research Institute , tort costs , tort reform

July 25, 2007

Baron Hill (D-IN)

“Fifty-six percent of the vehicles that are sold in Indiana are trucks. Having separate standards for them is important, for not only the consumer but the economic health of our economy. The answer to your question is yes, the automobile industry will be able to meet these standards. We’ve got a bill that I believe gives them the room to make progress.”

Representatives Baron Hill (D-IN) and Lee Terry (R-NE) are the lead sponsors of H.R. 2927, an automotive fuel-efficiency proposal that’s gaining growing support as a bipartisan, achievable alternative to job-killing CAFE standards contained in the Senate energy bill, H.R. 6. The NAM, National Automobile Dealers Association, and the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers joined Hill and Terry for a Capitol Hill news conference on Tuesday, July 24, in support of their legislation. (Joint news release here.) In a recent interview with “America’s Business” Hill noted H.R. 2927 treats trucks in a more reasonable approach than alternative bills.

Soundbite: Congressman Baron Hill (D-IN) discusses whether the automobile industry will be able to meet their CAFE bill.

Full Program: Congressmen Hill and Ryan speak to America's Business

Posted by Mike Hambrick at 3:47 PM | Click here to comment | Send to a Friend
Tagged: Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers , Baron Hill , CAFE , H.R. 2927 , H.R. 6 , Lee Terry , National Automative Dealers Association

July 24, 2007

Congressional Manufacturing Caucus

What you got, you got a world with increasing number of people, and yet almost a stagnant supply of energy source. That can’t stand, gasoline now is over 3 dollars a gallon. We just had a hearing in international relations, one of the guys said, “Hey, you just tax gasoline high enough and people won’t drive.” I said, “Excuse me, to the people living in Woodbine and all those tiny towns in the Midwest; those people are driving to go to work.

Soundbite: Congressman Don Manzullo on the world's limited energy supply.

Full Program: Congressmen Manzullo and Ryan speak to America's Business

Rep. Don Manzullo (R-IL) is co-chairman of the Congressional Manufacturing Caucus, sharing the leadership duties with Rep. Tim Ryan (D-OH). In a recent segment on “America’s Business with Mike Hambrick,” they both stressed the essential role that an adequate energy supply plays in keeping the manufacturing economy strong. Representative Manzullo also dismisses the simplistic proposals some have for achieving “energy security,” such as a heavy tax on gasoline.

Posted by Mike Hambrick at 3:48 PM | Click here to comment | Send to a Friend
Tagged: Congressional Manufacturing Caucus , Donald Manzullo , energy , energy security , gasoline , limited energy supply , tax , Tim Ryan

July 23, 2007

Lee Terry (R-NE)

This is all about securing America and part of securing ourselves is taking significant steps towards energy independence; so that we don’t have to rely on Middle Eastern, Russian, Venezuela energy to push our economy and our way of life. Certainly, if we’re going to take steps towards independence we need to become more fuel efficient. So this bill pushes the automobile industry to increase the fuel efficiency of their products without breaking the industry.

Soundbite: Congressman Terry on why CAFE is important

Full Program: Congressmen Hill and Terry speak to America's Business

Representative Lee Terry (R-NE) has joined with Representative Barron Hill (D-IN) to craft a proposal to increase vehicle fuel efficiency standards (CAFE), while keeping costs under control, respecting consumer preferences, and recognizing the auto industry’s capabilities. The bill, H.R. 2927, has been steadily adding cosponsors as many House members recognize that the Senate’s CAFE proposal would cripple U.S. automakers.

Posted by Mike Hambrick at 2:46 PM | Click here to comment | Send to a Friend
Tagged: automobile industry , Baron Hill , CAFE , economy , energy , fuel efficiency , H.R. 2927 , Lee Terry , vehicle fuel efficiency

July 20, 2007

Old, New Energy Growth in North Dakota

Our broad focus is building the best possible business climate. We’ve targeted a number of industry sectors, and one of those is energy. In North Dakota we have a broad range of energy sources. Both traditional sources of energy, as well as the renewables. So we’re working to develop all of them and develop them in partnership. And also create jobs and opportunity in our state.

Soundbite: Gov. John Hoeven (North Dakota)

Full Program: Gov. John Hoeven Speaks with America's Business

North Dakota’s economy is going strong, and one reason is energy – oil prices are up, coal production is generating jobs and electricity, and wind and ethanol are expanding their roles. Governor John Hoeven has pushed for energy development and diversification as an economic development strategy, and he tells how it’s going.

Posted by Mike Hambrick at 7:38 AM | Click here to comment | Send to a Friend
Tagged: coal , electricity , energy , energy development , industry , John Hoeven , North Dakota , oil

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