WASHINGTON – U.S. Rep. Candice Miller (R-MI), along with her colleagues Dennis Kucinich (D-OH), Steven LaTourette (R-OH), and Tim Ryan (D-OH) have  introduced a resolution in the House of Representatives expressing the need for a national manufacturing policy.  The goal of the measure is to stop the disinvestment in American manufacturing, keep jobs in America, and ensure a strong production base for national defense. 

 “Industrial manufacturing is what created a middle class in this great country, and we cannot continue to stand idly by while factories close, devastating our communities, and reopen in third world countries where they can pay next-to-nothing in wages,” said Miller.  “Additionally, a strong manufacturing base is crucial to our national security.” 

 House Resolution 444 expresses the sense of the Congress that the United States “needs an industrial policy with regard to automobile, aerospace, shipping, and steel industries, which are vital to national and economic security.”  It also states that manufacturing is responsible for 12% of the U.S. Gross Domestic Product and provides over 20 million well-paying jobs. 

Three million American manufacturing jobs were lost between 1995 and 2005, as companies close shop in the United States and, in many cases, relocate to undemocratic or third world countries in which people will work for very little. 

The resolution has been referred to the House Committee on Energy and Commerce.