As I read dire forecasts about shortages caused by “supply chain” problems, I thought about how Donald Trump would have responded. Here are a few actions Trump would have taken by executive order:
1. Eliminate the requirement that although 18-year-old drivers can do intrastate transports, they cannot cross state lines.
2. Appoint a supply chain czar. (Unlike our current transportation secretary with no ideas how to react.)
3. Examine longshore and Teamster work issues that impede movement. Warn both that Taft-Hartley Act will be imposed if corrections not made IMMEDIATELY.
4. Cancel the requirement that truckers must return an empty container before getting a new one.
5. Use executive order to suspend the Jones Act, which mandates ships operating between U.S. ports be U.S. Built, U.S. crewed and U.S. flagged. It’s expensive and forces excessive reliance on moving goods internally by train and truck.
6. Retain a consulting group or university team to analyze port operations to eliminate bottlenecks and improve flow.
Once again, a businessman can develop solutions that bureaucracies cannot.
Albert Bigelow
Valencia
