Gerard said: "I told them, `I want you to see the human face of your inaction. I want you to see a 50-year-old guy who two weeks ago was able to feed his family and two weeks from now won't be able to.'"
His lobbying efforts paid off, with a boost from two Republican lobbyists hired by the industry, Ed Gillespie and Vin Weber. They reminded the administration that there are more than 300,000 steel industry retirees concentrated in the Midwest as well as in Florida.
Many free-trade advocates accused President Bush of kowtowing to the union to improve his re-election chances in 2004. But Evans said the administration was merely seeking to protect American workers and ensure fair trade.
Jon Jenson, chairman of the Consumer Industry Trade Action Coalition, which fights trade barriers, gave grudging praise to Gerard. "Apparently he's been effective so far," he said. "It's really an effort, though, to restrict supply and inflate steel prices. That will hurt steel users, American consumers and ultimately the American economy."
Gerard said he was delighted by Bush's decision to investigate steel imports. Bush could decide to impose tariffs on steel imports if the investigation finds that a surge in imports seriously hurt the industry, even if no unfair pricing is found.
Gerard warned, however, that the administration would be unwise to assume that steelworkers would suddenly embrace Bush.
"On steel I'm cautiously optimistic, and the proof will be in the pudding," Gerard said. "On everything else, as Jim Jeffords said, the Bush agenda is extreme and radical. I'm offended by a lot of the stuff, like the tax cut. It's an obscene gift to the rich and powerful that risks undermining the government's ability to serve all Americans, especially the neediest ones, in the long run."
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