In April, President Donald Trump made good on a campaign promise and ordered the Commerce Department to conduct a “Section 232” review of steel imports. A provision of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962, Section 232 authorizes the government to take action to limit imports of products if they threaten national security. If domestic suppliers of a product—in this case, steel—are forced to close because they can’t compete with cheap imports, it could adversely affect the ability of the military to produce tanks, warships and the like.
Such reviews are uncommon. Since 1980, the Commerce Department has conducted just 14 Section 232 investigations. In 1988, for example, a Section 232 review of imports of antifriction bearings ultimately led to the implementation of “Buy American” restrictions on high-precision bearings for jet engines and guidance systems.