Chairman@MadeUSAFdn.org.

Cadillac and Lincoln, America’s top luxury automobiles for the past one hundred years, are failing because many of their vehicles are being imported, mostly from Mexico. The Made in the USA Foundation conducted a survey with Harris Interactive recently, and discovered in an overwhelming percentage, Americans would prefer to buy, and will pay more for, American-made products, particularly luxury goods.

It is astounding that Mercedes Benz and BMW, non-American companies, manufacture more vehicles in the United States than either Lincoln or Cadillac.  And neither BMW nor Mercedes manufactures cars in Mexico for the American market.

You may have thought that Cadillac and Lincoln are suffering because of poor quality.  This is definitely false for Cadillac:  According to J.D. Power & Associates, Cadillac ranks higher in quality that BMW or Mercedes for 2012. The American-made Cadillac Navigator ranked highest of all of its cars and trucks.  The U.S.-made Cadillac ATS was selected as Motor Trend’s Car of the Year for 2013.  So there’s definitely no questioning whether or not Cadillac can make state-of-the-art high quality cars in the United States.

The Made in the USA Foundation nominated the Cadillac ATS and the Lincoln MKS for this year’s Hall of Fame Awards for luxury vehicles.  The Tesla S was also nominated in this category.

Lincoln recognizes that it has a quality problem with its Mexican-made Lincoln MKZ.  After assembly in Mexico, the Lincoln MKZ is shipped to Michigan for a final quality inspection.

Lincoln’s 2012 total U.S. sales were a meager 82,150 cars and trucks, a decline of 4%, compared to BMW, which led U.S. luxury car sales with 281,460 units sold, up 13.5 percent from the previous year.

Lincoln sales peaked in 1990 at over 200,000 vehicles.  Its sales are now only 40% of what they were 20 years ago, while U.S. car sales are booming.

The Lincoln MKZ is made in Mexico, the Lincoln MKT is made in Canada.

The Lincoln MKS and the Navigator are made in the USA. This can all be very confusing to consumers.  Consumers think that Lincoln and Cadillac are American cars, but 74% of Lincoln’s sales were imports!

For the year 2012, Cadillac sold 149,782 new luxury vehicles in the U.S.  This accounts for a decline in sales from the year before of 1.7%.  Cadillac was one of just five brands sold in the US to show a decline in annual sales from 2011 to 2012, joining Lincoln, Jaguar, Suzuki and Mitsubishi.  The Cadillac SRX is made in Mexico and represents 38% of Cadillac’s U.S. sales.

General Motors, while still being majority owned by the U.S. government, had the audacity, and stupidity, to move production of the Cadillac SRX from Michigan to Mexico.

Making It In the USA

BMW manufactured 301,519 vehicles at its Spartanburg, South Carolina plant in 2012.  Seventy percent of the vehicles produced there were exported; making BMW the USA’s largest automotive exporter, and BMW isn’t even an American company!  More than two million BMWs have been made in Spartanburg.  Thirty percent of the vehicles that BMW assembled in South Carolina, or 90,000 vehicles, were sold in the United States. More than 200,000 vehicles were exported.  Remarkably, BMW built more vehicles in the United States than it sold here.

Mercedes reported sales of 274,134 cars and trucks in the United States in 2012, a 12 percent improvement from 2011.  Mercedes manufactured 182,000 vehicles in Alabama, selling 74,000 in the United States while exporting 108,000 units.

In total, 25% of Mercedes sold in U.S. are made or assembled in the U.S.

The message for Cadillac and Lincoln:  follow BMW and Mercedes’ example and build more cars in the United States.  If Mercedes and BMW can do it, why can’t American car manufacturers build luxury cars and trucks here? Cadillac’s quality is rising on its U.S. vehicles and should keep on that path.  Lincoln knows that it has quality problems in Mexico and should come back home to the United States where it has enjoyed a reputation for great quality for over 90 years.  Lincoln’s new ad campaign does nothing to solve its fundamental problems.  Lincoln should start making the cars in the United States that made it famous: the Lincoln Town Car and the Lincoln Continental as well as moving production of its midsized MKZ to Michigan.

Made in the USA Reports

A Publication of the Made in the USA Foundation

Vol. 25 No. 4 © Made in the USA Foundation April, 2013

2013 Hall of Fame Nominees Announced

The Made in the USA Foundation announced 71 nominees for 22 Made in the USA Hall of Fame Awards.  The nominees come from 17 states, with California, the nation’s largest state, home to 21 of the companies.  Michigan came in second place with eight nominees, New York third with six and Kentucky in fourth place with five nominations.  Kentucky, home to Bourbon made the top of the list because we have a bourbon category this year.  Bourbon is truly America’s whiskey.  Massachusetts is home to four nominees, Crane Stationery, one the oldest companies in the United States, Aeronautic Windpower, Cybex (a fitness equipment manufacturer), and Sylvania.  Arkansas is home to three nominees: Walmart was nominated for the retailer category because it has committed to increasing orders from U.S. factories by $50 billion over ten years; Alliance Rubber Bands, nominated in the Office Products category and Thumprints an Arkansas lighting manufacturer. Illinois, Tennessee, Florida and Ohio are home to three nominees each.   The Foundation, with Made Movement, will host the Made in the USA Hall of Fame Awards Dinner on July 2nd (Made in the USA Day) at Shutters on the Beach Hotel, in Santa Monica, California.  The event is the Academy Awards for American Manufacturing.  Manufacturers donate many of their products for a Silent Auction during the event.  Tickets for the dinner are $195 each, or $1,500 for a table of eight.  Call the Foundation to reserve your tickets at 310- MADE-USA.   The nominees are:   Sparkling Wine

Time Magazine:  Made in USA is Making a Comeback

Although we have known about the comeback of American manufacturing, it is nice to hear that Time magazine has come to the same conclusion. Time magazine, dated April 22, 2013, reports: “Climbing out of the recession, the U.S. has seen its manufacturing growth outpace that of other advanced nations, with some 500,000 jobs created in the past three years. It marks the first time in more than a decade that the number of factory jobs has gone up instead of down.”  Time cited Walmart and Apple as two companies who are moving production back to the United States.  As noted in last month’s newsletter, the Made in the USA Foundation has worked for many years on these two companies, and many others, to get production to move back to the United States.

A Publication of the Made in the USA Foundation

Vol. 25 No. 1 © Made in the USA Foundation January, 2013
Foundation Makes a Splash at Davos
World Economic Forum

The Made in the USA Foundation made its first appearance at the World Economic Forum in Davos Switzerland. Joel Joseph, Chairman of the Foundation, presented his views on reformation of the World Trade Organization. A copy of his statement is reproduced in this newsletter.

Mr. Joseph met with economic leaders around the world and found a consensus for improving the WTO, including developing a permanent World Trade Court with much more openness than it has currently, better procedures ensuring fairness and a Free Trade Bill of Rights or Constitution setting ground rules for international trade.

Joseph met with scores of CEOs and non-profit leaders, including the Walmart CEO, the Yahoo CEO, JP Morgan Chase CEO, Bank of America CEO and the CEO of Habitat for Humanity.

NEW POLL SHOWS 75% OF AMERICANS WILL PAY MORE FOR AMERICAN-MADE PRODUCTS

The Made in the USA Foundation released the results of a new poll conducted online by Harris Interactive on its behalf. Seventy-five percent of American consumers said that they would pay more for American-made products of the same or better quality than imports. The poll was conducted December 27-31, 2012 with 2,135 consumers participating.

In addition, 23% were willing to pay ten percent more for American-made products than comparable imports. Fourteen percent were willing to pay 20% more, five percent were willing to pay 30% more and 2% were willing to pay 40% more for comparable products. Eleven percent were willing to pay a whopping 50% or more for U.S.-made goods.

The poll was tabulated regionally, by sex, age, income and educational status. Support for buying American-made products was higher in the Midwest and South. Seventy-six percent of those living in the South would pay more for American products, 75% in the Midwest, 74% in the West and 71% in the Northeast.

Males in the 18-34 year age bracket were the group that preferred American-made goods by the largest margin–80%. Females from ages 35-44 showed high support for buying American-made products—79%. These are surprising results, as often senior citizens are thought to be the biggest advocates of buying American-made products. The reason for this may be that the Great Recession of the last several years has made younger Americans very aware of the connection between buying American products and jobs. This bodes well for the future as younger consumers will help boost the economy for many years to come.

American consumers have a strong belief that American-made products are of better quality than imports. Eighty-three percent of American consumers believe that U.S.-made goods are better in quality than Mexican products, 82% believed U.S. products surpassed Indian products in quality and 78% agreed that U.S. products were better in quality that those from China. By a lesser margin American consumers believed that U.S. products were superior to those from Germany (55%) and Japan (53%).
Survey Methodology

This survey was conducted online within the United States by Harris Interactive on behalf of Made in the USA Foundation from December 27-31, 2012 among 2,135 adults ages 18 and older. This online survey is not based on a probability sample and therefore no estimate of theoretical sampling error can be calculated.
About Harris

Harris Interactive is one of the world’s leading market research firms, leveraging research, technology, and business acumen to transform relevant insight into actionable foresight. Known widely for the Harris Poll® and for pioneering innovative research methodologies, Harris offers proprietary solutions in the areas of market and customer insight, corporate brand and reputation strategy, and marketing, advertising, public relations and communications research. Harris possesses expertise in a wide range of industries including health care, technology, public affairs, energy, telecommunications, financial services, insurance, media, retail, restaurant, and consumer package goods. Additionally, Harris has a portfolio of multi-client offerings that complement our custom solutions while maximizing our client’s research investment. Serving clients in more than 196 countries and territories through our North American and European offices, Harris specializes in delivering research solutions that help us – and our clients—stay ahead of what’s next.

How We Can Reform the WTO to Create a Fair Judicial System for the Settlement of International Trade Disputes
by Joel D. Joseph, Chairman, Made in the USA Foundation

Presented at the World Economic Forum

Davos, Switzerland

January, 2013

The World Trade Organization is seen by Americans as an anti-United States, biased organization that desperately needs to be reformed. Popular sentiment in the United States is strongly against recent rulings by the WTO.
The United States passed three laws in recent years that the WTO has ruled violates the rules of free trade. One is the Country of Origin Labeling Act (COOL) that requires all grocery stores in the United States to label the country of origin of fresh vegetables, fruit, chicken, beef, pork and seafood. The purpose of the law (and in the interests of full disclosure, I worked on writing the law and lobbied for seven years for its passage) was to inform consumers where products came from so that they could make informed decisions. If there were contaminated raspberries in Guatemala, consumers could avoid them. If mad cow disease was found in Canadian cows, consumers could avoid Canadian beef.
Another American law that ran afoul of the WTO was the Dolphin Safe Tuna Act. This law was passed to allow tuna fisherman to use a “Dolphin-Safe” label on its cans of tuna fish so that consumers could, if they so desired, purchase tuna fished in a more humane manner. Nothing in this law was designed to harm fisherman from other countries. The labeling by fisherman was voluntary, but those using the Dolphin-Safe label had to meet strict standards.
The third U.S. law to be questioned by the WTO was a law outlawing flavored cigarettes. The purpose of this law was to prevent children from getting hooked on cinnamon, bubblegum or lemon flavored cigarettes. Indonesia challenged this law because the law prevented clove cigarettes being sold in the United States.
More than a decade ago Bruce Stokes and Pat Choate warned that the WTO needed to be more democratic:
The lack of public accessibility, transparency, and due process
in the functioning of the WTO is the source of mounting public
criticism of that organization, its decisions, and, most important,
the trade that it regulates. The WTO’s failure to follow
transparency principles tarnishes its credibility, diminishes the legitimacy of its decisions, and threatens its political acceptance.Ultimately, the closed nature of the institution threatens public support for the global trade expansion that the United States seeks. Council on Foreign Relations, Stokes and Choate, “Democratizing U.S. Trade Policy,” November, 2001.

The Made in the USA Foundation is a non-governmental, non-profit organization of U.S. manufacturers and consumers that seeks to promote worldwide American-made products. The Foundation’s position is that a World Trade referee for trade disputes is needed, but that the current structure of the World Trade Organization has five critical flaws:
The WTO does not have a Permanent Judiciary;
The WTO does not have Conflict of Interest or Ethical Rules;
WTO Panels Operate in Secrecy;
WTO Panels Do Not Allow for Participation by Corporations and Non-Profit Organizations; and
The WTO does not have a “Bill of Rights” or Constitution guiding the Rule of Law.
Creating a Permanent WTO Judiciary
The most pressing matter is that the WTO should develop a permanent court to decide disputes with judges who have tenure, not ad hoc appointees for one case. The creation of a permanent court system will give the WTO more credibility and respect. We cannot expect judges appointed for one case to be experienced, fair and impartial.
Susan Esserman, former general counsel to the U.S. Trade Representative and Robert Howse, law professor at the University of Michigan wrote that the WTO should create a permanent judiciary:
The manner in which the WTO’s panelists are chosen also needs to change. At present, selection is ad hoc and often not based on expertise in trade law. As long as that remains the norm, the Appellate Body will continue to revise extensively the rulings of the lower panels, all but ensuring that the Appellate Body continues to be accused of inappropriate activism. The WTO therefore should create a professional corps of judicial panelists, as the European Commission has proposed. Using full-time panelists who are experts in the law and properly compensated would enhance the quality of their decisions and reduce the tendency of the Appellate Body to substantially revise them. Reliance on a professional corps of panelists also might help prevent rulings that disregard international law and WTO precedent. “The WTO on Trial,” Foreign Affairs Magazine, January/February 2003, Vol. 82, Num. 1.
The highest appellate body, the WTO Supreme Court, should have nine members, like the U.S. Supreme Court. It should include two Americans, two representatives from the European Union, one from Japan, one from China and one from Russia, one from India and one from Brazil.
These judges should be appointed by their respective nations (or the European Union) and serve for a long term. I suggest a ten-year term. The judges should then be confirmed by a majority of the nations in the WTO. This will give the judiciary independence.
The WTO Supreme Court can then create lower courts to hear trade disputes. Lower court judges should be appointed by the Supreme Court.

The WTO does not have Conflict of Interest or Ethical Rules

WTO court appointees should not be allowed to be partisans who have represented one county involved in the trade dispute before the court.
I disclosed my interest in one WTO case. I helped draft and lobbied for the U.S. Country of Origin Labeling Act. This law, known as COOL, was passed by the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate, was signed into law by President George W. Bush. COOL requires that fresh produce, chicken, beef, pork and seafood be labeled with its country of origin. The purpose of the law was to allow consumers to choose the source of their food products, and be able to avoid products from a particular country. If, for example, Canada had a mad cow disease problem, consumers could avoid eating beef from Canada.
Mexico and Canada filed complaints with the WTO challenging the Country of Origin Labeling Act. They claimed that COOL created a non-tariff trade barrier. The WTO panel rule against the United States finding that COOL was a non-tariff trade barrier.
The fact that the WTO appellate panel that ruled against the United States in the Country of Origin Labeling Act case included an attorney from Mexico, when the complaint in the case was filed by Mexico, screams out “conflict of interest.” This obvious conflict of interest weakens respect for the World Trade Organization.
The WTO judiciary should not allow judges with conflicts of interest to hear a proceeding. Further, if judges have ethical conflicts because of investments or familial relationships, they should not hear a case because it would undermine the public’s respect for the institution.
The WTO should also have a system for parties to raise conflict of interest and ethical matters to disqualify a judge.

WTO Courts Should Be Open to the Public

President John F. Kennedy said, “The very word ‘secrecy’ is repugnant in a free and open society; and we are as a people inherently and historically opposed to secret societies, to secret oaths, and to secret proceedings.” “The President and the Press: Address before the American Newspaper Publishers Association,” given at the Waldorf-Astoria Hotel in New York City, April 27, 1961.
WTO proceedings are now secret. This is repugnant to those living in free and open societies. No members of the press or outside parties are allowed to watch or listen to court proceedings. WTO proceedings should not be secret, they should be open to the public as they are in most advanced democracies.
Nearly all court proceedings in democratic nations, and some non-democratic nations, are conducted in public. Article 31 of the Statutes of the European Court of Justice provides, “The hearing in court shall be public, unless the Court of Justice, of its own motion or on application by the parties, decides otherwise for serious reasons.”
In the United States the Supreme Court has ruled that almost all court proceedings are open to the public. Gannett Co. v. DePasquale, 443 U.S. 368 (1979).
Article 125 of China’s Constitution provides: “All cases handled by the people’s courts, except for those involving special circumstances as specified by law, shall be heard in public.” While China may not live up to this constitutional provision, it nonetheless demonstrates that China’s leaders realize that a public hearing is an essential civil and criminal right.
Susan Esserman, former general counsel to the U.S. Trade Representative and Robert Howse, law professor at the University of Michigan wrote that the WTO should scrap its secrecy:
The WTO’s arbitral system also needs to improve its transparency and due process. The rulings of WTO judges affect the public interest in the broadest sense, as is especially evident in cases related to health and the environment. Yet the WTO’s hearings and submissions remain secret, an unacceptable vestige of the old days of cloak-and-dagger diplomacy. Conducting hearings and appeals in secret undermines the legitimacy of the WTO and gives rise to unwarranted suspicions. Moreover, such secrecy is unnecessary; there is no good reason why WTO hearings should not be open to the public. Public input would also be enhanced by reaffirming the Appellate Body’s decision to permit amicus curiae submissions. “The WTO on Trial,”
Foreign Affairs Magazine, January/February 2003, Vol. 82, Num. 1.

Why are the courts of nearly all nations open to the public and the press while the World Trade Organization’s judicial proceedings are conducted in private? The WTO’s secrecy clearly must change if the WTO proceedings are to be given respect by the citizens and nations of the world.

WTO Panels Do Not Allow for Participation by Corporations
and Non-Profit Organizations

In the European Court of Justice, non-governmental organizations can intervene in cases before the court. Similarly, in all states of the United States, there is a provision for intervention by non-parties.
Article 40 of the Statute establishing the European Court of Justice provides:
“Member States and institutions of the Union may intervene in cases before the Court of Justice.”
In the United States in Federal Courts, intervention is freely allowed. Rule 24 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure provides:

INTERVENTION
Intervention of Right. On timely motion, the court must permit anyone to intervene who:

is given an unconditional right to intervene by a federal statute; or

(2) claims an interest relating to the property or transaction that is the subject of the action, and is so situated that disposing of the action may as a practical matter impair or impede the movant’s ability to protect its interest, unless existing parties adequately represent that interest. (Emphasis added).

Interested companies and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) should be allowed to participate in WTO proceedings as intervenors or as amicus curiae. For example, organizations of cattlemen should be allowed to intervene in cases involving beef; manufacturers of cigarettes should be allowed in intervene in cases involving cigarettes; and similarly, growers of corn should be allowed to intervene in cases involving corn products.
The WTO does not have a “Bill of Rights” or Constitution
Guiding the Rule of Law

The WTO needs a “constitution” or a bill of rights to establish the ground rules for disputes between nations. For discussion purposes, I have taken the liberty of creating a rough draft for such a bill of rights:
Free Trade Bill of Rights

General Rules

1. The Country of origin shall be permanently marked on all products.
2. The manufacturer’s name and address shall be prominently marked on all products.
3. All manufactured products must be designed to be recycled.
4. All manufactured products shall have at least a one-year warranty.
5.  Children’s products, such as toys, must be lead free, non-toxic
and safe for children.
Food Safety and Health

6. The country of origin of all ingredients must be disclosed on the package.
7. Genetically-modified ingredients must be disclosed on food products.
8. Seafood must disclose if it was farmed.
9. Pesticide, hormone and chemical additives must be disclosed on the package.
10. Uniform standards for organic products shall be developed.
11. Artificial food coloring, because it does not provide nutritional value and is likely to be harmful, is prohibited.
Labor Standards

12.  No product made by children under the age of 14 can be exported.
13. No product made by prison or slave labor can be exported.
14. No product can be exported if workers are paid less than the Global Minimum Wage.

Environmental Standards

15. The WTO shall establish World Environmental Standards for steel mills, power plants, refineries and other types of factories.
16. Nations shall be allowed to establish and enforce countervailing tariffs to be imposed for environmental harm caused during the manufacture of products that violate World Environmental Standards.

If we are going to have free trade, and a referee to regulate it, we must have a structure designed to provide fair results.
The free market only works if all countries play by the same rules. We don’t have to have the same minimum wage in all nations, but we must establish a floor so that trade with poor nations can raise their standard of living.
If one country allows pollution and another does not, production will shift to the nation with the weakest environmental rules. This does not help the planet or clean the air. For these reasons, we need minimum global rules that will protect the world’s water and air.
The Free Trade Bill of Rights will establish minimum standards for the world that will promote health of the world, encourage children to be educated and increase the wealth of all citizens.

“What is the Harris Poll?”, you might ask yourself. As well you should, considering it is the name of this blog and is obviously important or I wouldn’t have named the blog after it.

You see, we here at the Made in the USA Foundation hired Harris Interactive to do some research for us. The company is considered one of the best market research companies, considering that Louis Harris was the pollster for John F. Kennedy, and they’re known for their Harris Poll. So we asked them to conduct two surveys for us: one to find out whether or not Americans think that American-made goods are top-notch quality, and another to find out how willing Americans would be to pay more for American-made products as opposed to foreign goods. So they presented us with the following results in the form of these polls (get it, Harris Poll?) after asking 2,135 American consumers what they think.

Belief in Quality of American-Made Products:

Mexico: 83%

India: 82%

China: 78%

Germany: 55%

Japan: 53%

Willingness to Pay More for American-Made Products:

1-9%: 75%

10%: 55%

20%: 32%

30%: 18%

40%: 13%

Over 50%: 11%

Now, these charts may be a little confusing but what the first one indicates is that 83% of Americans believe American goods are better than Mexican and so forth. The second chart, perhaps a little more confusing, means that 75% of Americans would be willing to pay 1-9% more for goods that are made in America as opposed to someplace else, and so forth once again.

This is both surprising and wonderful news. It may not be surprising that the majority of Americans think we make better products than Mexico or India. But Germany? Japan? That’s incredible. Japan makes some of the best and most reliable cars in the world. And while it may be the lowest percentage on the chart, it’s still more than half. More than half would rather drive an American car. We are truly moving in the right direction, especially considering that American car sales have been going up rapidly in the past three years.

While it’s obvious that less people wouldn’t want to pay a significant amount more for a product than they’re used to, but the fact that 75% of Americans are willing to pay a little bit more is amazing. I mean, who is ever willing to pay more for anything if they can find it cheaper, even if it’s not a lot more? Are you? Of course you’re not. But in all seriousness, this shows that Americans are seemingly interested in buying American and proves that people believe that American products truly are equal to or superior in quality to foreign products, and they don’t seem to care if they have to pay more, which is great news for American manufacturers and yet another step in the right direction.

- Julian S. Liguori

A Publication of the Made in the USA Foundation

Vol. 24 No. 12 © Made in the USA Foundation December, 2012

The Foundation Welcomes New Members

The Made in the USA Foundation is growing rapidly. During the past month Steinway & Sons, pianomakers, Toymakers Little Tikes and K’NEX, Peterboro Basket Company and Tough Traveler joined as members.  Steinway, based in New York was founded in 1853. Steinway is the highest-regarded piano manufacturer in the world.

K’NEX, winner of our Hall of Fame Award, just hosted President Obama at its headquarters in Hatfield, Pennsylvania. Peterboro, also a Hall of Fame member, has been making baskets in Peterborough, New Hampshire since 1854. Tough Traveler, Schenectady, NY, manufactures backpacks, baby carriers and many other travel accessories.  All of these companies produce excellent holiday gifts.  We are proud to welcome them all as members of the Made in the USA Foundation.

Enlarge image
President Obama looks over a roller coaster with K’Nex inventor and Chairman Joel Glickman (left) and President and CEO Michael Araten on Friday during a tour of the company in Hatfield, Pa.

Apple Redux

Apple CEO Tim Cook announced earlier this month that his company is going to build computers in factories in the United States once again.  I am writing this article on an Apple that was assembled in the U.S.  Apple has been quietly making MacPros and iMacs in California for the past two years.
The Foundation has been pushing Apple to start making some of its computers and cellphones in the USA for many years. Long before the New York Times exposed Apple’s horrible work conditions in China, the Foundation was among the first to publicize Apple’s virtual slave-labor camps.
As Apple faced increased scrutiny for hiring foreign firms to manufacture its products in China, CEO Tim Cook says that the U.S.-based company is looking to bring more jobs back home.
“We could have quickly maybe done just assembly, but it’s broader because we wanted to do something more substantial,” Cook said. “So we’ll literally invest over $100  million” to startup U.S. production.
“[W]e have a responsibility to create jobs,” Cook added.
Investigators were hired by Apple earlier this year to inspect conditions at three China-based Foxconn plants.  This investigation found a number of “serious and pressing” abuses of Chinese labor laws. Apple ordered the audits after many worker suicides at Foxconn’s Shenzhen plant, an explosion at a plant in Chengdu, and reports about unsafe working conditions and improper labor practices.
Many workers live at the factory, where they pay $17.50 per month to live seven to a room in dormitories. The average starting salary is $285 per month, and workers pay for their food. Workers get two meal breaks during each 12-hour shift. They eat in a cafeteria where they pay $0.70 a meal, a quarter of their hourly wage. There have been 18 worker suicides at Foxconn since 2010.
Apple I, II and the Original Macintosh were Made in USA

It wasn’t always this way. Apple made its first computers in Northern California.  Steve Wozniak and a friend put together the Apple I computer in Job’s garage in 1976.  They made 200 of them—all made in the U.S.A.  The Apple II was introduced in 1977.

Apple sold 4.86 million Apple II computers from 1977 to 1984, all made in the United States.  Then Apple introduced the MacIntosh, still one of the top-selling computers in the world.  Apple sold 13.7 million Macs in 2010.

According to the New York Times, Apple’s plant in Fremont, Calif., was producing 1,500 MacIntosh computers a day in 1984. Apple made about 1 million Macs in 1985 at its Fremont plant.  According to the Los Angeles Times, Apple closed its Fremont plant in 1992.

Profit Margins

Forbes reports that Apple has one of the highest profit margins of any corporation, 41.4%.  The primary reason for this is outsourcing to China where workers are paid subsistence wages. Apple amassed a cash hoard of $76 billion, more than the U.S. Treasury had on hand in July of last year, according to Fortune magazine.

Finally, Apple is coming back home.  I want to be one of the first to congratulate Tim Cook and Apple for seeing the light and doing the right thing.  On news of the announcement Apple stock rose more than one percent.  I think that Apple will benefit financially by creating more jobs in the United States and more loyal followers here.  Apple’s profit margins may decline slightly, but its overall profitability is sure to increase.

Iowa CST

Riddle’s Jewelry
North Grand Mall
2801 Grand Ave, Ste 40
Ames, IA 50010

Phone Number: 515.233.3414
Fax Number: 515.233.3436

Store Hours:

Mon – Sat: 10 am – 9 pm
Sun: 12 am – 5 pm

Riddle’s Jewelry
College Square Mall
6301 University Avenue
Cedar Falls, IA 50613

Phone Number: (319) 277-2250

Store Hours:

Mon – Fri: 10 am – 9 pm
Sat: 10 am – 7 pm
Sun: 12 pm – 6 pm

Riddle’s Jewelry
Northpark Mall
320 W Kimberly Rd, Ste 44A
Davenport, IA 52806

Phone Number: 563.445.0558
Fax Number: 563.445.1258

Store Hours:

Mon – Sat: 10 am – 9 pm
Sun: 12 pm – 6 pm

Riddle’s Jewelry
Crossroads Mall
217 S. 25th Street – #DO3
Fort Dodge, IA 50501

Phone Number: 515.955.3321

Store Hours:

Mon – Fri: 10am – 9pm
Sat: 10 am – 8pm
Sun: 12 pm – 6pm

Riddle’s Jewelry
Marshall Town Ctr
2500 S Center St, Ste 149
Marshalltown, IA 50158

Phone Number: 641.754.9788
Fax Number: 641.754.9790

Store Hours:

Mon – Fri: 10 am – 9 pm
Sat: 10 am – 8 pm
Sun: 12 pm – 5 pm

Riddle’s Jewelry
Southbridge Mall
100 S Federal Ave, Ste 305-306
Mason City, IA 50401

Phone Number: 641.423.7833
Fax Number: 641.423.7852

Store Hours:

Mon – Fri: 10 am – 9 pm
Sat: 10 am – 7 pm
Sun: 12 pm – 6 pm

Riddle’s Jewelry
Southern Hills Mall
4400 Sergeant Rd, Ste 126
Sioux City, IA 51106

Phone Number: 712.276.1382
Fax Number: 712.276.2055

Store Hours:

Mon – Sat: 10 am – 9 pm
Sun: 12 pm – 6 pm

Riddle’s Jewelry
Crossroads Center
2060 Crossroads Ctr, Ste 244
Waterloo, IA 50702

Phone Number: 319.233.7641
Fax Number: 319.233.7801

Store Hours:

Mon – Sat: 10 am – 9 pm
Sun: 12 pm – 6 pm

Riddle’s Jewelry
Westland Mall
550 S Gear Ave, Ste 58
West Burlington, IA 52655

Phone Number: 319.752.5174
Fax Number: 319.752.5175

Store Hours:

Mon – Fri: 10 am – 9 pm
Sat: 10 am – 8 pm
Sun: 12 pm – 6 pm

Kansas (CST)

Riddle’s Jewelry
Garden City Plaza
2214 E Kansas Ave, Ste 4
Garden City, KS 67846

Phone Number: 620.275.6767
Fax Number: 620.275.6611

Store Hours:

Mon – Fri: 10 am – 9 pm
Sat: 10 am – 7 pm
Sun: 12 pm – 6 pm

Riddle’s Jewelry
The Mall at Hays
2918 Vine St, Ste 230
Hays, KS 67601

Phone Number: 785.623.4066
Fax Number: 785.625.4554

Store Hours:

Mon – Sat: 10 am – 9 pm
Sun: 12 pm – 6 pm

Riddle’s Jewelry
Hutchinson Mall
1500 E 11th
Hutchinson, KS 67501

Phone Number: 620.728.1800
Fax Number: 620.728.1801

Store Hours:

Mon – Sat: 10 am – 9 pm
Sun: 12 pm – 6 pm

Riddle’s Jewelry
Manhattan Town Ctr
100 Manhattan Town Ctr, Ste 105
Manhattan, KS 66502

Phone Number: 785.537.1170
Fax Number: 785.537.7143

Store Hours:

Mon – Sat: 10am – 9pm
Sun: Noon to 6pm

Riddle’s Jewelry
Central Mall
2259 S 9th St, Ste 34
Salina, KS 67401

Phone Number: 785.823.0900
Fax Number: 785.823.0964

Store Hours:

Mon – Sat: 10 am – 9 pm
Sun: 12 pm – 6 pm

Riddle’s Jewelry
West Ridge Mall
1801 SW Wanamaker Road, Space D15
Topeka, KS 66604

Riddle’s Jewelry
Village Square Mall
2601 Central, Store 8
Dodge City, KS 67801

Riddle’s Jewelry
Flint HIlls Mall
670 A Industrial Road,
Emporia, KS 66801

Phone Number: 620.341-9006

Riddle’s Jewelry
Paul Bunyan Mall
1401 Paul Bunyan Dr, NW, Ste 96
Bemidji, MN 56601

Phone Number: 218.751.2828
Fax Number: 218.751.2111

Store Hours:

Mon -Fri: 10 am – 9 pm
Sat: 10 am – 7pm
Sun: 12 pm to 6 pm

Riddle’s Jewelry
Westgate Mall
14136 Baxter Dr, Ste 114
Baxter, MN 56425

Phone Number: 218.828.1254
Fax Number: 218.828.4712

Store Hours:

Mon – Fri: 10 am – 9 pm
Sat: 10 am – 6 pm
Sun: 12 pm – 5 pm

Riddle’s Jewelry
Crossroads Center
4101 W Division St.
St. Cloud, MN 56301

Phone Number: 320.252.5516

Store Hours:

Mon – Sat: 10 am – 9 pm
Sun: 11 am – 6 pm

Riddle’s Jewelry
Kandi Mall
1605 S. First St.
Willmar, MN 56201

Phone Number: 320.235.2053

Store Hours:

Mon – Fri: 10 am – 9 pm
Sat: 10 am – 6 pm
Sun: 12 pm – 5 pm

Montana (MST)

Riddle’s Jewelry
Rimrock Mall
300 S 24th W, Ste 1-A-017
Billings, MT 59102

Phone Number: 406.655.0834
Fax Number: 406.655.9234

Store Hours:

Mon – Sat: 10 am – 9 pm
Sun: 12 pm – 6 pm

Riddle’s Jewelry
Gallatin Valley Mall
2825 West Main Street J-B
Bozeman, MT 59718

Phone Number: 406.585.0901
Fax Number: 406.585.8278

Store Hours:

Mon – Fri: 10 am – 9 pm
Sat: 10 am – 7 pm
Sun: 10 am – 5 pm

Riddle’s Jewelry
Butte Plaza Mall
3100 Harrison Ave, Ste E-3
Butte, MT 59701

Phone Number: 406.494.4534
Fax Number: 406.494.4056

Store Hours:

Mon – Fri: 10 am – 9 pm
Sat: 10 am – 6 pm
Sun: 12 pm – 5 pm

Riddle’s Jewelry
825 10th Ave S
Great Falls, MT 59405

Phone Number: 406.727.7220
Fax Number: 406.727.3990

Store Hours:

Monday-Friday: 9am to 8pm

Saturday: 9am to 6pm

Sunday: Noon to 5pm

Riddle’s Jewelry
Kalispell Center Mall
20 North Main St.
Kalispell, MT 59901

Phone Number: 406.755.8400
Fax Number: 406.755.8484

Store Hours:

Mon – Sat: 10 am – 9 pm
Sun: 12 pm – 5 pm

Riddle’s Jewelry
Southgate Mall
2901 Brooks St, Ste A-10
Missoula, MT 59801

Phone Number: 406.829.3393
Fax Number: 406.829.1791

Store Hours:

Mon – Sat: 10 am – 9 pm
Sun: 11 am – 6 pm

Nebraska (CST)

Riddle’s Jewelry
Conestoga Mall
3404 W 13th St, Ste 118
Grand Island, NE 68803

Phone Number: 308.381.9944
Fax Number: 308.381.1280

Store Hours:

Mon -Sat: 10 am – 9 pm
Sun: 12 pm – 6 pm

Riddle’s Jewelry
Hilltop Mall
5027 N 2nd Ave, Ste 42
Kearney, NE 68847

Phone Number: 308.338.1400
Fax Number: 308.338.1600

Store Hours:

Mon – Sat: 10 am – 9 pm
Sun: 12 pm – 6 pm

Riddle’s Jewelry
Sunset Plaza Mall
1700 Market Lane, Ste 19
Norfolk, NE 68701

Phone Number: 402.379.8131
Fax Number: 402.379.8132

Store Hours:

Mon – Fri: 10 am – 9 pm
Sat: 10 am – 7 pm
Sun: 12 pm – 6 pm
Holidays: 11 am – 5 pm

Riddle’s Jewelry
Platte River Mall
1000 S Dewey, Ste 250
North Platte, NE 69101

Phone Number: 308.534.9525
Fax Number: 308.534.5172

Store Hours:

Mon – Sat: 10 am – 9 pm
Sun: 12 pm – 6 pm

Riddle’s Jewelry
Monument Mall
2302 Frontage Rd, Ste 16
Scottsbluff, NE 69361

Phone Number: 308.632.8300
Fax Number: 308.632.7711

Store Hours:

Mon – Fri: 10 am – 9 pm
Sat: 10 am – 7 pm
Sun: 12 pm – 6 pm

North Dakota (CST)

Riddle’s Jewelry
Kirkwood Mall
866 Kirkwood Plaza, Ste 460
Bismarck, ND 58504

Phone Number: 701.222.4421
Fax Number: 701.222.3664

Store Hours:

Mon – Fri: 10 am – 9 pm
Sat: 10 am – 7 pm
Sun: 12 pm – 6 pm

Riddle’s Jewelry
Prairie Hills Mall
1681 3rd Ave W, Ste 27
Dickinson, ND 58601

Phone Number: 701.225.4938
Fax Number: 701.225.7028

Store Hours:

Mon – Fri: 10 am – 9 pm
Sat: 10 am – 6 pm
Sun: 12 pm – 5 pm

Riddle’s Jewelry
West Acres Mall
3902 13th Ave SW, Ste 22A
Fargo, ND 58103

Phone Number: 701.277.1494
Fax Number: 701.277.8838

Store Hours:

Mon – Sat: 10 am – 9 pm
Sun: 12 pm – 6 pm

Riddle’s Jewelry
3901 32nd Ave.
Grand Forks, ND 58201

Phone Number: 701.772.1861
Fax Number: 701.772.2431

Additional Information:

47.888985,-97.084325

Store Hours:

Mon – Fri: 9 am – 8 pm
Sat: 9 am – 6 pm
Sun: Noon – 5 pm

Riddle’s Jewelry
Buffalo Mall
Hwy 281 S & 25 St SW, Ste F-8
Jamestown, ND 58401

Phone Number: 701.251.1755
Fax Number: 701.251.9055

Store Hours:

Mon – Fri: 10 am – 9 pm
Sat: 10 am – 6 pm
Sun: 12 am – 5 pm

Riddle’s Jewelry
Dakota Square Mall
2400 10th St SW, Ste 238
Minot, ND 58701

Phone Number: 701.839.5288
Fax Number: 701.839.5314

Store Hours:

Mon – Fri: 10 am – 9 pm
Sat: 10 am – 7 pm
Sun: 12 pm – 6 pm

Oklahoma (CST)

Riddle’s Jewelry
Washington Park Mall
2350 SE Washington Blvd, Ste 204
Bartlesville, OK 74006

Phone Number: 918.335.5980
Fax Number: 918.335.5996

Store Hours:

Mon – Sat: 10 am – 9 pm
Sun: 12 am – 6 pm

Riddle’s Jewelry
Oakwood Mall
4125 West Owen Garriott Road
Enid, OK 73703

Phone Number: 580.234.1677

Store Hours:

Mon – Sat: 10 am – 9 pm
Sun: 12 pm – 6 pm

Riddle’s Jewelry
Arrowhead Mall
501 N Main, Ste 118
Muskogee, OK 74401

Phone Number: 918.682.3071
Fax Number: 918.682.3072

Store Hours:

Mon – Sat: 10 am – 9 pm
Sun: 12 am – 6 pm

South Dakota (CST)

Riddle’s Jewelry
Lakewood Mall
3315 6th Ave SE, Ste 51
Aberdeen, SD 57401

Phone Number: 605.225.7877
Fax Number: 605.225.7719

Store Hours:

Mon – Fri: 10 am – 9 pm
Sat: 10 am – 7 pm
Sun: 12 pm – 6 pm

Riddle’s Jewelry
University Mall
950 22nd Ave. S.
Brookings, SD 57706

Phone Number: 605.697.5395

Store Hours:

Mon – Fri: 9:30 am – 7 pm
Sat: 9:30 am – 5 pm
Sun: 12 pm – 4 pm

Riddle’s Jewelry
Highland Mall
2100 Highland Way, Ste O
Mitchell, SD 57301

Phone Number: 605.996.6025
Fax Number: 605.996.6037

Store Hours:

Mon -Fri: 10 am – 8 pm
Sat: 10 am – 6 pm
Sun: 12 pm – 5 pm

Riddle’s Jewelry
2707 Mt. Rushmore Rd.
Rapid City, SD 57701

Phone Number: 605-343-7099

Store Hours:

Mon – Sat: 8 am – 8 pm
Sun: 9 am – 5 pm

Riddle’s Jewelry
Pierre Mall
1615 N Harrison, Ste 26
Pierre, SD 57501

Phone Number: 605.224.2472
Fax Number: 605.224.9278

Store Hours:

Mon – Fri: 10 am – 9 pm
Sat: 9:30 am – 6 pm
Sun: 12 pm – 5 pm

Riddle’s Jewelry
202 Disk Drive
Rapid City, SD 57701

Phone Number: 605.341.2055
Fax Number: 605.341.5195

Store Hours:

Mon – Fri: 9 am – 8 pm
Sat: 9 am – 6 pm
Sun: 12 pm – 5 pm

Riddle’s Jewelry
3609 W 41st St
Sioux Falls, SD 57106

Phone Number: 605.361.0911
Fax Number: 605.361.2598

Store Hours:

Mon – Fri: 9 am to 7 pm
Sat: 9 am – 5 pm
Sun: Noon – 5pm

Riddle’s Jewelry
Watertown Mall
1300 9th Ave SE, Ste 42-45
Watertown, SD 57201

Phone Number: 605.882.2200
Fax Number: 605.882.1903

Store Hours:

Mon – Fri: 10 am – 9 pm
Sat: 10 am – 6 pm
Sun: 12 pm – 5 pm

Wyoming (CST)

Riddle’s Jewelry
Eastridge Mall
601 SE Wyoming Blvd, Ste 1280
Casper, WY 82609

Phone Number: 307.234.8485
Fax Number: 307.234.8878

Store Hours:

Mon – Sat: 10 am – 9 pm
Sun: 11 am – 6 pm

Riddle’s Jewelry
Frontier Mall
1400 Dell Range Blvd, Ste 11
Cheyenne, WY 82009

Phone Number: 307.778.7459
Fax Number: 307.778.8162

Store Hours:

Mon – Sat: 10 am – 9 pm
Sun: 11 am – 6 pm

Riddle’s Jewelry
Powder Basin Center
2610 South Douglas Highway
Gillette, WY 82718

Phone Number: 307.685.6455
Fax Number: 307.685.6912

Store Hours:

Mon – Fri: 10 am – 8 pm
Sat: 10 am – 6 pm
Sun: 12 pm – 5 pm

Riddle’s Jewelry
45 North Main St.
Sheridan, WY 82801-6312

Phone Number: (307) 673-2579
Fax Number: (308) 673-1763

Store Hours:

Mon – Sat: 9 am – 6 pm
Sun: Closed

A Publication of the Made in the USA Foundation

Vol. 24 No. 11 © Made in the USA Foundation November, 2012

NEW SUPPORT FOR OUR WTO-COOL CASE

In September of this year the Made in the USA Foundation filed suit against the World Trade Organization, the U.S. Trade Representative and the Department of Agriculture to uphold the Country of Origin Labeling Act (COOL). Mexico and Canada challenged COOL claiming that it discriminated against Mexican and Canadian beef. The WTO panel, a panel that included a Mexican lawyer, but no Americans, ruled against the United States.

Joining the Foundation in the case are the Ranchers and Cattlemen Action Legal Fund, who has 5,600 members. The Organization for Competitive Markets, the South Dakota Stockgrowers Associations, a 120-year-old grassroots, non-profit organization of independent cattle producers dedicated to the continued success and viability of the domestic cattle industry, the Independent Cattlemen of Wyoming, Cattle Producers of Washington and a group of Mississippi cattle ranchers all joined in the case.

Petition Drive

The Foundation and many of these cattle groups, have joined in circulating petitions to consumers to show support for the Country of Origin Labeling Act. Sign the petition on our website, on Causes.com, on Signon.com or on Whitehouse.gov. We have more than 14,000 signers on the petitions. We urge you to sign the Whitehouse.gov petition because it will get the President’s attention. The petition provides:

Petition to President Barack Obama, Secretary of Agriculture Tom Vilsack and U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk

We the undersigned citizens of the United States, hereby petition the U.S. government to enforce the Country of Origin Labeling Act (COOL) and to disregard “rulings” of the World Trade Organization finding that COOL is a technical barrier to trade.

Foundation to Present Award to Dodge at LA Auto Show

Dodge won the Made in the USA Hall of Fame Award on July 2, 2012 for its new Dodge Dart. Although General Motors was in attendance at the dinner to accept the award for the Chevy Volt, Chrysler was unable to attend. On November 28th, with the media invited, the Foundation will formally present the Made in the USA Hall of Fame Award to Reid Bigland, the CEO for Dodge at the Los Angeles Convention Center. This event will take place just before the Los Angeles Auto Show convenes. The Dodge Dart won the award in the Economy Car class. The Chevy Volt won the Electric Car Award.

How to Raise Revenue without Raising Taxes By Joel D. Joseph, Chairman, Made in the USA Foundation

One way to raise a trillion dollars in federal revenue without raising taxes is to auction off television and radio station licenses instead of giving them away. Since 1994 the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has conducted auctions of licenses for segments of the broadcast spectrum. Most of these auctions were for cellphone frequencies and other wireless devices. None were for television or radio signals. The FCC already has an auction system in place that can be used to auction off the big stuff: radio and television licenses.

FCC auctions are open to any eligible company or individual who submits an application and upfront payment, and is found to be a qualified bidder by the Commission. The FCC has conducted 87 radio spectrum auctions that raised over $60 billion for the U.S. Treasury. FCC auctions are conducted electronically and are accessible over the Internet.

There are more than 14,000 radio stations in the United States and a similar number of televisions stations. Radio and television licenses are given away for free, as they have been since the 1930s. Each station’s license is worth from less than one million to more than $100 million. The total value of these licenses is probably worth one trillion dollars or more.

Each licensee is now granted for an eight-year period, renewable, at no charge. Why should we give away these valuable licenses? If we were to auction off Channel Four in Los Angeles, or New York (and hundreds of other cities) these licenses would sell for hundreds of millions, if not billions of dollars, for an eight-year period.

I am not proposing that we take away broadcast licenses, only that we auction them off as they expire. This would phase in the auction system over an eight-year period, and increase government revenues dramatically. This would cause a significant dent in our oversize federal deficit.

The Radio Act of 1927 established the principle that the radio spectrum belongs to the public, and that licensees (television and radio stations) have no property rights to use it. Although the broadcast spectrum is licensed to companies and individuals, the license does not involve ownership or rights but the privilege of using that portion of the spectrum for a specific period of time.

During the 2012 election cycle, billions of campaign dollars went directly to television and radio stations. About one billion dollars was spent on media buys from radio and television stations for the presidential campaigns alone. This has given radio and television stations a virtual license to print money.

Radio and television stations will object, of course. They get something for nothing. Or as former presidential candidate Mitt Romney said, they got gifts, just like those on foodstamps. But television and radio station owners are among the richest of America’s citizens, who certainly represent the upper one percent of society. Ruppert Murdoch is one such beneficiary, as is CBS, ABC and NBC all owners of multiple radio and television stations.

Until recently General Electric owned NBC. And we should not forget that General Electric, despite earning billions of dollars, has not paid federal income tax in many years.

If Congress is searching for easy money, radio and television stations should be in their target zone. Congress has the power, by amending the Radio Act of 1927 and the Federal Communications Act, to start auctioning off radio and television licenses to the highest bidders.

Congress can and should exempt PBS stations, college and community owned stations. A segment of the broadcast spectrum should be reserved for these public interest broadcasters.

Current station owners would still own their broadcast facilities, so each would have a leg up in the competition to buy a segment of the broadcast spectrum.

Radio and television stations are the old media. They still makes lots of money, but they are old media. New media, like Google and Apple, are likely to be bidders for television and radio licenses because they are in need of content and new markets.

If we are going to stop corporate welfare, radio and television licenses are a good first step to level the playing field. Next on my list of corporate welfare to attack are the oil depletion allowance and farm subsidies. All of these are sacred cows, but we can no longer afford to preserve sacred cows when we are drowning in a sea of debt.

After you’ve read the article, you’ll understand why it’s necessary to sign this petition asking President Obama to disregard the World Trade Organization’s ruling on COOL, calling it discriminatory and asking the United States government not to enforce it.

It’s very important that we get as many signatures as possible, so please take a moment to sign these various petitions:

Causes.com

Signon.com

Whitehouse.gov

Remember the All American Back to School Guide? Well now Made in the USA Founder and Chairman, Joel D. Joseph, has put out another book, titled The All American Holiday Buyers Guide!

I’m sure all of you know how important buying American is, and it’s especially important during the holiday season. We all need to make sure that our holiday gifts are made here in the United States.

So make sure you pick up a copy, as a paperback or in e-book format, of the All American Holiday Buyers Guide, which you can find right here.