Political party candidates Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton during the final presidential debate (here) Oct. 19 each argued that he or she would better address product dumping in the U.S. by Chinese exporters. Clinton said “one of the biggest problems we have” is China’s illegal dumping of steel and aluminum into U.S. markets, and accused Trump of buying those products from China for construction projects, including the Trump Hotel in Las Vegas. “He goes around with crocodile tears about how terrible it is, but he has given jobs to Chinese steelworkers, not American steelworkers,” she said. Trump countered by saying that when Clinton was in previous public service positions, she should have changed the laws to make it illegal for developers, including Trump, to use Chinese steel in building projects. “For thirty years, you’ve been in a position to help,” Trump said. “And if you say I've used steel or I used something else, make it impossible for me to do that. I wouldn’t mind. The problem is you talk, but you don't get anything done, Hillary. You don't.” Clinton said she fought against dumping as a senator and as secretary of State.

President Barack Obama signed into law the Eliminate, Neutralize, and Disrupt (END) Wildlife Trafficking Act of 2016, meant to prevent illegal wildlife trafficking and increase interagency involvement with pertinent governments. The bill would require the U.S. government to make recommendations for how to address wildlife trafficking threats and would also instruct yearly reporting on how all appropriations to combat the illicit practice are being spent, according to the bill text (here). The Senate passed the bill Sept. 15, after the Senate Foreign Relations Committee approved it in April (see 1604280052). The House approved the bill Sept. 21.

President Barack Obama removed sanctions on individuals under the Block Burmese Junta’s Anti-Democratic Efforts (JADE) Act of 2008, and lifted a 1997 emergency executive order that banned new investment in Myanmar, according to an Oct. 7 presidential document (here). Obama in September announced the addition of Myanmar as a least developed beneficiary developing country to the U.S. list of Generalized System of Preferences beneficiaries after a roughly 27-year absence from the program (see 1609140032), part of his administration’s actions to liberalize trade and investment with the country since it made several democratic reforms.

The U.S. and Canadian single window data requirements are about as closely aligned as possible, the White House said in its 2015 Beyond the Border Implementation Report (here). "To better align single window programs in each country, CBP and the [Canada Border Services Agency] have harmonized 96% of their single window data requirements (the remaining 4% relate to data requirements specific to each country)," the White House said. The report details recent progress on the Beyond the Border plan, a combined effort by the two countries to improve travel and trade processing.

President Barack Obama is appealing to the histories of Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., and House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., supporting free trade agreements in an effort to convince the leaders to bring up Trans-Pacific Partnership-implementation legislation for consideration during the upcoming lame-duck session of Congress, White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest said during a press conference (here). “I think the case the President would make is, ‘Consider your previous position and your philosophy on these kinds of issues and recognize that, regardless of the outcome of the presidential election, there’s not likely to be a President sitting in the Oval Office for the next four years that supports this,’” Earnest said. “So there is a now-or-never element to this.” Earnest said that the interests of Obama and large GOP interests “are aligned” in passing TPP. “We’re eager to work with them to get this deal across the finish line, as are a number of outside organizations who wield significant influence in American politics but don’t typically use that influence to advocate for President Obama’s agenda,” Earnest said.

Akin Gump released its 2016 Pre-Election Political Report, which interprets presidential candidates Hillary Clinton’s and Donald Trump’s positions on issues including international trade (here). The law firm said Trump’s hard-line stance on trade rejects the bipartisan approach toward the issue that Democratic and Republican presidents have followed since 1934, and noted that most scholars believe his approach would hurt the U.S. economy and geopolitics in the face of a strong China. In contrast, the report says, Clinton’s approach to trade doesn’t represent a wholesale rejection of executive branch precedents on the issue, but rather involves a more nuanced approach.

President Barack Obama appointed Adele Chatfield-Taylor, Shannon Keller O’Loughlin and James Reap to be members of the State Department Cultural Property Advisory Committee, as well as Jeremy Sabloff, who will also serve as chairman, according to an announcement (here).

President Barack Obama met with a group of business and political leaders Sept. 15 to strategize how to effectively spread their message of support for the Trans-Pacific Partnership and ensure a congressional vote on the pact this year. During a same-day White House press conference, Ohio Gov. John Kasich said that the TPP would help secure U.S. leadership among world powers marked by a repressive China and an unpredictable Russia, and Atlanta Mayor Kasim Reed said that it would help boost U.S. manufacturing interests in communities across the U.S. Kasich said that while trade brings economic benefits, it also inevitably hurts some workers. That’s why the U.S. should pursue good trade adjustment programs and streamline all levels of U.S. education for innovation, he said.

The White House directed the Treasury Department on Sept. 13 to extend the Cuban Assets Control Regulations for another year (here). Those regulations (here), which fall within the controls outlined in the Trading with the Enemy Act, cover nearly all dealings with Cuba. The Obama administration has taken a number of steps to normalize ties with the country over the past few years (see 1608050001). The authority to administer sanctions on Cuba was set to expire on Sept. 14, the White House said.

President Barack Obama is adding Myanmar as a least developed beneficiary developing country to the list of Generalized System of Preferences beneficiaries after a roughly 27-year absence from the program, he said in a proclamation to Congress (here). Harmonized Tariff Schedule General Notes 4(a) and 4(b)(i) will be modified to list “Burma.” Modifications to the HTS will take effect and apply to goods withdrawn from a warehouse for consumption or entered on or after Nov. 13, according to the proclamation. The announcement aligns with Obama’s meeting scheduled with Myanmar State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi in the Oval Office Sept. 14. The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative started reviews to consider Myanmar’s GSP eligibility in April 2013, after the nation’s qualification for the program was withdrawn in 1989 because of worker rights violations (see 13041521). A joint statement on the U.S.-Myanmar relationship said the Asian country has strengthened its protections for "internationally recognized worker rights."