Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo, appearing in her personal capacity on behalf of the Harris campaign on CNBC's “Squawk Box” on Monday, said a potential port attack could have the biggest impact. He said there was “not a lot of focus” on location. She is not “particularly involved” in the strike issue, which she acknowledged “has the potential to be incredibly disruptive to commerce”.
Co-host Becky Quick said, “I know you're here as a representative for the vice president's campaign, but there's a lot of news of the day that I think I have to ask you.'' I wanted to start talking about the possibility of a port strike that is expected to take place late tonight, obviously all up and down, including ports on the East Coast as well as the Gulf. This is the first time since the 1970s. What does this mean for commerce in this country, what does it mean for businesses, and what do we know about it, if we participate in this strike? Are you there?”
Raimondo replied: “So, as you said, I'm here in a personal capacity. What I'm saying is, depending on how long this lasts, it could have an incredibly disruptive impact on commerce. It's no secret that there is. You know, there's so much commerce going through ports that if it lasts for several days, I think companies are probably making plans. But especially as we're in the peak season of preparations for the Christmas season, I think a prolonged strike could cause a really, very, very big disruption to commerce. We want to stay at the table and resolve it as soon as possible and hopefully avoid a strike and ensure that the duration of the strike is as short as possible.The ripple effects through the supply chain will be very wide-ranging.”
Mr. Quick then asked, “What are the most salient issues? Where have you been focusing on what happens if the strike lasts, say, a week or more?”
Raimondo replied: I'll introduce you to the White House or the Secretary of Transportation. ”
Quick then said, “I've heard that both the administration and the president himself are not trying to push each other and are encouraging dialogue. So I was wondering, what does this mean for them?” From a perspective, have you heard from business leaders? You're probably the person who listens to business leaders more than anyone else in government.”
Mr. Raimondo replied: “I want to stay within the Hatch Act here. So if you want me to come back later this week as Secretary of Commerce, we might talk about that. But as I said, I is not particularly involved.”
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