A national survey found large majorities of voters across party lines favor reciprocal market access and federal action when U.S. companies encounter different standards in foreign countries.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
Large majorities of American voters want the federal government to defend U.S. companies facing unequal treatment in foreign markets, and 78% say they would be more inclined to support a policymaker who works toward that goal, according to polling reported by the Daily Caller News Foundation.
That political response crossed party lines. Seventy-two percent of Democratic voters and 87% of Republican voters said a policymaker’s efforts to secure fair treatment for American companies internationally would make them more likely to offer their support. Only 3% of voters said such action would make them less likely to support the policymaker.
The findings were part of a national survey commissioned by the US-Asia Fair Market Alliance, which examined voter attitudes toward foreign-market access, government responses to discriminatory treatment and the economic consequences for American businesses operating internationally.
Beyond the effect on voters’ support for policymakers, 83% said the federal government has a responsibility to work to ensure that U.S. companies are treated fairly overseas. Another 78% said the United States should respond when a foreign government subjects American businesses to standards different from those imposed on domestic companies.
The preference for a U.S. response remained strong when the country imposing the different treatment was an American ally. Seventy-six percent of voters said Washington should respond equally firmly regardless of whether the foreign government involved is a close U.S. partner. That included 68% of Democrats and 86% of Republicans.
Reciprocal access to markets drew even broader agreement. Eighty-eight percent said U.S. allies should provide American companies with the same access to their markets that the United States provides to companies from allied nations. Separately, 87% said countries benefiting from access to the American market should extend comparable treatment to U.S. firms.
Voters also connected the treatment of American businesses overseas with economic activity inside the United States, including exports, business expansion, innovation, employment and opportunities for smaller companies.
Sixty-seven percent said discriminatory treatment of U.S. companies in foreign markets can significantly damage American exports, while 66% said it can impede the expansion of American products into new markets. Sixty-two percent said such treatment can harm growth opportunities for small businesses.
The survey found that small- and medium-sized business owners viewed international market conditions as particularly relevant to their own operations. Seventy percent said unfair foreign treatment of American companies could have a significant effect on their personal financial well-being.
International customers were already part of the business model for many of those respondents. Sixty percent of the small- and medium-sized business owners surveyed said they receive at least some sales from customers outside the United States, while 63% said they have considered expanding their businesses internationally.
When voters were asked how the United States should address unequal treatment, the largest shares favored trade and diplomatic mechanisms before economic penalties.
Forty-nine percent supported addressing disputes through trade negotiations or formal dispute-settlement procedures. Forty-eight percent favored directly raising the matter with foreign governments through diplomatic channels, and 39% supported trade or economic consequences if the disagreement could not otherwise be resolved.
Penta Group conducted the online survey from Aug. 3 through Aug. 17 for the US-Asia Fair Market Alliance.
The survey included 1,000 nationally representative voters and 318 policy influencers in the Washington, D.C., area. Of the national voter sample, 137 respondents were owners of small- and medium-sized businesses.
The reported margin of error was 3.1 percentage points for the national voter sample and 5.4 percentage points for the D.C.-area policy influencers.
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