A suggestion to save US jobs

Given lingering high un- employment and the rising jobless claims noted in your Aug. 5 article (“New jobless claims rise to 479K), congressional incumbents running for re-election in November should be doing everything they can to encourage hiring. That doesn’t necessarily mean another controversial stimulus. There is broad bipartisan support for protecting American jobs by simply enforcing treaty obligations against foreign companies that clearly break international trade laws.

For instance, European aerospace giant Airbus has used $5 billion in illegal subsidies to develop a tanker refueling aircraft it wants to sell the Air Force. Airbus would build its tanker largely overseas, while the competing Boeing tanker would support 50,000 U.S. jobs, including 150,000 in Ohio.

A bipartisan coalition in Congress supports action against Airbus. Everyone supports open competition for Pentagon contracts, but no one supports foreign companies that use illegal subsidies to steal those contracts and American jobs.

Paul Shearon, Washington D.C.

The writer is secretary treasurer of the International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers.