Labor Unions vs. consumers

President Obama has until Sept. 17 to rule on a U.S. International Trade Commission recommendation that the White House put a 55% tariff on low-grade car tires imported from China. The  Steelworkers Union charges that a flood of cheap Chinese tires in recent years had cost more than 5,000 union jobs.

The president's decision -- he is under no obligation to follow the ITC -- is due just days before he hosts Chinese President Hu Jintao and others world leaders at a G-20 summit in Pittsburgh.
Mr. Obama's call is fraught with political risk. If he sides with the steelworkers, he invites accusations of protectionism. Siding with China risks disappointing a key constituency that he is relying on to support his domestic agenda

UPDATE: Consumers lose