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Steel trade may not be hash-tagged on social media as much as Steph or LeBron, but American steelmakers are hitting shots from almost every spot on the floor as they take aim against what they steadfastly maintain are illegally traded steel imports. From Main Street USA to The Mall in DC, people now get it: Steel is relevant. Global trade is a huge issue. #TrumpSaysSo “I want trade deals, but they have to be great for the United States and our workers,” presumptive Republican nominee Donald Trump said in a speech on June 22. “We don’t make great deals anymore, but we will once I become president.” #UnlessItsHillary Just a couple weeks before, Hillary Clinton received a key labor endorsement from the United Steelworkers union. “Secretary Clinton has promised to fight for fair, not just free trade, and has vowed to oppose the job-killing Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP),” said USW President, Leo Gerard. #ManufacturingSwingStates The US International Trade Commission recently found that US mills were materially injured or threatened with injury by unfairly traded cold-rolled steel coil imports from China and Japan. All six ITC commissioners voted affirmatively – meaning that combined antidumping and countervailing duty margins of 522% for all Chinese steelmakers and AD margins of 71.35% for Japan’s producers were finalized. #HeftyDuties In 2015, 70% of the 64 trade cases launched by the US Department of Commerce were for steel products. #CorrosionResistant #Tubing #ColdRolledCoil #HotRolledCoil #StainlessPipe #WeldedPipe Statistics like that have put steel at center court of the current trade debate. But it’s not just about the numbers. Legislators in Washington, elected local leaders, and government officials at a number of agencies are listening — perhaps more than ever to the case of steel. #LevelingthePlayingField But why now? And how? “We got the facts,” answers Thomas Gibson, president and CEO of the Washington-based American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI), which serves as the voice of the North American steel industry, supporting and lobbying on behalf of member companies that represent more than 75% of US/North American steel capacity. #SteelMatters In an interview with S&P Global Platts, Gibson agreed that the lobbying has been intense and effective. He’s quick to modestly explain: “The facts are o...