When did we first hear about the crippling supply chain crisis? August of last year? The problem had been growing for months, but that was when we learned about it—and about how Biden’s Transportation Secretary, Pete Buttigieg, was MIA. Biden stepped in with a “solution” to the overcrowded ports in California. He demanded they stay open 24/7 and fined companies that left empty shipping containers in the port. Despite these brilliant ideas, the problem did not get better.
Biden seemed to have forgotten about the issue after that. And so did the rest of his administration. This did not mean the problem went away. Americans had to suffer rising prices and out-of-control inflation, largely because goods have not been transported to stores in a timely manner. Republican leaders at the state level stepped up to offer solutions, including Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. And now, it seems like companies are coming around.
While many businesses continue to leave California for Texas and elsewhere, international shipping companies have been increasing their operations in Florida, with one launching a new service on the East Coast, and its first port in Florida, bypassing the West Coast and California ports…
Sea Lead Shipping “will be moving part of their operations from California to JAXPORT in order to bypass heavy congestion at the Port of Long Beach,” Gov. Ron DeSantis’ office announced. It will be “the first U.S. East Coast container service for the company and JAXPORT will serve as the last port of call on Sea-Lead’s Asia East Coast rotation, connecting Jacksonville to 4 locations in Asia.” [Source: Just the News]
This is a big deal because it’s usually cheaper and easier for Asian companies to dock in California. This Singapore-based company will sail from Asia and be forced to dock in the U.S. on the opposite coast. Which means, they will most likely use the Panama Canal or similar avenue, which is obviously a longer journey than simply stopping at CA. That should tell you just how screwed up California operations are. Asian companies are willing to travel further if it means they can actually offload their goods.
The problems go beyond just backlogged ports. California’s far-left government has set emissions standards unreasonably high, so many shipping trucks can’t even enter the country. Not only are there not enough workers in the shipping yard, but there are only a fraction of the nation’s truckers even allowed into the state. That’s not a problem in Florida; so Sea Lead Shipping won’t have to worry about their ships being left to float in the ocean.
This is a perfectly sensible solution that will yield long-term results. Something that Joe Biden is completely ignorant of. I don’t think there is a single person on his team that has a clue how to achieve these kinds of solutions. I’m not sure they even know what good solutions look like.
Author: Moe Blow