U.S. Travel has released a number of official statements since the inauguration of President Donald Trump last week on Jan. 20. U.S. Travel Association President and CEO Roger Dow has been a vocal supporter of partnering with the Trump administration in order to further advance the travel industry’s agenda.
Following is a quick recap of Dow’s recent thoughts on Trump and his border security measures.
Dow on President Trump’s strategies for travel and tourism:
"On behalf of the U.S. travel and tourism community, I would like to welcome President Trump to the White House. During the campaign and since the election, President Trump emphasized a number of issues for which the American travel community shares his enthusiasm: infrastructure, domestic jobs and the U.S. trade balance. As it happens, all of our longstanding policy priorities align perfectly.
"The president clearly understands the economic centrality of a modern and thriving infrastructure. He has specifically mentioned the state of our airports as cause for alarm—a belief that we share. We look forward to discussing with him our plan to finally make our airports competitive once again.
"Travel is the No. 1 U.S. services export and the No. 3 export overall, and supports one in nine U.S. jobs—jobs that exist in every congressional district in the country and cannot be outsourced abroad.
“President Trump brings an extensive business and hospitality background to the White House, and we believe he possesses an intuitive understanding of the need for policies and people moving into and around this country. The U.S. travel industry will be a capable, willing partner to the Trump administration, as we have been to presidents on both sides of the aisle for 75 years."
Dow on President Trump’s border security executive order:
"Without security there can be no travel, and the American travel community strongly supports efforts to ensure all of the country’s entry points are secure. For that reason, we urge the administration to devote a significant percentage of the proposed 5,000 new border security officers to our air and sea ports of entry to ensure all travelers are vetted appropriately and effectively.
"The U.S. Travel Association will be releasing a Secure Travel Enhancement Plan in the coming days to highlight the need for an effective and federally-funded entry-exit system as well as additional improvements to our travel security processes, including expansion of the successful Visa Security, Customs Preclearance, and Global Entry programs.”
For thoughts from industry leaders on what Trump’s presidency means for hospitality, check out our recent article.
