As the United States tries to navigate an economic squall, a trade war could be on the horizon. European Union diplomats have privately threatened to launch a trade war against the U.S. if President Barack Obama accepts protectionist provisions contained in the latest stimulus package. These threats are forcing Obama to choose between a showdown with Congress and a collision course with other Western governments.

The “buy American” provision of the congressional stimulus package stipulates that all major public works projects favor American steel, iron and manufacturing over foreign imports. The provision is designed to create more American jobs by supporting domestic labor.

Representatives from the EU, however, have made it clear they will not stand idly by if Obama passes this legislation. Rather, these representatives have threatened to enact tit-for-tat protectionist measures against the U.S. Such moves could easily escalate into all-out trade war. Economists such as Gary Hufbauer of the Peterson Institute for International Economics are predicting that this would result in more American jobs being destroyed than created.

Obama is expected to water down some of the protectionist rhetoric in this provision in order to heed the wishes of the EU and other foreign trade blocs. Nonetheless, Bible prophecy shows that America soon will be besieged by trade war. For proof, read “First Shots of Trade War?” by Robert Morley.