Tough times should call for even tougher decisions. The nation’s trade deficit swelled to a record $39.5 billion in the April-June Quarter as a rising tide of imports overtook a smaller increase in exports. Despite the decline over the past year of the dollar which, in theory, should make U.S. products more competitive, the deficit worsened in value and volume.

This is endangering various U.S. industries such as steel, autos and textiles. It is eroding the strength of our middle class and increasing the gap between rich and poor.

There are various causes for the trade deficit. The inability to gain access to foreign markets hurts. We give other countries free access to compete here, but they do not return the favor and keep away anything that has “Made in America” stamped on it.

Also, we need to begin developing alternate sources of energy (such as solar and nuclear) to reduce our dependence on imported oil.

Clayton Yeutter, President Reagan’s special trade representative, was quoted as saying that “strong consumer demand (of imports) in the U.S. brought on by record employment levels, continues to be a major factor in the persistently high trade deficit.” In pushing to make the U.S. competitive again in world trade, President Reagan wants to retain our workers and give our patents better protection. That’s fine, but we have ignored a major reason for America’s dismal showing in the export market: our almost total neglect of how poorly we design our markets.

Today, corporate managers and executives seem to be more concerned about placating stockholders and making profits than focusing on how to make better products and establishing markets. There is no reason as to why we play the “Mergermania” game or concede when we should “jump into the world marketplace and beat foreign countries at their own game.”

Somehow, the U.S. Congress has to put aside ideology and reduce the budget deficit. This is a subsidy to foreign imports and a tax on American exports. In other words, we are building today’s houses with tomorrow’s bricks. If we can do this, we will be able to help our allies to “see the light at the end of the Fair Trade Tunnel.”

The trade deficit has to be reduced by both American leadership and ingenuity. The greatest economic power in the world should not just sit by and take the suggestion that we are becoming a service economy rather than a manufacturing one. If the trade deficit is not reduced, the greatest American export will continue to be U.S. jobs.

James T. Durkin

chairman, Students for Gore

Illinois State University