New York City—Travel
industry veterans admonished attendees of the 2016 New York University
International Hospitality Industry Investment Conference on Monday to push back
against a rise in isolationist policies that could hurt the travel industry
worldwide.
"You can see it in the United States. You can see it in
Europe. You can see it in lots of parts of the world where people are using
different tools, but fundamentally, they're about turning back inward,"
said Marriott International CEO Arne Sorenson.
Loews Hotels & Resorts chairman Jonathan Tisch said
today's political discourse "features fear-filled rhetoric" and that
"the misguided idea of Fortress America is sadly back on the rise."
Tisch spoke about "the lost decade" after 9/11 and stated that
withdrawing from the rest of the world did the United States "more harm
than good."
He said: "The United States missed out on a global boom
in international travel, and it has cost our economy and our workforce dearly.
While the rest of the world enjoyed a travel gold rush, the U.S. failed to keep
pace and lost nearly 70 million visitors to global competitors." The U.S.
economy also lost $500 million and more than 440,000 American jobs, Tisch
added.
U.S. Travel Association president and CEO Roger Dow
emphasized the importance of the U.S. Visa Waiver Program, which the
association has fought
to support in light of criticism from some congressmen following the terror
attacks in Paris and Brussels. Dow estimated that nixing the program would cost
the United States $50 billion.
Tisch, too, spoke about the importance of the Visa Waiver
Program, calling it a great program with a "terrible" name. "The
Visa Waiver Program has been
a target for criticism because its name gives the
false impression of lax security and a country incapable of adequately
screening travelers. This could not be further from the truth."
One alternative name Tisch suggested was the Secure Travel
Partnership, which more closely communicates a partnership that "raises
the international standard for passports and other identification, fosters
cooperation between international enforcement agencies and is a vital link in
the chain to make America more secure."
Both Tisch and Sorenson talked about national
security and travel as a tricky balancing act. "There are risks in the
world, and those risks we have to make sure we address," Sorenson said.
"But those risks can also be twisted into tools which are about something
else, and in too many cases that's happening."