Op Ed: Stop it. Trump's trade policy is not 'the apocalypse'

CNBC ^ | Nov 18, 2016 | Greg Autry

[kingu]

Donald Trump's election will disrupt the global economic status quo and it has significant implications for our technology entrepreneurs as well. I have spent years advocating for practical change in U.S. trade and economic policy.

I'm very proud that several of my colleagues in this fight have helped to develop the Trump economic program. That plan and their bold advocacy inspired America's working class and propelled Trump through the "Blue Wall" of the rust belt and into the White House.

The promise of good jobs is what made the difference in this campaign despite all the protest over the candidate's personality flaws. Trump's economic platform offers significant challenges for incumbent tech firms and great opportunities for the new maker-generation manufacturing startups.

Trump's trade and economic policies are integrated into an industrial policy, something the political establishment has long eschewed but which our successful global competitors execute on very well; think of Germany or South Korea. Trump's plan creates jobs and wealth for all Americans rather than serving the interests of nominally American multinational firms.

[kingu]

One of the many who has been strongly pushing for Apple to bring their production back onshore and one of the many critics when they shuttered production in the US...

[Brian Griffin]

Here are my thoughts:
1. balanced trade in motor vehicles and their parts
2. US-only for building supplies
3. low-cost garments duty-free
4. free trade in software, electronics, aircraft, services
5. energy and solar stuff duty-free

[ari-freedom]

yeah let’s throw Economics 101 out the window and kill US agriculture. Hopefully Pence will pull the plug on any protectionist tendencies

https://www.uschamber.com/above-the-fold/mike-pence-has-great-track-record-trade

[factoryrat]

It’s way more than just Apple.

Just browse through Amazon in the scientific and industrial products sections.

A lot of those products were made in the US, now they’re single source out of china.

Alibaba is another one, among many.

This is the result of Wall Street backed outsourcing, along with dealing with communist regimes.

This is why university student rosters look like Beijing phone books.

This is what Trump has vowed to put a stop to.

[ImJustAnotherOkie]

As long as the bottom feeders and crumb gatherers are the first to be squeezed out.

[RummyChick]

[Dr. Sivana]

Before WTO membership for Red China, and MFN/Normal status for same, and before NAFTA, we had a functioning economy here in the U.S. We also didn’t have to worry about spyware in the electronics going into our military hardware.

If we could function without massive trade with the Chicoms in 1985, we can do it now.

[riverdawg]

It’s odd that you picked 1985 to make your argument. We had a then-record trade deficit that year:

http://articles.latimes.com/1986-01-30/news/mn-2099_1_u-s-trade-deficit

I haven’t drilled down into the data from that year, but Japan was the big trade bugaboo back then.

[Dr. Sivana]

It’s odd that you picked 1985 to make your argument. We had a then-record trade deficit that year:

Trade deficit is just one of many issues. The dollar was strong in '85, and the economy in general was humming. Reaganism didn't need Red China to work, and Japan does not have missles pointed at us, tell parents how many children they have, assert state control of all religion, or have a fascist economic model so that the overall economy serves the State's ends.

[Brian Griffin]

“protectionist tendencies”

If need be, we can require annual purchases of American farm goods by a country before anything from that country clears US Customs.

We need to denounce all trade deals on the first day of Congress.

“You have nothing to fear but fear itself.”
FDR