Think about it. There is no such thing as completely FREE trade. You’d have better luck trying for FREE love.
Nice post but you’ve essentially raised the bar so high that there will never be trade with any country for any reason.
Thus far, I haven’t seen anyone on Free Republic who supports TPP, nor have I heard any candidate support it. It isn’t complete yet and probably won’t be voted on until late 2016. It will be defeated.
Cruz is all for getting rid of the regulations that are strangling businesses. The repeal of Obamacare is key, also.
Very true, but 100 years of Progressivism/Liberalism isn't undone overnight. We'll have to stomach some bitter medicine to get there.
Eliminating the minimum wage, getting rid of the unions and so on would never be supported by the Democrats — or the vote whores in the Republican Party either, for that matter.
Exactly. Well thought out and outlined nicely.
Which candidates agree with this (or to what extent) and who’s willing to take on the leviathan?
Free foreign trade requires a policy of laissez faire domestically. When government interference in the labor market prevents necessary adjustments in relative wage rates, free trade can result in mass unemployment, which leads to abandonment of free trade.Similarly, government subsidy programs are incompatible with free trade.
Having high taxes here hurts free trade aboard. It shows GOPe incompetence that they don’t tie lower corporate tax rates to all free trade bills.
The only solution is Utopia. that is what Obama wants a Utopia - where everything is perfect. REALITY sets in and it will not be possible. The progressive Era is so ingrained into American Society that it will take nearly 100 years to change the mindset of the next generations to see that the answer is socialism. This is what Obama wants, incremental change to the glorious collective - socialism. hey socialism is so great until you run out of other peoples money! Okay maybe I am being snide and sarcastic, but reality must set in to. In order for capitalism to work America has to have someone to trade with. Prior to WWI America’s number one trade partner - Germany. That is right!
I am a free trader. I mean to me its about liberty. The ability to trade with whom we want and with what we please.
With that said, free trade deals, often are not free. Our trade relationship with China needs to change. As it is our products must meet stringent controls and minimum requirements that Chinese products do not. That is not free trade. The Chinese government conspires with Chinese companies to steal our know how and product intelligence which is not free trade. The Chinese violate patents with very little consequence. The Chinese use prison labor for cripes sakes! And I agree with you that minimum wages put us at a disadvantage.
The argument about free trade itself, while interesting, is almost moot, because the trade relationship we have with one of our biggest relationship (China) is not even close to fair and free.
The Chinese NEED us to buy their crap, so what could they do if we change that relationship. We start putting out minimum quality requirements for their imports, and erect tariffs to offset their violations.
The current minimum wage adjusted for inflation is far from the highest its ever been, which is $10.50/hr (2010 dollars) in 1965. Since trade policy by default only concerns manufactured good, raw materials or agricultural goods public sector/service unions have nothing to do with this. Private sector manufacturing unions are almost dead now. Only 10% of manufacturing workers are represented by a union.
What the NWO supporters don’t get is that it is a defense issue as well. You can’t support a military with trade deficits. Maybe some of them understand and are just trying to destroy America.
Who can support TPP when no one knows what’s in it? Don’t conflate the centuries-long recognition that free, open trade is a benefit for those involved, with whatever TPP is.
TPP is probably as much about “free trade” as Obamacare is about “health care.”
bump
Vigorous debate on FR? Say it ain’t so! /s
How would you fund needed Federal, State and local governments?
"But, generally speaking, the Protective system in these days is conservative, while the Free Trade system works destructively. It breaks up old nationalities and carries antagonism of proletariat and bourgeoisie to the uttermost point. In a word, the Free Trade system hastens the Social Revolution. In this revolutionary sense alone, gentlemen, I am in favor of Free Trade.
welcome...
welcome to the dark side...
we will accept you with open arms...
however, among so called unionist conservatives..
you will be shunned..
welcome
There is no such thing as free trade with a country that ignores the agreement, actively undermines the agreement with government intervention, reverse engineers trade goods then sells it back to you, and ignores copyrights.
Unless we can stop the invasion, wages are going down.
Flooding a labor market with illegal aliens can have no other effect.
How many Americans could be employed if the illegal aliens couldn’t find work because we enforced the laws?