America Needs Fair—Not Free—Trade

Substack ^ | July 8, 2025 | Spencer P. Morrison

[LibertyFound]

The Trump Administration has extended the global trade negotiation deadline to August 1, 2025.

So far, less than a handful of countries have been able to work out interim deals, including the United Kingdom, Vietnam, and (ironically) China.

A few others, like India, have offered zero-for-zero tariffs with the United States—free trade, at least on paper.

President Trump’s team has so far avoided making any “free trade” deals. They are right to be skeptical. Why?

Real global free trade—much like real communism—has never been tried! And this is not for lack of trying. It’s because it is impossible.

In reality, different countries are different; they have different levels of economic development, different laws, and different business cultures. These differences add up to make international free trade practically impossible.

Rather than hunting unicorns on behalf of doe-eyed economists, President Trump should pursue deals that put America first. After all, if the board is tilted, we may as well tilt it in our favor.

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TOPICS:
KEYWORDS: economics; tariffs

[escapefromboston]

You can really only have free trade with countries that have relatively equal standards of living and similar business regulations.

[dfwgator]

No such thing as Free Trade.

[anthropocene_x]

So-called “free trade” has only benefitted Wall Street and upper management while devastating the jobs situation and leverage with employers for most Americans. Remember all those expert economists in the 1990s crowing about how free trade will be great for everyone.
Just go to rural Pennsylvania or Ohio to see for yourself the wonderful changes in last 2-3 decades.

[central_va]

Adam Smith failed to make that point in his book.

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