I’m a Trump supporter but from what I’ve read, Cato is right and you are right for posting this.
Tariffs and protectionism are not only exercises in futility but typical examples of how a country shoots itself in the foot.
Tariffs and protectionism do not address the underlying causes of business and industry fleeing the U.S. Tariffs and protectionism are examples of the futility of more government layered on problems government created in the first place.
People need to follow what’s right regardless of who does or doesn’t follow what’s right, whether it’s Reagan, Trump or anyone else.
I agreed on all points.
“Tariffs and protectionism are not only exercises in futility but typical examples of how a country shoots itself in the foot.”
Tariffs make foreign goods more expensive, which hurts consumers. When all is considered, trade is reciprocal. If we buy less, others will buy (or borrow) less from us. Imports go down, but so too exports.
Other countries enact tariffs or other protectionist measures. They are not helping their citizens by keeping out foreign (including US) goods that their citizens would have bought.
They are doing something stupid that harms everyone. Should we retaliate by doing something stupid that hurts everyone? No.
“Tariffs and protectionism do not address the underlying causes of business and industry fleeing the U.S.”
Very good point. They are a big distraction.
Here are some other places to look. Are union wages/benefits too high when there are many who are unemployed? How much do we gain from job-killing environmentalism? Does our Federal tax system work against American workers? What are trade impacts of Federal deficits? I’ve been thinking about this last question ever since Walter Williams mentioned it.
The Japanese and Chinese are major purchasers of US government bonds. I guess we pay a pretty good interest rate. One could argue that the reason they have to sell us so many goods is that they must in order to buy our debt! A more solid (yet abstract) statement is that the exchange rate value of the dollar is as high as it is because foreigners want to buy our debt. If government controlled spending and did not borrow, the value of the dollar would fall. A 20% fall in the value of the dollar would have the same impact on imports and exports as a 20% tariff.