A healthy respect for the 9th and 10th amendments are in order, are they not? Oh, I forgot who I was asking!
Tariffs were constitutional, yes, but they became an unwise method of government revenue after the "infant industry" had finally blossomed. In fact, the tariff manipulation on products - a manipulation that was not uniformly applied and unfairly levied against the South's interests was one of the causes that led to the War Between the States.
Your reasoning in support of tariffs is purely nationalistic and is deeply rooted by your own fear, xenophobia, and limited knowledge of economic principles. You'd, by your own admission, would rather have leaders in our government plan economic activities and create disincentives for consumers who would choose to purchase foreign goods using their own free will. By definition, this make you a big government extolling, disdainer of liberty. Sorry [I write sorry because the truth must hurt], but you'll have much difficulty in trying to refute this charge.
That part is correct. And your own reasoning seems to be something else.
... and is deeply rooted by your own fear, xenophobia, and limited knowledge of economic principles.
B'zzzt. False. For you, unreciprocated free trade is a religion. I reject your religion. I was a straight "A" in my econ courses with Prof. Walter Heller among others, wherein I was an early advocate for the "rational expectations" school.
For sure you weren't.
And neither have you shown insightful perspicacity with respect to the national security hazards of your trade positions...
Your blase' indifference is fortunately not echoed by the U.S. Dept. of Commerce, or its Bureau of Industry and Security.
You are not a defender of liberty in this country if you get this country killed.
Libertarianism is n Hence your malarkey about tariffs fails. The utility of tariffs goes far beyond nuruturing formative "infant industry" stages, but many other stages up to and inclusive of "managing" aggressive mercantilist predatory powers intent on damaging their adversaries. Hence George Bush's finally threatening the PRC with tariffs over its bad currency behavior. Personally, I would make a bigger deal out of how the communists constrain the liberty of its citizens. Speech, religion, and oh yeah...economic freedom too. The incomes of their vast working population are subject to outright systemmatic opression, forced geospatial immobility (i.e., they are not allowed to travel, or move without permission)...and no "market" alternatives. They can't quit the jobs they are "attached" to. And no legal recourse for denial of wages if their boss stiffs them, or coerced working hours, or maintains two books to fool the foreigners trying to pay better.
And, let's not forget the continuance unabated of the Laogai slave labor camps.
Note the closeness in wages in just these two categories typically exhibited between Japan, Hong Kong and Singapore from '95...which have only gone up and closed the gap since.
The mainlanders earn what, about 27 cents an hour on the average? This despite claims suddenly of "labor shortage" for the export sector on the mainland.