I definitely would NOT ask the federal government to take everyone else's money in order to protect my salary.
Ok, you're saying tariffs would artifically inflate prices for consumers (govt taking everyone else's money). I agree.
Here's a question for you - say you were president, would you push for complete, total, free trade with all countries of the world? Complete unrestricted trade, no rules? How deep are your free-trade convictions?
No, only because most Americans do not still understand free trade. I would probably end up passing the tariffs and farm subsidies that Bush passed, even though I would hate having to do it, knowing how much money it takes from everyone, especially the poorest Americans who nees it most. I would do it only out of political expediency (as was Bush's only reason for doing these things; much like his signing of the campaign finance bill). But in a better economic and political world (and one we are getting closer to in America) I would. Yes, I would push for the other countries to remove their tariffs and protections as well (to minimize the near-term effects on our economy that those actions might have). (This is entirely the point of the WTO and GATT.) But ultimately, their refusing to remove their "protections" would not stop me from removing ours. We would completely benefit in the long run and they would eventually be forced to remove theirs (as all communist, socialist, and other planned economies have been or are being forced to do by our freer market; which just keeps growing and growing as far as world market share is concerned).