Excellent read and probably accurate prognostication but, as a dyed-in-the-wool Pollyanna, I'm hoping a bit of trade protectionism won't be such a bad thing.
There's a "real world" aspect to international trade that warrants consideration. Trade protectionism is incredibly harmful, and we can simply look at Smoot-Hawley's contribution to the Great Depression to learn that lesson. This doesn't mean that a hostile nation engaging in bad behaviors isn't worth reacting to. Yes, I speak of China, but high tariffs aren't the remedy there. My remedy would be writing robust bilateral free trade agreements with all China's competitors, wherein America would gain the same level of access to their markets as we'd grant to ours (trade parity) and where nations could compete for the most favorable agreements.
Excellent read and probably accurate prognostication but, as a dyed-in-the-wool Pollyanna, I'm hoping a bit of trade protectionism won't be such a bad thing.
There's a "real world" aspect to international trade that warrants consideration. Trade protectionism is incredibly harmful, and we can simply look at Smoot-Hawley's contribution to the Great Depression to learn that lesson. This doesn't mean that a hostile nation engaging in bad behaviors isn't worth reacting to. Yes, I speak of China, but high tariffs aren't the remedy there. My remedy would be writing robust bilateral free trade agreements with all China's competitors, wherein America would gain the same level of access to their markets as we'd grant to ours (trade parity) and where nations could compete for the most favorable agreements.