Why?
Because to the GOP-E, their constituency are BIG CORPORATIONS, not the American worker. See -> Immigration
Buchanan is correct; he has always been correct on trade and culture. But now, conservatism has been constrained to include only free trade and the de-industrialization of the United States. Just listen to Mark Levin.
My guess is that they are afraid that their the dollar’s status of being the reserve currency may be threatened. The U.S. dollar being the reserve currency, means they can spend like drunken sailors on a binge.
My guess is that they are afraid that the dollar’s status of being the reserve currency may be threatened. The U.S. dollar being the reserve currency, means they can spend like drunken sailors on a binge.
I agree. Everyone needs to read the line about trade deficits SUBTRACTING from Gross Domestic Product.
If unbalanced trade is so great, as these gop lackeys try to claim, then why on earth do economic experts SUBTRACT that from GDP?
In other words, it HURTS GDP.
Does Flake see no correlation between America’s decline, China’s rise, and the $4 trillion in trade surpluses Beijing has run up at the expense of his own country?
Come on Pat, you know as we all do, that they have been trying to destroy this Country and build up our enemies for a long long time. Every trade deal to come down the pike in the last 30 years had that as their stated goal.
They are Just plain Evil, and Hate America, Freedom, and everything it stands for, accept it and act accordingly.
But you are correct Mr Buchanan!
Amazing article, and 100% right. IN reality, there is no “free trade” - we have massive barriers elsewhere and almost none here.
Love it or leave it.
Excellent article. Thanks for posting it!
It is the perfect rebuttal to all the GOPe fear mongering re President Trump’s proposal of tariffs with countries which tariff our products.
They are afraid of tariffs for much the same reason street walkers dont like street preachers.
I hope some of FR’s Free Traders will post against this article, and refute this recommendation for a Mercantilist USA.
Let’s argue this subject from an OUTCOME perspective. Not unlike Reagan’s election argument “If you are better off than 4 (or even 40) years ago...”
Yet, the Free Traders argue as if their viewpoint is PROVEN.
It has never been proven. Free Trade has never existed in the history of man.
So, we have two proven outcomes, one where the US abandons most tariffs and opens it’s markets to the Mercantilists without cost, and one where we are the predatory Mercantilist perusing the most favorable outcome to us.
Which one worked best for the American people?
Trump is able to do a 180 if something he does turns out wrong. I expect him to change is attitude on tariffs and tax cuts if they aren’t working (though he needs congress for tax changes). Most politicians won’t do a 180 for a variety of reasons so they don’t even want to see their theories tested.
Trump is testing their theory on tariffs, and we may find out they have been wrong - especially if done as part of a larger economic and diplomatic effort which Trump is likely to implement well. Once shown to be wrong in one thing, people may question other statements anti-tariff politicians and economists make.
It’s a little like Pelosi’s fear of tax cuts. We’ve had an economic argument and elections for 2 decades based on simple quotes that both sides campaign on (”tax cuts for the rich”, “voodoo economics”, “a rising tide lifts all boats”...) Dems are fine battling it out with words since 1/2 the country believe their words (republicans are fine with that too). The tax cuts are testing the words. And if they’ve been wrong on tax cuts, what else could voters think they’ve been wrong on? Pelosi would be happy if her constituents get more money - but not if it causes them to stop believing Dems economic objectives.
Broad tariffs like the ones the EU imposes are one thing, and they can be argued on their own merits and deficiencies. But targeted tariffs that only apply to certain products and (especially) raw materials are a whole different story. They effectively pit one U.S. industry against another, depending on who is producing something protected by a tariff and who is buying it for their own manufacturing process.
Buchanan's example of a $50,000 Lexus with a 20% tariff is a perfect case in point. Why would a Japanese automaker relocate its production facilities to the U.S. to avoid this 20% tariff if the cars they build here are either going to be: (1) built using more expensive domestic parts and raw materials, or (2) built with imported materials that will be subject to their own tariffs anyway?
Because the GOPe and deep staters don't want another bigly Trumpian WIN.
The other benefit to tariffs is that they can be used to pay for large cuts to income and corporate taxes. When deficit hawks ask how Trump intends to pay for his tax cuts and infrastructure expenditures, his answer should be “import duties.” For over the first century of US history, tariffs accounted for much of the Federal Government’s revenue.
The only thing to do is answer that question with a question, "What GOP ?"
The last time there was a glimmer of hope of actually having two parties in this country rather than two arms of one Swamp party was when Americans gave the GOP a shot due to the Contract With America masterminded by Newt Gingrich.
Democrats came up with their usual lies about Newt and the so called members of the GOP fell all over one another to shed Newt because the democrats with Clinton in the lead showed them the GOP could control and become the biggest beneficiaries from the free flowing corruption of hookers, kiddies, dope, and cash which had been controlled by democrats up to that time.
So the Republicans couldn't resist eating the forbidden fruit any more than the democrats had thus ending what had been, barely, a two party system leaving We The People with the current Globalist Uniparty running the show.
JMHo
As every other country has proven, we don’t have to look favorably on goods coming in from other countries. We have every right to support our own industries.
The reason the GOP fears tariffs is that the Great Depression was blamed, probably falsely, on the Hawley-Smoot Tariff of 1930. Jack French Kemp was always pounding on that idea to show why he opposed taxes. Now we remember Kemp too for constantly referring to “my friend Al Gore” in their little 1996 “debate.”
Why we need our own steel industry kept healthy:
https://qanonposts.com/images/0d688fb6941033c3ba9e2b5a0241be38126373145b4784c157bcf72c38d152ec.png
Article from Reuters today—Kobe Steel-Japan- has been falsifying specs for almost 50 years.
