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Photo Credit: ANDREW GOMBERT / EPA-EFE / REX / Shutterstock (9475085e) A ship unloads shipping containers in the Los Angeles Harbor in San Pedro, California, United States, on February 23, 2018. The China is preparing to levy tariffs on a range In response, US President Donald J. Trump has announced plans to impose tariffs on more than 50 billion US dollars (40 billion US dollars). Euros) of Chinese imports, raising fears of a trade war. Trump imposes tariffs on imports from China, San Pedro, United States – March 23, 2018 Posted on credit: andrew gombert / EPA / Shutterstock
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Andrew Gombert / EPA / Shutterstock
"We have lost $ 817 billion a year in recent years in trade," said President Trump at a summer event. "In other words, if we did not trade, we would save a lot of money."
Mr. Trump's explosion reversed the Republican scenario in favor of trade. For Democrats, this change offers significant political openness and a crucial choice: should Democrats echo Trump's protectionism, or reinstate the tradition of global commitment backed by FDR, JFK and Bill Clinton?
Democratic ranks are supporting more and more engagement. In a Pew poll conducted in May, 67 percent of Democrats and Independents with Democratic tendencies said trade deals were generally good for the United States.
However, many Democratic leaders are still indebted to unions, whose protectionist rhetoric dominates the party's trade agenda. Last year, for example, Democratic senators proposed a trade plan that was essentially aimed at overtaking President Trump by tightening import restrictions.
Democrats will have a hard time surpassing Trump among antitrade voters, because the president gives protectionists everything they want and more. He retired from the Trans-Pacific Partnership. threatened repeatedly to withdraw from the World Trade Organization; tariffs imposed on washing machines, steel, aluminum and a wide range of Chinese products; and new tariffs on imported cars.
Although these policies are popular among a small core of protectionist interest groups and voters, they are already hurting the US economy. Consumers pay higher prices for beer, boats and HVAC systems. Prices for washers and dryers jumped 20% in three months. And if car rates were applied, they would add thousands of dollars to the price of imported and domestic cars.
Workers are also losing jobs. Economists estimate that for every new job created by President Trump's metal tariffs, 16 jobs will be lost. Manufacturers and farmers are losing vital foreign markets. US pork exports to China have collapsed.
For those who adhere to Tip O'Neill's adage that "all politics is local," there is daily local reporting of how Mr. Trump's fees hurt workers, businesses and businesses. communities. A strong majority of Americans say that tariffs are hurting the US economy, including majorities in every region of the country. Tariffs are essentially regressive consumption taxes and are harmful to low-income workers and consumers. Even some unions say tariffs have gone too far.
Many Democratic candidates have seized the unpopularity of tariffs by criticizing President Trump's trade policy. But opposing Trump is not enough: Democrats must also offer a constructive vision.
Congressional Democrats should support legislation to reaffirm Congressional authority over trade policy. For example, imposing stricter limits on the President's power to set tariffs on the basis of the Trade Expansion Act would prevent Trump's abuses, such as his plan to tax imported cars under the pretext of national security. . Congressional Republicans wrote letters denouncing President Trump's policy, but party loyalty prevented them from taking concrete action.
Democrats should also come up with a firm and focused plan to fight China's trade abuses. Such a plan should define the conditions under which the United States and its allies can aggressively enforce existing international trade rules and draft new ones, and impose targeted sanctions if China does not cooperate.
Democrats should help American workers and producers to impose themselves in the global economy. Rather than picking winners and losers with the rates – and with bailouts, such as payments from Commodity Credit Corp. farmers with tariffs – Democrats should press for export markets to be reopened. The party could also boost the workforce by supporting investment in vocational training and infrastructure.
Finally, Democrats must recognize that it is essential that the United States seek genuine trade agreements, rather than Mr. Trump's often illusory trade agreements. Some 36 million Americans have jobs that depend on trade. However, trade-dependent industries are increasingly undermined by the United States' backwardness and the signing of new trade pacts opening markets. Progressive governments in countries such as Canada and New Zealand show that trade-friendly policies and progressive values can be reconciled.
As the president's trade wars are pushing more and more Americans, now is the time for Democrats to restore their legacy of global commitment. The wisdom of President Kennedy's new frontier, which warned against "stagnation behind tariff barriers," is more powerful today than ever before.
Dr. Gerwin is a Research Fellow for Global Trade and Opportunities at the Progressive Policy Institute.
