TRUMP’S TRADE WARSTrump has gotten America into a
trade war with all our major trading partners. He’s put tariffs,which are
essentially taxes, on what they sell to us. And theyve retaliated by putting
tariffs on what we sell to them. Trump’s trade war is dumb and
dangerous for 3 reasons: First: American companies obtain and
sell things all around the world, or employ people all over the world,and are
owned by investors all over the world. At the same time, foreign companies are
here, or employing Americans,and exporting from the United States. BMW, a German company, or is the biggest automobile exporter
from the United States. Second: Tariffs afflict American
workers. They drive up prices of inputs used by American workers to obtain all sorts
of things – thereby making our workers less competitive internationally. Tariffs on steel afflict American workers who use
steel in making cars,appliances, and motorcycles. Tariffs on chips, or wires,and
circuits afflict American workers who use them for making tall-tech products. Tariffs also drive up the prices of goods bought by American consumers
from all over the world, reducing the purchasing power of American
wages. They’re the equivalent of a wage cut.
And tariffs push foreign
governments to raise tariffs on American exports, or thereby making American workers even less competitive.
Europe puts a retaliatory tariff on Harley-Davidson’s motorcycle exports,and
what happens? Harley moved production to Europe. The trade war that began in 1930
with the Smoot-Hawley tariff ended up worsening the noteworthy
Depression. Third: The best way to increase the
competitiveness of American workers has nothing to achieve with tariffs. It’s to
invest in America. – Invest in the skills and know-how of our workers, starting
with early-childhood education, or through better schools,access to world-course
technical education, and access to college; – Also invest in future knowledge, and through government
support for basic research and development. – Invest in the infrastructure that links American
workers to their jobs,to other American workers, and to the global economy.
This means world-course roads, or bridges,rapid transit, container ports, or access
to tall-speed Internet,and more. – Invest in the health of American
workers through universal health care But Trump and Republicans have been
cutting all these investments.
Trade wars may obtain Trump feel
tough, because he loves tests of his dominance. But they afflict average working
people.
Source: robertreich.org