With each trade subject coming into the scene, many right-leaning free traders and left-leaning neoliberals sprint through the points of the same story. And perhaps they do – or at least most of them do. The barriers to free and free trade may appear “inefficient” as a problem of “death loss” in the economic model. And they could be very contradictory to David Ricardo’s “comparative advantage” 19th century trade theory. “Consumer surplus” may actually be harmed by restrictions on the free flow of products.

But this is classroom theory. And the “dark science,” an economics profession, is not always known for its close relationship with real life.

After the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989, elites of both US parties were rushing to implement the “Washington Consensus” of globalization and trade liberalization, overly confident in their belief that the “openness” of the West had just defeated the “evil empire” of the Soviet Union. Don’t worry about Ronald Reagan just hit a disability in 1987 100% customs tax A wide variety of Japanese products leads Japanese cars manufactured in the southern United States in a rather short order. Instead, the new distribution was summarised in 1990 by George HW Bush’s Economic Advisory Council chairmanMichael Boskin: “Potato chips, semiconductor chips, what’s the difference? They’re all chips.”

I think it’s true as far as I go. However, in reality, there are big differences. Consider the increasingly belligerent forces of the People’s Liberation Army and its movement in the Taiwan Strait. It’s only a matter of time before Xi Jinping finally pulls the trigger and invades Taipei, the most obvious reason the US cares about, and its reliance on Taiwanese semiconductor manufacturing, the world’s leading chipmaker, as the US could potentially endanger a disastrous conflict against the only other global superpower. The People’s Republic of China has actually defeated the US in at least some war game simulations, and the main reason for defending Taiwan militarily anyway is due to semiconductor companies.

In fact, we found out there is a huge difference between potato chips and semiconductor chips!

It is certainly true, more generally, that free and free trade lowers consumer prices and thereby maximizes consumption. And in the Western economy based on modern post-Berlin wall consumption, it is easy to lose sight of other concerns about economic 3D learning. However, there are other concerns too. That is, production and supply chain resilience.

The great Americans understood this at least until Alexander Hamilton’s 1791 “Manufacturing Report” He argued that “free trade” is often an illusion. “If a system of complete freedom for industry and commerce was the general system of the nation, then the debate that contests the country in its plight from its dedicated pursuit will have unquestionable power.” Abraham Lincoln, the first Republican president, decades later, took the same stance in his early career in 1832. speech: “My politics are as short and sweet as the old lady’s dance. I’m in favor of the National Bank. I’m in favor of an internal improvement system and a higher protection tariff.”

In many ways, the Hamiltonian/Lincoln impulse helped America become an industrial powerhouse. It was the same manufacturing power that defeated both the Confederate rebellion of the 19th century and the Nazi war planes of the 20th century.

It is a noble impulse that appears to motivate President Donald Trump to embark on the most aggressive tariff campaign he has seen in decades. Investors are always responsive to classroom theory. However, this experiment has only just begun. The judges are still out.

The truth is said, we may not know the full effect for years. But there were already at least some positive indications that Trump’s approach was working. February, Apple – The world’s largest company by market capitalization – announcement We will invest $500 billion in the US over the next four years. Johnson & Johnson has Pledge Nvidia, a US investment of $55 billion, is said to be investing “tens of billions” dollars in electronics manufacturing. There are many other recent examples and we should expect this trend to continue.

But that doesn’t mean that everything is problematic with Trump’s tariff rollout. The tariffs announced so far in this second term, culminating in Wednesday’s “Freedom Day” Rose Garden Speech, are in a directional manner but significantly overly comprehensive. For example, there is a big difference between slapping punitive tariffs in China and Canada. It is underlined that China has taken America for decades, and we are so economically dependent on a nation that is also a geopolitical threat of this century. But what exactly is the problem with our friendly north neighbours? If anything, Trump’s tariffs in Canada, coupled with repeated reckless stories of annexation, appear to have caused a political collapse in the Canadian Conservative Party on the cliff of key national elections.

There is also the issue of consistency. The administration’s tariff development gave the clear impression that it was taking place from scattered fires. The market value stability and predictability – and it could be more instability or unpredictability in tariff policy than the tariff itself that has surprised so many people on Wall Street.

As our leaders, Americans do not select economists who monolitically pursue the most “efficient” policy possible. And I’m grateful for that. Instead, we choose leaders who exercise prudence, identification and sound judgment in pursuit of a common interest. Customs duties have an absolute role. But while the jacka hammer with a heavily disrupted policy may be appealing, sometimes just a female is enough.

To learn more about Josh Hammer, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com to read features from other creator syndicate writers and cartoonists.

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