Source: JimBovard.com
by James Bovard
“Donald Trump’s re-election assures that protectionism will become even more fashionable inside the Beltway. Trump recently declared that tariff is ‘the most beautiful word in the dictionary,’ and the exaltation of trade barriers has become the latest political mania. Washington hustlers are loudly promising to enrich the nation by selectively blockading American ports. Unfortunately, the Trump team and the growing horde of protectionist pundits sound clueless about America’s long record of trade follies. Instead, we are encouraged to presume that politicians merely need to issue a few commands and federal bureaucrats will instantly apply their wisdom to remedy our economic problems. But unless politicians intend to ban all imports or inflict the same tax on all imports, then government officials will need to make distinctions between products.” (11/19/24)
https://jimbovard.com/blog/2024/11/19/protectionism-is-more-idiotic-than-it-looks/