our government lowered all of our tariffs for Chinese goods( calling it free trade) and turned a blind eye when China raised tariffs on those same goods coming from us.
No, not at all. China's tariff and non-tariff barriers have long been an issue of contention between the US and China.
Did you even
look for information about this, or just assume that the lack of resolution is simply for lack of trying? If Trump's trade war is good for anything, it should be to demonstrate that it's not an easy problem to solve.
And, in fact, previous efforts
did get China to let its currency appreciate in value, among other things. That's certainly more than Trump has accomplished, thus far.
This (deliberate?) imbalance has made silicon valley and the Chinese communists trillions!
Um, how did the trade imbalance benefit Silicon Valley, exactly? Aren't you aware that most of those companies are banned from China? Where, exactly, did you find these statistics?
What did the average American get in return? Shuttered factories, once thriving now desolate towns, loss of hope, fetanyl (Made in China ofc!) addictions, crime and national debt to finance the loss of tax revenue generated by those tens of thousands once successful manufacturing companies.
Nobody is saying the trade deficit isn't a real problem. Of course, most problems have more than one solution, or at least can be attacked from multiple angles.
Of course, many of those jobs weren't lost to globalization. In fact,
more were lost to automation than globalization. And don't forget "right-to-work" states, to where a lot of US-based manufacturing has migrated.
Now I am supposed to forget all of this and just focus on "consumer prices" and forget about this imbalance, why it was caused, and how it is affecting people not only in this country but also the average Chinese worker and the conditions they are exposed to on a daily basis? Now I am also supposed to side and feel sorry for these trade organizations, manufacturers, and think tanks and codemn "Trump's Trade War" just because the company loses some profit or I need to pay more for my Chinese slave goods?
No, but I think the issue is that Trump has tricked people into believing that his approach is the only solution.
Also, because he makes so much noise, people assume he's doing more than previous administrations. Like, in the case of North Korea, where he gave away things no other President has given them, and got even less in return than his predecessors. But he got more TV coverage and played it up in true Reality TV style, so people give him more credit.
The China trade war is similar. He's making a lot more noise, so people give him more credit. But, so far, we've gained
nothing and lost
much.
I've got a better idea! Screw China, Screw the companies that made the decision to move there in the first place and take advantage of all those workers.
It's kinda like the 2008 financial crisis. A lot of people were opposed to the bailout. But, that risked a complete breakdown of the financial system. Think bank runs, credit card transactions failing, paychecks bouncing, and unemployment running much higher than it eventually did. So, yeah, it would've really taught those bankers a lesson, but just wouldn't have been worth the pain likely suffered by the public. So, after voting down the bailout, Congress passed it. And Bush signed it.
Punishing the bankers wouldn't have
solved anything, but it
would have caused a lot of collateral damage. The real solution was proper oversight and regulation of the financial system, but 2008 was far too late for that.
And so, it's the same with our China problem. The seeds of the problem were sewn long ago, and allowed to fester. Once the problem reaches a crisis stage, it becomes too difficult to tackle, directly.
Really addressing the trade deficit with China requires careful engineering.
I give Trump credit for prioritizing the issue and having the willingness to escalate it beyond what others have done. But China's dominance is largely a product of their patience, planning, and ingenuity. That's the real way to beat them (or at least level the playing field, somewhat), and Trump comes up short on all 3, sadly.
Unfortunately, his attempts are really hurting US-based exporters, including the manufacturing sector he's trying to help. But a lot of other businesses are starting to speak out on the trade war's impact on them. Besides exporters (including agriculture), retail and a lot of importers are directly suffering from the tariffs. Pretty soon, the impacts will be felt far and wide, throughout the entire US economy.
All of these tech companies crying because their profits are down and now we actually have a president who cares about trade imbalances and American workers, will get ZERO sympathy from me.
It's not helpful to look at this in terms of a zero-sum. In fact, that's a major problem with Trump's view on trade. Trade is not actually a zero-sum game.
) 120billion/19.39trillion = .6% We'll live!! If congress wants to help the farmers transition to new markets by providing temporary assistance, I as a tax payer do not mind their bailout.
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