Another One From The "Prosperity Is Overrated" Department
By Pejman Yousefzadeh Posted in Democrats | Economy | Free Trade | Mercantilism | Protectionism — Comments (0) / Email this page » / Leave a comment »
The House voted to effectively kill the pending U.S.-Colombia free trade deal today. This was expected but no less appalling.
As mentioned before, Speaker Nancy Pelosi was the prime mover behind the killing of the deal. And she did so at the behest of unions. One trusts that those unions know they are responsible for the opportunity cost in prosperity terms when it comes to their own members.
Meanwhile, Dan Drezner goes through the reasons why the trade deal was a good idea. One quibble: Contra the good Professor, NAFTA has been quite beneficial for the American economy. And in response to Kevin Drum's point concerning agricultural subsidies and the need to decry them, he is quite right. But even if free traders fail to make this point, that doesn't mean that free trade ought to be held hostage. My doctor can tell me that I need to lower my bad cholesterol by changing my diet. I will listen to that advice even if my doctor fails to mention the need for me to get as much exercise as possible in addition to changing my diet.