Is Trump possibly right on trade?

If you watch the end of FDR’s famous Day of Infamy Speech you see he does not ask Congress to declare war, which is their Constitutional responsibility. FDR asks Congress to recognize a state of war already exists.

All the reports I see blare headlines about President Donald Trump starting a trade war that is going to hurt us all. Fox Business Network dropped its request for an interview when I said I agreed that the president had a point. Apparently even they wanted to bash him. I see little inquiry past the threat of trade wars. Is it possible that President Trump is right and current trade policies hurt American workers and producers? (Note: The original version of this commentary incorrectly attributed the request for interview to Fox Business News.)

Even the New York Times, which clearly is not supportive of the president on most issues, had an April 5 headline, “Trump is right: China’s a trade cheat.” It cites the U.S. Trade Representative’s “2017 Report to Congress On China’s WTO Compliance” report. The USTR’s report is a monster at 161 pages. It analyzes China’s trade in nine broad dimensions and finds China has violated its agreement with the global community when it joined the World Trade Organization. The report clearly says China is still a state-run economy with mercantilist policies. (If you do not remember from your econ classes, “mercantilist” is the academic term for countries that try to be economically self-sufficient. It is the opposite of global. Think “China First.”) The USTR’s report says China aggressively violates intellectual property laws. I have seen that firsthand. I have visited China and found that the Chinese are great people with a go-go attitude and I respect that. They are also tough, no-nonsense businesspeople.

The Guardian pointed out the irony that NAFTA and TPP were criticized by progressives as being too business-friendly, until Trump axed the agreements. Now they are pillars to be protected.

Recently, House Speaker Paul Ryan highlighted how Canada was hurting dairymen in Wisconsin, home of the cheeseheads. Ryan accused Canada of dumping low-price dairy products that compete with Wisconsin dairymen.

One report says the U.S. Trade Representative shows NAFTA allowed Canada to charge 45 percent tariffs on TVs, HVAC equipment and aluminum from the U.S. Can you see where this looks unfair to the U.S.?

Non-tariff barriers like trucks and product licensing were supposed to be zeroed out with NAFTA. Farmers here in Fresno County have been hurt by these non-tariff barriers.

We already were in a trade war. Non-tariff barriers have been used against us. Non-tariff barriers are things like extra paperwork or regulations. They are an international problem because they are hard to measure and rarely make it into formal trade agreements. Non-tariff barriers are not just an issue for American farmers. The Guardian reports that Scottish and Irish farmers are worried about how non-tariff barriers will affect them as part of Brexit.

The Newsies do us a disservice when they only report one side of the issue. All the news is reporting the president is getting us in an unnecessary trade war. Few, if any, are investigating the president’s claims about trade problems. Many just seem to assume he is wrong. Is that serious journalism? No wonder they are losing credibility.

Since I agree with the president on issues like trade, friends ask: Considering the three-ring circus in Washington, when I will give up supporting the president? That is a fair question. His personal life and scandals are issues of concern. But it is easy to support him on policies. California farmers have been hurt by unfair trade and he is the first one in D.C. to take the issue seriously.

I have long written and spoken about the benefits of globalization. It fits solid economic theory going back to Adam Smith and David Ricardo. Comparative advantage works on a global scale. More people have been lifted out of poverty in the last three decades by globalization than all government programs combined. Free trade has benefited our farms and our communities. But, and this is a big but, free trade has not always been fair trade.

This story was originally published July 15, 2018 at 10:41 AM.