Trump is right when it comes to free and fair trade

There was an interesting YouTube video from the CFR (Council on Foreign Relations) titled: “A Conversation with Adam Smith” which is noteworthy – watching this intellectual panel discussion, it occurred to me that maybe Washington DC needs a reboot, and CFR should consider its future policies on all of this as well. There was a bit of Trump stomping in the video and a tone of insightful arrogance. Okay, here are some of my thoughts on this:

Actually, Trump’s concept of foreign trade is very clear. “Free and Fair” – not lopsided trade deals simply to take over a client nation at the expense of free and fair trade. He is a billionaire with businesses all over the world. I almost think CFR is showing its anti-Trump stance (getting old) and yet CFR supported Obama and Clinton, leading to corruption and bad decisions. Perhaps CFR needs to look in the mirror, recent history, and see how bad their advice was. Furthermore, CFR is continually promoting the UN, which always seems to make things worse, without solving much of anything.

A Washington DC economic policy adviser notes: “The economics of trade is very opaque: fewer barriers to trade are better than more, even if the trading partner raises its own barriers. As far as we understand economics, this is true.”

Yes, okay, but when every nation we trade with finds ourselves in an unfair position, today almost all of our trade is unbalanced, at some point along the line we hurt ourselves economically. We can’t purposely be disadvantaged in every trade deal and still do better. Yes, we win client countries, and yes, it is good to establish the rules of how the international community intermingles, and yes, it is good that the world plays with US dollars allowing us to print more, but when we lend money so that it exists and the US citizen is hanging on that debt, we need money to circulate here too, if not, that’s not good. And as for what’s good for us and for them, consider this: When we hyperinflate other nations because we give them tremendous trade surpluses or free-flowing borrowed money, we end up piling up and collapsing, then they don’t. rely on trade, the West, or capitalism.

Also, when those foreign investors rush to put that money here in a safe-haven motive: we bloat our economy and bank reserves, then we lend more domestically to our citizens instead of extending them and making risky loans, then we have a boom. and downturn cycles – now those boom and bust cycles are global, that’s not good for stability – politically, economically or peacefully speaking.

If we are going to have trade rules, everyone should agree to free and fair trade, otherwise, in the end, the flows become unbalanced and we prepare ourselves and / or our trading partners for sudden changes and mayhem. Not wise.

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