Dan Griswold of the Cato Institute is eloquent and unusually well-informed on matters of trade. Here’s Dan’s most recent essay, appearing at American.com. I especially like Dan’s understanding that protectionists are Grinchly:
Extrapolating from trade numbers through October 2006, Americans bought
an estimated $286 billion worth of goods “Made in China” in the year
just ended. More than three-quarters of those goods are consumer
products that make our lives better everyday at home and the
office—just the kind of stuff that made its way under our Christmas
trees this holiday season. When congressional leaders talk about
getting tough with China by imposing tariffs on all those imports, it
must bring a twisted smile to the cold-hearted Grinch.
The larger message is that, in the long-run, trade is a win-win not only for consumers "here" and producers "there," but for everyone here (and there) — a message conveyed beautifully in Russ Roberts’s The Choice (3rd ed., 2006).
