Milton Friedman on the Dangers of Protectionism (Obama's recent tariff on Chinese imports)

President Obama recently imposed a 35% tariff on Chinese tire imports to placate one of his biggest campaign contributors, the United Steelworkers Union. Obama is risking a trade war with China, our 2nd largest trading partner and also risking the stability of the international economy with this reckless move of Protectionism.

President Obama may or may not know--or may not care--but the Smoot-Hawley Tariffs enacted in response to populist fear during the 1930's served to prolong and worsen the Great Depression, and the world economy did not recover until after WWII.

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• President
• Barack
• Obama
• Free
• Trade
• Protectionism
• United
• Steelworkers
• Union
• Organized
• Labor
• Unions

[PenguinProseMedia]

***I HAVE POSTED AN IMPROVED VERSION OF THIS VIDEO*****

In light of the constant panning in and out which I agree is annoying, I made another video with the same clips but no zooming/panning video effects. Thanks everyone for your comments. Glad this video has sparked some great back and forth debate on Trade Policy.

[glibglabgloob]

You guys do realize that putting a tariff on Chinese goods, while in the strictest sense of free market principles is a bad idea, is in this case a very good idea, one that many business people might have made. Why? Because that tariff is a RESPONSE to China's own economic shenanigans. By keeping their currency artificially low they aren't competing fairly in...you guessed it, the strictest sense of the free market. The tariff is a way to say fuck you back to China. You people are idiots.

[PenguinProseMedia]

@glibglabgloob

Forcing American consumers to pay higher prices is actually more of a "f**k you" to American consumers. Perhaps I'm missing something, and you can enlighten me.

[mixmastermeeks]

I wish who ver posted this video would have cut the music and not panned in and out. It is annoying

[iluvpoliticzz]

ABOLISH ALL TAXES!

[UCSDEngineerDoctor]

OBAMA is a fucking idiot. Rather than blame our problems on our stupid policies of whoring out to the UNIONs which has bankrupt this country forcing us to send our jobs over to CHINA & put us into debt with no jobs hence no TAX REVENUE hence we have to raise our taxes, & ballooning UNION pensions making us borrow more & putting us into debt with the CHINESE - OBAMA turns around & blames CHINA for the very mess OBAMA & his democratic clowns created.

[MrBigEnchilada]

Our corporations screwed up alot of countries. It's just that we did help build their infrastructure too because we had to do that to make money faster...

how do you guys see these recent free trade agreement talks in washington?

[MrBigEnchilada]

milton's theory is completely correct, but we must fix our corporate bribery and union thug and special interest propaganda first.

[Healing6arts9]

CONGRADULATION MILTON!!!!

YOUR ECONOMIC THEORIES BASED ON TWISTED LOGIC AND A COMPLETE DENIAL OF NATURE AND REALITY FAILED!!!!

THANK YOU MILTON FOR DESTROYING OUR ECONOMY!!!!

TAKING US FROM A COUNTRY WITH A MIDDLE CLASS TO A ECONOMY THAT LOOKS LIKE THAT OF A 3RD WORLD...

FOR CREATING A SOCIETY WHERE 1/2 OF TAX FILERS MAKE UNDER 15K A YEAR!!!

WHERE WE CAN'T BY ANY USA PRODUCTS...

WHERE 300 HUNDRED RICHES FAMILIES OWN MORE WEALTH THEN THE BOTTOM HALF OF POPULATION!!

THANK YOU MILTON

[usaf317]

@cucucachu0000 when the gap between rich and poor grows big enough the poor will look to communism as the answer. communism appeals to those that have nothing. then you will se what a mess we will be in. we need to make product s here in America. we are not talking about a "select few" here...millions are out of work. i dont care if it costs a little more money..at least people will have jobs. i could give a shit about china, europe or india.

[usaf317]

@PenguinProseMedia ok, so just how in the hell does the American worker compete with workers from china, mexico, india and the like? how? we cant and you know it.

[aoeu256]

@glibglabgloob

Chinese economic "shenanigans" screw the Chinese more so than they screw Americans. Suppose that China puts a tariff on US imports: The Chinese industries that take American imports as input are underdeveloped so thus that industry is weaker, and thus they can't meet Chinese demand for products so thus more imports. If you completely close off the economy then you will have low productivity like North Korea.

[notadirector]

@notaneoliberal I guess by fucked up you mean converting Chile into one of the strongest economies in Latin America.