Originally posted by cdtm
Oh, Trumps policies sound ok.
They do?
His economic trade policies bear strong resemblence to those of Herbert Hoover's.
The tariff act they wrote was initially meant to benefit farmers. But after the shock of 1929, industry and labor demanded protection as well. Both Hoover and the Republican Congress were compliant. In its final form Smoot-Hawley covered some 20,000 items. The average tariff on dutiable goods jumped to 50% from an already high 25%. U.S. trading partners responded in kind and world trade began to shut down.U.S. exports dived to $1.7 billion in 1933 from $5.2 billion in 1929. Farmers’ share of the $3.5 billion in lost business was $1 billion.
Restrictive trade policies are what presided over the first half of the Great Depression- the half where jobs and GDP were going down.
Here's a pro-Trump article trumpeting his anti-trade message, and here is an old article about how he wanted a 25% tariff on China, it's been a long-term goal of his, and it is *dangerous*.
His TV shows are no minus, and a business background can work just fine. It is his policies that concern me. Herbert Hoover was possibly the least-economically-successful US president ever, due to his anti-trade policies, so I am pretty darn leery of someone pushing for similar restrictions.