Trump's 'America first' trade policy ignores key lesson from Great Depression

Charles Hankla, Georgia State University

President Donald Trump declared his nearly two-week trip through Asia “tremendously successful,” but economic history should make us more skeptical.

During the trip, the president continued to promote his so-called “America first” trade policy. He is orienting the country distinctly toward protectionism and claiming that unilateralism in trade is good for America.

Here is the problem: President Trump’s approach to trade seems to be based on a false understanding of how the global economy works, one that also plagued American policymakers nearly a century ago. The administration has forgotten an important lesson of the Great Depression, and virtually all economists agree that this could have unfortunate consequences for the U.S. and the world.
If Trump puts ‘America first’ in trade, other countries will follow. And that’s bad news for ev
Trump's 'America first' trade policy ignores key lesson from Great Depression