However, If you go back in History, tariffs have been there since the birth of our United States, and many Republicans have used them.
Hey, we had slavery too.
I think McKinley is right on the money, and it applies today, now more than ever.
He is? How?
Let's have a quick economics lesson...
Why do we buy things from other people instead of making it ourselves? Why, for example, did I buy my awesome Canon 40D instead of making it? Simple, it required less resources (time, money, and anything else) to buy than to create. In order to create the capital to buy the things I want, I have to produce something of my own, whether it be IT services or whatever else - something I specialize in. Specialization is key to the economy and quality of life. If we didn't have it, we'd be too busy growing/hunting our own food to participate in other endeavors.
So we take that principal a step further by regressing it at the same time. Why do US citizens/corporations buy or have things produced in other countries? Because it's cheaper. With me? I hope so - it's simple economics.
So then the issue becomes "why is it cheaper to produce/buy things from other countries?". The answer to that question is complicated - but yet it's the components of that question to which we have control.
Think about it... taxes, regulations, etc all drive up the cost of production here in the united states. Labor laws? Hell yeah that's going to drive up the cost of a product. Strict liability? Damn right the company is gonna have to set aside cash for when the trial lawyers start running their "Have you taken this pill and now have your ex wife kicking down your door for alimony? Call now to sue!" ads.
Screwing over consumers with supposedly "protectionist" policies (they really hurt) is a proposition that keeps up prices (read the Williams link).
Want to legitimately keep more business in the US? It's simple - get rid of all this ridiculous regulation and taxation that the government has been putting on it's citizens for god knows how long.
The automakers are burdened with as much as $2,000 per car in health care costs
a) They either brought it on themselves, in which case why the hell should I foot the bill
or
b) It's a result of government involvement in labor relations
Going back to the awesomeness of my 40D and the photos it takes...
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