Since nothing seems to be off the table when it comes to trade policy, I thought I might put forward a modest two-step trade policy reform to make America great again.
Step one, levy a substantial tax on all exports, from aeroplanes to soyabeans. Such a tax will squeeze America’s most internationally competitive industries. That’s fine. America will never be great again unless the US soyabean industry suffers.
Step two, tax a generous selection of the inputs that corporate America uses to make its products — for example, the sugar that goes into American candy, the aluminium that goes into American drinks cans and, above all, chips and computers. When American businesses are overpaying for the inputs to the products they make, they’ll get tired of winning.