All conservatives agree that we need to “drain the
swamp,” but it is much harder to agree on how to do that. Ultimately, draining
the swamp means removing the corrupt influence of Washington bureaucrats from an
otherwise superior system of constitutionally limited government based on
personal rights and free enterprise. To most, trade policy might seem irrelevant
to this goal. However, Phyllis Schlafly understood that politicians use trade
policy as a way to broker their power and pick winners and losers in a blatantly
uncapitalistic fashion. She saw the importance of the trade issue when she
wrote her August 1972 Phyllis Schlafly
Report entitled “Subsidizing the Soviets with a Trick Called Trade.” In order to truly drain the swamp, we must
seize this unconstitutional power wielded by Washington bureaucrats who offer
financial and commercial aid to those acting in aggression to American
interests.
In 1972, the aggressor of primary concern was the communist
bully known as the Soviet Union. If we were to substitute “China” for “Soviet
Union,” we would have an incredibly relevant picture of the trade problems our
nation faces today. The banner of “free trade” is still wholly insufficient to describe
the reality of the trade situation. As Donald Trump said, “Open markets are the
ideal, but if one guy is cheating the whole time, how is that free trade?”
China is cheating now just as much as the Soviets did then. Trade, by
definition, is supposed to be a two-way street; we give them something and they
give us something of relatively comparable value in return. That simply does
not happen when we trade with China.
One of the biggest trade violations China commits is
currency manipulation, which is when a country intentionally and artificially
inflates its currency to get the better end of a trade agreement. Although
currency manipulation is not directly a tariff, it has essentially the same
affect. China, like the Soviet Union, is also guilty of many ethical violations
which give them unfair advantages in the global market. Although China is
constantly pushing for environmental restrictions at global climate summits,
they never follow the restrictions themselves. They just use those restrictions
to gain an unfair advantage over the competition. Chinese companies are also
not subject to the same child labor restrictions, working conditions
restrictions, and health and safety restrictions that American companies are
subject to. There can be no real “free trade” without a level playing field
where free market principles are in place for everyone.
However, the biggest con by the Chinese today is the
same one the Soviets used. They openly steal American patents and trade
secrets. The key to American economic success has been our longstanding
tradition of respecting intellectual property rights. The Founders felt that this
was so important that they included it in the U.S. Constitution under Article
I, Section 8, Clause 8. If inventors and artists are not allowed to gain the
economic benefit of their work, they have no reason to continue their work.
Countries like China do not recognize American copyrights and frequently steal
American trade secrets for their own free use. As Phyllis said, “It makes no
more sense to give the Soviets what American inventors have achieved in the
climate of American freedom than it would be to have given the fruits of our
system to Hitler.” Countries like China that embrace communism instead of capitalism
should not be allowed to reap the rewards of our successful free market system.
Until President Trump changed the conversation, most
people viewed trade as a matter of great imports, but not a matter of great
import. Politicians do not address this issue because they care more about
power and big business interests than they do the American inventor. We need to
take a hard line against China’s unethical business practices if we are ever
going to have truly free trade. President Trump is carrying out the vision of
the August 1972 Phyllis Schlafly Report
by negotiating trade deals for the benefit of the American consumer. We do not owe
communist China anything. They are the ones who choose to value government
control over prosperity. They are the ones who embrace an economic system that
is on the losing side of history. Communist countries that rely on unfair trade
deals and shady business practices will always find themselves “begging crumbs
from the table of capitalism.” Phyllis Schlafly knew President Trump would give
us trade deals that reflect that simple fact of history.
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