After the stock market crash of 1929 the government was pressed to act and one result was the infamous Smoot-Hawley Tariff passed in 1930.  This law raised tariffs on 20,000 items to record levels to protect American jobs.  The retaliation from our trading partners caused such a huge drop in our exports that our unemployment rose rapidly. Over a thousand economists wrote to President Hoover to veto the bill and Hoover, while initially opposed  yielded to pressure from his party.  FDR also opposed the bill and ran against it. This was the first of much legislation that made the Crash of 1929 into a full blown depression that lasted longer than any other in history... thus far. In the midst of record unemployment we are passing  the destructive equivalent of the Smoot Hawley Bill in the Health Bill.  Caterpillar has already noted that this bill will increase their employment costs by $100 million.  Employers, especially those with strong...(Read Full Post)