Protectionism does not work.  Whether the object is to protect industries, jobs, or consumers, every attempt to impose protectionist sanctions has failed.  The inevitable result, as Milton Friedman insisted, is perpetuation of uncompetitive industries, declining number and quality of jobs, and/or higher prices for consumers. The better alternative is open markets, which at the same time allow lower-cost goods to enter the U.S. and force American companies and workers to compete in the global marketplace.  That sort of competition leads to innovation of the kind that produces more and better jobs. Now the Obama administration urges Congress to pass a new sort of protectionist measure unlike any that existed before.  But unlike the failed legislation of the past – including the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act of 1930, which is generally credited with deepening and prolonging the Great Depression – the new measures don’t even pretend to protect workers or...(Read Full Article)