First, he’s threatening broad tariffs on most or all Chinese goods, instead of tariffs targeted at specific, military useful goods. In a post two weeks ago, I explained why broad tariffs are of limited effectiveness:

Broad tariffs cause bigger exchange rate movements , which cancel out more of the effect of the tariffs. Putting tariffs on

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Japan exploited its advantages in producing autos, and the U.S. moved on to things in which it could achieve an advantage of its own. Isn’t that exactly the way things should work in a dynamic global economy?

As I asked in a memo in September, is it a good idea for governments to try to override the laws of economics in an effort to cause their... See more