Free trade is one of the sacred cows among economists. A majority of the public disagree with economists about the desirability of free trade. One of the reasons for the divergence of opinion on the value of free trade is that it may expand total output for a nation, but the benefits will not be equally distributed. The US has a capital intensive economy and the owners of capital benefit from free trade. The return on labor, especially unskilled labor, is diminished by free trade. Government has failed to provide the redistribution of benefits to labor that it promised when free trade agreements were passed by Congress. It is not surprising that the majority of Americans are skeptical about the value of free trade.
This article was inspired by a post from Noah Smith. His discussion about the divergence of opinion between economists and the general public goes deeper into the issue. The comments on Smith's post are also very interesting.
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