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Editorial: Free trade good for Florida, Tampa Bay

 
Published March 18, 2016

Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders are drawing voters to their starkly different campaigns by pounding a similar theme that foreign trade agreements are bad for American workers and the U.S. economy. While cheap goods made in China and elsewhere have cost some U.S. manufacturing jobs, foreign trade is clearly good for the U.S. economy and the nation's broader security interests. The case for smart trade agreements and breaking down trade barriers is strong, and nowhere is that more evident than in Florida.

Trump has catapulted to the front of the Republican field in part by appealing to working-class voters with a mix of anti-immigrant bigotry and economic populism. The billionaire New York real estate developer and TV celebrity would build a wall along the Mexican border and talks of forcing China to change its export policies or face tariffs up to 45 percent. Sanders, for his part, denounces global trade deals as tools for big corporations to deny workers fair wages and benefits. The socialist Vermont senator has tapped a nerve in Rust Belt states, winning Michigan, home to America's auto industry. His anti-trade position appeals to environmentalists, young voters and many liberals in the Democratic primary campaign.

But global trade is not the only cause of these massive postwar shifts in the American economy, and pretending the nation can or should turn back the clock is irresponsible, self-serving and impossible. U.S. manufacturing has faced increasing challenges as Europe, Asia and Latin America grew their industrial capacity, producing cheaper and in some cases more durable, stylish and efficiently made goods. The answer is not to wall off these markets but to find openings to reach the 95 percent of the world's population that lives outside the United States.

The shift in manufacturing toys and other inexpensive goods from the United States to developing states has played a role in depressing wages and moving factory jobs overseas. But leading economists report that trade liberalization since World War II has boosted real U.S. incomes by 9 percent over what they would have been. Exports have helped the United States recover from the recession, while cheaper imports have kept a check on consumer prices and bolstered household incomes. And by creating jobs and raising wages overseas, trade has helped to create a middle class, stabilize emerging governments and build democratic institutions. This all promotes American security.

Overall, Florida exports more than $50 billion a year in goods to more than 100 countries. To their credit, Gov. Rick Scott and the Florida Legislature recognize the vital role that this state's ports play in keeping Florida competitive and creating new jobs and businesses. Since 2011, the state has invested more than $900 million in port projects. Another $150 million for ports is included in the 2016-17 state budget the Legislature passed earlier this month with only one opposing vote. More than one-third of all Florida exports already go to the 20 countries with free-trade agreements with the United States, and the state's new port investments will only expand those markets.

This is good news for the Tampa Bay area, which is raising its international profile with new overseas flights and critical investments in its export sector. Port Tampa Bay, which already supports 100,000 jobs and has a $15 billion annual impact, is modernizing its facilities to take advantage of new business from the Panama Canal expansion. Tampa International Airport is expanding gateways into Latin America. This will all bring new business, tourism and cultural ties throughout the bay area.

American attitudes toward trade rebounded in recent years as consumer confidence grew after the recession. But the presidential campaign has resurrected those insecurities. Neither Trump nor Sanders is addressing the issue; bombast and reigniting costly trade wars is as senseless as believing that American prosperity ends at the border.

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The Democratic front-runner, Hillary Clinton, supported the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade deal as secretary of state during the Obama administration but has backed away in the face of Sanders' blistering criticism. On Tuesday, Clinton and Republican Ohio Gov. John Kasich — the two most moderate voices on trade in the presidential race — won their party primaries in Ohio, a good sign that anti-trade sentiment has not completely won the day. The candidates, though, have yet to set the trade record straight, and continued pandering will only push America's trading partners to seek higher tariffs and other barriers as a defense.

The global market is a reality — with or without trade deals — and the United States needs to focus on how to better compete. Rather than look to the past, the country should spend more on education, job training and public infrastructure, invest in high-technology exports and do more to bring small and medium-sized companies into the supply pipeline. Those plans are harder to pull off than finger-pointing, but they offer solutions rather than scapegoats to voters understandably anxious about the course of the new economy.