Frederick W. Smith is chairman and CEO of FedEx. William Brock was U.S. trade representative (USTR) under President Ronald Reagan. Charlene Barshefsky was USTR under President Bill Clinton. They are co-chairs of the Center for Strategic and International Studies Commission on Affirming American Leadership.
President Trump’s trade policy has been controversial for any number of reasons, but it has made Americans think seriously about trade for the first time in a generation. The president believes that much of our trade has been unfair — that other countries have taken advantage of us. He does not remind Americans that trade has become an essential element of our prosperity, accounting for more than 27 percent of our economic output and supporting 1 in 5 U.S. jobs.
Today, the trading system is under attack from two directions. On one hand, we face assertive economies such as China that have a limited and largely mercantilist stake in the system and have chosen to press forward through a program of state-directed capitalism. At home, many Americans feel the policies that promised to advance their economic interests have failed them. Polls show Americans understand that trade can be a positive force, but at the same time, they worry that their personal situations have not improved. Only the top 20 percent of U.S. households have fully recovered from the 2007 to 2009 recession. Progressives see trade agreements benefiting large companies rather than workers, while conservatives are reluctant to cede sovereignty through international agreements. Both left and right are firing at the center instead of trying to build consensus.
The United States seems to be losing both these arguments. Internationally, we have rested on our record instead of defending the rules we created and challenging those who reject the rules and the values that underlie them. Congress has failed to legislate — and the executive branch has failed to effectively administer — programs that would provide new opportunities for workers displaced by trade or technology. When the answer to China’s challenge is containment rather than competition, it demonstrates a loss of confidence in our ability to compete and win when engaging with the world.
