Protectionists are sly. They don’t have any logical arguments for their position. All they can do is spit out rhetoric and slogans and hope they persuade the public. As futile as this may seem, it sadly often works. One of the many facts protectionists don’t want getting out is that imports beget exports. That’s right, the all hailed exports need imports to sustain themselves. But, how can this be the protectionist asks?
When Americans import goods from overseas what do the foreign exporters receive in return? They receive American dollars. It may be a foreign currency exchanger who receives the dollars instead of the exporter himself, but this does not change the fact that foreigners receive dollars because this is what Americans have to trade.
What can these foreigners do with the dollars? They do not live in America, so dollars will not be as useful for trade in their country. For example, if you are an American, you don’t go around trading with British Pounds or Japanese Yen. It may be possible to find someone once in a while to trade with foreign currencies, but this scenario is as common as finding someone willing to barter. Effectively in this scenario someone is trying to barter with a foreign currency. Therefore, foreigners will eventually spend the dollars on American exports because that is the only place to reliably spend dollars. This means that when Americans import foreign goods they are indirectly causing the exportation of American goods. Imports beget exports and vice versa. The protectionist’s hero, exports, will slowly dwindle away unless they allow imports and this they never want anyone to know.
Thinking I’d like to hear more in person sometime.