What is the economic case for assessing 100% (Biden proposed) or even 200% (Trump proposed) tariffs on Chinese EV’s?
I had to read this book a long time ago for Macro and it convinced me free trade was great.
https://www.amazon.com/Choice-Fable-Free-Trade-Protection/dp/0131433547
What am I missing? Cheap reliable electric cars seem like a huge win for everyone.
1. if you think china has unfairly subsidized their ev industry and you want to impose punitive tariffs to induce them to remove subsidies.
2. if you think china is a geopolitical adversary and the ev industry has strategic importance and you don't want us demand to be used to help subsidize the development of chinese heavy/semiconductor industry and/or you don't want us producers to be eliminated via competition with chinese producers.
since neither political party really believes in free trade currently, i think it's clearly the second one, although we might at times argue the first as a fig leaf.