Recent public opinion polling uniformly reveals that, first, foreign trade and globalization are generally popular, and in fact more popular today than at any point in recent history; second, a substantial portion of the American electorate has no strong views on U.S. trade policy or trade agreements; third, and likely due to the previous point, polls on trade fluctuate based on partisanship or the state of the U.S. economy; and, fourth, Americans' views on specific trade policies often shift depending on question wording, especially when the actual costs of protectionism are mentioned.
These polling realities puncture the current conventional wisdom on trade and public opinion-in particular, that Americans have turned en masse against trade and globalization, and that President Donald Trump's economic nationalism reflects the bottom-up policy demands of a silent majority of American voters.
THE AMERICAN PUBLIC INCREASINGLY SUPPORTS GLOBALIZATION AND TRADE Contrary to conventional wisdom, the United States is not experiencing a "Protectionist moment." Indeed, recent polls show Americans' support for trade and globalization at or near all-time highs.
7 AMERICANS DO NOT PRIORITIZE TRADE POLICY Despite strong public support for trade in general, polls also show that the issue is not a priority for most American voters, even during the height of the 2016 election season when then-candidate Trump made "Bad trade deals" a centerpiece of his campaign.
" Only 38 percent of voters saw trade as a top priority in 2018, up slightly from 32 percent in 2010.11 ƒƒ; Gallup found that only 1 percent of Americans believe that "Foreign trade/trade deficit" is "The most important problem facing the country today."12 For the vast majority of Americans, trade is simply not a priority-an understandable position given that the United States trades less than many major economies;13 most Americans work in non-traded services, representing the bulk of the U.S. workforce; and that few Americans know someone affected by import competition.
As shown below in Figure 2, polls from Gallup, Pew, and the Chicago Council on trade agreements, foreign trade, and globalization show similar trends: ƒƒ; First, significant bipartisan shifts in support for trade coincide with the state of the U.S. economy, with support for trade collapsing during the Great Recession and rebounding over the last several years of recovery.
Most Americans generally support freer trade, globalization, and even oft-maligned trade agreements, but the understandable disinterest of many voters means that isolated polls on specific trade policy issues-the Trans-Pacific Partnership or steel tariffs, for example-more likely reflect partisan cues or broader macroeconomic conditions than actual support for or opposition to the trade measure at issue.
https://object.cato.org/sites/cato.org/files/pubs/pdf/ftb-72.pdf
These polling realities puncture the current conventional wisdom on trade and public opinion-in particular, that Americans have turned en masse against trade and globalization, and that President Donald Trump's economic nationalism reflects the bottom-up policy demands of a silent majority of American voters.
THE AMERICAN PUBLIC INCREASINGLY SUPPORTS GLOBALIZATION AND TRADE Contrary to conventional wisdom, the United States is not experiencing a "Protectionist moment." Indeed, recent polls show Americans' support for trade and globalization at or near all-time highs.
7 AMERICANS DO NOT PRIORITIZE TRADE POLICY Despite strong public support for trade in general, polls also show that the issue is not a priority for most American voters, even during the height of the 2016 election season when then-candidate Trump made "Bad trade deals" a centerpiece of his campaign.
" Only 38 percent of voters saw trade as a top priority in 2018, up slightly from 32 percent in 2010.11 ƒƒ; Gallup found that only 1 percent of Americans believe that "Foreign trade/trade deficit" is "The most important problem facing the country today."12 For the vast majority of Americans, trade is simply not a priority-an understandable position given that the United States trades less than many major economies;13 most Americans work in non-traded services, representing the bulk of the U.S. workforce; and that few Americans know someone affected by import competition.
As shown below in Figure 2, polls from Gallup, Pew, and the Chicago Council on trade agreements, foreign trade, and globalization show similar trends: ƒƒ; First, significant bipartisan shifts in support for trade coincide with the state of the U.S. economy, with support for trade collapsing during the Great Recession and rebounding over the last several years of recovery.
Most Americans generally support freer trade, globalization, and even oft-maligned trade agreements, but the understandable disinterest of many voters means that isolated polls on specific trade policy issues-the Trans-Pacific Partnership or steel tariffs, for example-more likely reflect partisan cues or broader macroeconomic conditions than actual support for or opposition to the trade measure at issue.
https://object.cato.org/sites/cato.org/files/pubs/pdf/ftb-72.pdf
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