The term “globalization” — in the sphere of economics — describes an increase in trade, and greater movement of capital and labor across national and regional boundaries.
Free trade has long been among the driving factors behind economic globalization, and for centuries, economists have generally agreed that free trade is an important force in building wealth and economic growth. Even economists who disagree on almost everything else, can often agree that lowering barriers to trade is a good thing.
Politically, however, things have changed. Nowadays, organized labor groups, once the lone voices opposing economic globalization (and, whose role it is to protect their members from competition both domestic and foreign), have been joined by “anti-establishment” political campaigns, from Bernie Sanders on the left to Donald Trump on the right, both tapping into widespread popular discontent. Even Hillary Clinton, who once referred to the ostensibly free-trade pact known as the Trans-Pacific Partnership as “the Gold Standard” of trade deals, now claims to oppose it. The politicians are, not surprisingly, following the popular sentiment in the hopes of getting votes. The anti-trade stance is now the easier stance for an American politician to take — at least publicly.
This is an important shift. Tariffs are, after all, taxes. They are taxes that apply to a broad tax base (all consumers). And yet, the anti-tax position is becoming too politically dangerous to advocate.
