Future Visions for U.S. Trade Policy

Congressional failure to approve fast-track trade negotiating authority last year and the mounting trade-related problems created by the East Asian financial crisis confront the president and the American people with critical strategic trade policy choices.Four experts provide contrasting points of view and different solutions as the administration attempts to fashion a U.S. trade strategy for the 21st century. As they see it, the choices facing the president include: work to rebuild public support from trade and press ahead for trade liberalization at home and abroad; help Americans understand that globalization is a boon both to the U.S. economy and to the freedom of people everywhere; slow the rush toward trade liberalization and concentrate instead on more effective worker-training programs and labor and environmental rights; or encourage Congress to take more responsibility for trade policy.This volume, the second in the CPI series, lays out these choices in detail through four memos written by prominent experts: C. Fred Bergsten, William A. Niskanen, Jeff Faux, and Pat Choate. The memos are preceded by a memorandum to the president from the "National Economic Council" that explains the strengths, weaknesses, and politics surrounding each alternative.