• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia

Trendingnow

1

The Pentagon said Iran War costs $29 billion, but the real cost is closer to $200 billion—and counting

2

After forcing workers back to the office, Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase are now letting their staff work remotely—but only for the World Cup

3

Amazon's record Prime Day masks a darker truth: Americans are spending more and getting less

1

The Pentagon said Iran War costs $29 billion, but the real cost is closer to $200 billion—and counting

2

After forcing workers back to the office, Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase are now letting their staff work remotely—but only for the World Cup

3

Amazon's record Prime Day masks a darker truth: Americans are spending more and getting less
Finance

Do Americans Support Free Trade?

By
Chris Matthews
Chris Matthews
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Chris Matthews
Chris Matthews
Down Arrow Button Icon
May 5, 2016, 6:00 AM ET
U.S. President Bill Clinton signs the North Americ
PAUL J. RICHARDS—AFP/Getty Images
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

Historians may look back on 2016 as the year that America’s decades-long march to ever freer trade finally came to an end.

If you look at the results of the presidential elections so far, it’s difficult to come to any other conclusion. The presumptive Republican nominee, Donald Trump, really only departed from Republican orthodoxy on one issue—the idea that free trade agreements like NAFTA have been, on balance, good for America. Trump, and his supporters, say this isn’t so.

On the Democratic side, too, the Bernie Sanders insurgent campaign forced Hillary Clinton, a politician with a long track record of supporting free agreements, to abandon the Trans-pacific Partnership, a free trade agreement currently under consideration, that she pushed for as Secretary of State.

But if you ask attendees at the Milken Institute Global Conference being held in Los Angeles this week, free traders shouldn’t worry. During a panel on the topic of globalization, Tony Fratto, who worked in the Bush Treasury Department, argued that polls show that a majority of Americans see trade as an opportunity rather than a threat.

Undersecretary for International Trade Stefan Selig added that there is a misconception that young people are anti-capitalist or anti-free trade by pointing to a poll that showed that 67% of millennials are in favor of trade, even more than their older counterparts. These views were echoed by economist Tyler Cowen, who argued during a panel on Tuesday that we shouldn’t be concerned about a growing socialist strain in American society:

I know that if you listen to Bernie Sanders, or look at some polls, a lot of young people have more sympathy for what they call ‘socialism’ than ever before, but I don’t think they mean real socialism. If you ask Americans questions such as ‘Do you support trade?’ the answers are more positive today than they were five years ago. …So if you look at a lot of basic issues of tolerance, belief in the system, people accepting consumerism, heralding innovation, I think, mostly, people here believe in capitalism.

It’s not surprising that attendees at a conference like Milken, which brings together some of the biggest names in finance and industry, are pro free trade and want to believe that most Americans are too. The financial services industry was, after all, one of the big winners of NAFTA, which struck down barriers that prevented Wall Street from selling its services to Mexico.\

For more, read Warren Buffett’s views of free trade.

But the ease with which Milken attendees are writing off the results of the 2016 presidential primaries is pretty surprising. Nobody at the conference addressed the fact that—even if the polls they cite are to be trusted—such small majorities are no guarantee of successfully pushing free trade agreements through Congress. Just ask gun control advocates what having majority support for a policy proposal does for you, if those on the other side of the issue are more animated.

Worse still for advocates for free trade is that there’s no evidence that rescinding these agreements, as for instance Donald Trump hopes to do, will actually lead to improved economic outcomes for working Americans. And if repealing NAFTA makes these folks even worse off, there’s little reason to believe that isolationists will come to their senses and realize that the rise of China would have happened with or without American acquiescence. And that manufacture jobs would have been lost to technology with or without NAFTA. This could lead to further clamping down on trade, resulting in further declines in living standards.

Rather than take comfort in one or two polls, America’s economic elite should be falling over themselves to offer pro-active solutions for boosting the incomes of the broad middle class. But there is little evidence from the Milken Global Conference at least that elites are ready to put aside their differences to jointly beat back the populist tide that is washing over America as we speak.

About the Author
By Chris Matthews
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon
Add Fortune on Google for similar content.

Latest in Finance

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025

Most Popular

Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Finance
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit, sed do eiusmod tempor incididunt ut labore et dolore magna aliqua. Ut enim ad minim veniam
By Fortune Editors
October 20, 2025
Fortune Secondary Logo
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • World's Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
  • Lists Calendar
Sections
  • Finance
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Features
  • Leadership
  • Health
  • Commentary
  • Success
  • Retail
  • Mpw
  • Tech
  • Lifestyle
  • CEO Initiative
  • Asia
  • Politics
  • Conferences
  • Europe
  • Newsletters
  • Personal Finance
  • Environment
  • Magazine
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
  • Group Subscriptions
About Us
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • About Us
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map
  • Facebook icon
  • Twitter icon
  • LinkedIn icon
  • Instagram icon
  • Pinterest icon

Latest in Finance

A Viking ship named Havhingsten af Glendalough - the Sea Stallion of Glendalough -, the world's largest replica of a Viking warship, sets out 01 JUly 2007 from the Viking Museum in Roskilde, Denmark, on a voyage to Dublin in Ireland, where it is scheduled to arrive 14 August.
EuropeScience
1,000-year-old massive textile factory unearthed in Denmark—and it belonged to the Vikings
By James Brooks and The Associated PressJune 24, 2026
5 hours ago
Young couple standing in a brightly lit home
Real EstateHousing
A big look at the state of housing in America: Boomers won’t sell, millennials can’t buy, and Gen Z gets to watch the whole thing sort itself out
By Tristan BoveJune 24, 2026
6 hours ago
Wind turbines on yellow grass
Environmentwind power
California threatens to hit Trump with lawsuit if he doesn’t revive massive wind farm project off central coast
By Jennifer McDermott and The Associated PressJune 24, 2026
6 hours ago
Warren leans in to talk to Scott
PoliticsHousing
Congress’s landmark housing bill could backfire on millions of renters
By Jacqueline MunisJune 24, 2026
7 hours ago
Institute's Global Conference at the Beverly Hilton Hotel,on May 6, 2024 in Beverly Hills, California.
RetailSpaceX
Elon Musk was the world’s first trillionaire for 12 days
By Eva RoytburgJune 24, 2026
7 hours ago
President Donald Trump pictured in September 2025 signing an executive order that overhauled the H-1B visa program.
EconomyImmigration
Trump’s international student crackdown kicked off a domino effect that could shave nearly $500 billion off the economy
By Tristan BoveJune 24, 2026
8 hours ago

Most Popular

The Pentagon said Iran War costs $29 billion, but the real cost is closer to $200 billion—and counting
Economy
The Pentagon said Iran War costs $29 billion, but the real cost is closer to $200 billion—and counting
By Jacqueline MunisJune 24, 2026
20 hours ago
After forcing workers back to the office, Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase are now letting their staff work remotely—but only for the World Cup
Success
After forcing workers back to the office, Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase are now letting their staff work remotely—but only for the World Cup
By Orianna Rosa RoyleJune 23, 2026
2 days ago
Amazon's record Prime Day masks a darker truth: Americans are spending more and getting less
Retail
Amazon's record Prime Day masks a darker truth: Americans are spending more and getting less
By Nick LichtenbergJune 24, 2026
12 hours ago
Now worth $200 million, Sarah Jessica Parker credits being ‘one of eight kids that struggled financially’ for her hunger, ambition, and work ethic
Success
Now worth $200 million, Sarah Jessica Parker credits being ‘one of eight kids that struggled financially’ for her hunger, ambition, and work ethic
By Orianna Rosa RoyleJune 24, 2026
20 hours ago
Ray Dalio just finished a 10-day trip to China. He says global leaders know America ‘doesn’t have what it takes to fight to maintain its empire’
Asia
Ray Dalio just finished a 10-day trip to China. He says global leaders know America ‘doesn’t have what it takes to fight to maintain its empire’
By Nick LichtenbergJune 24, 2026
14 hours ago
Current price of gold as of June 23, 2026
Personal Finance
Current price of gold as of June 23, 2026
By Danny BakstJune 23, 2026
2 days ago

© 2026 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.