What will a Donald Trump presidency look like for Washington? As numerous pollsters and pundits learned last week, the future often is unpredictable. But as we gaze into our crystal ball, we see many policies espoused by the president-elect that will be damaging to this part of the country.
For starters, Trump’s campaign rhetoric made it clear that he is opposed to international trade agreements. That includes the pending Trans-Pacific Partnership, an accord between the United States and 11 other Pacific Rim countries that includes provisions regarding tariffs, environmental regulations, and labor standards. With Washington being the most trade-dependent state in the country, we believe the TPP would further open foreign markets and further enhance Washington’s economy; this view is not universal, with many residents, particularly labor unions, opposing the trade accord.
Trump’s isolationist economic policy seems predicated upon an philosophy that stretches credulity: A belief that the United States can bring back manufacturing jobs that have been lost. What is mentioned not frequently enough is that many of those jobs no longer exist, having been replaced by increased automation and improved efficiency, and that no specific economic policy can make them return.
Trump’s philosophy (it should be noted that Hillary Clinton also has spoken against the TPP) appealed to a large percentage of his constituency, tapping into the frustration of blue-collar workers who feel they are receiving an ever-shrinking share of the pie. But suggesting that shrinking the pie is the best way to appease those workers flies in the face of logic. Rejection of the Trans-Pacific Partnership and a policy of economic isolationism will be particularly damaging to Washington. Trump and his supporters are longing for a 1950s economy while being loathe to acknowledge that the world is a much different place these days. Then again, as noted, you never know.