Economics and Government

Don Boudreaux finds an example of Caplan's "anti-foreign bias" and responds with a letter to the editor:

Peter Morici unloads a riotous barrage of accusations against free trade: Free trade caused, among other misfortunes, the collapse of the market for adjustable-rate mortgages, excessively high CEO compensation, inflationary monetary policy, and Uncle Sam's inexcusable bailout of Bear Stearns ("It's Time To Cut The Trade Deficit," March 26). Mr. Morici, however, doesn't explain how allowing consumers to take advantage of bargains from abroad caused these calamities. He simply assumes it to be self-evident that America's growing trade deficit proves that free trade triggers countless system-wide maladies.