When Will Our Politicians Learn From History?

By now I'm sure you've heard about Obama's tariff on Chinese tires. Well, that decision is of course being praised by those who refuse to learn the lessons of history.

"Today, the President courageously stood up and enforced fair trade rules that will save jobs and help our communities. Since China joined the WTO, American workers have not been assured that the government would defend them against unfair trade. With this 'Section 421' decision, President Obama has taken the side of American workers and manufacturers." - U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown

Read the story.

Ok, so now you've seen the typical type of talking points usually given when it comes to tariffs. "Trade safeguards that protect American manufacturers from excessive imports."

Wait a minute, I know I've seen this argument before. Another tariff about protecting manufacturing jobs. It was called the Smoot Hawley Tariff Act of 1930. The argument for this tariff in 1930 in part was this:

"The original intention behind the legislation was to increase the protection afforded domestic farmers against foreign agricultural imports". Sounds great right?

Well read what happened for yourself.

"It provoked a storm of foreign retaliatory measures". Now, why does that seem familiar. THIS IS WHY!!

"Those who refuse to learn from history are condemned to repeat it." - George Santayana

I'll ask again as I did in the title of this post. When will our politicians learn from history?