A Foreign Affairs Best Book of the Year: “Tells the history of American trade policy . . . [A] grand narrative [that] also debunks trade-policy myths.” —Economist Should the United States be open to commerce with other countries, or should it protect domestic industries from foreign competition? This question has been the source of bitter political conflict throughout American history. Such conflict was inevitable, James Madison argued in the Federalist Papers, because trade policy involves clashing economic interests. The struggle between the winners and losers from trade has always been fierce because dollars and jobs are at stake: depending on what policy is chosen, some industries, farmers, and workers will prosper, while others will suffer. Douglas A. Irwin’s Clashing over Commerce is the most authoritative and comprehensive history of US trade policy to date, offering a clear picture of the various economic and political forces that have shaped it. From the start, trade policy divided the nation—first when Thomas Jefferson declared an embargo on all foreign trade and then when South Carolina threatened to secede from the Union over excessive taxes on imports. The Civil War saw a shift toward protectionism, which then came under constant political attack. Then, controversy over the Smoot-Hawley tariff during the Great Depression led to a policy shift toward freer trade, involving trade agreements that eventually produced the World Trade Organization. Irwin makes sense of this turbulent history by showing how different economic interests tend to be grouped geographically, meaning that every proposed policy change found ready champions and opponents in Congress. Deeply researched and rich with insight and detail, Clashing over Commerce provides valuable and enduring insights into US trade policy past and present. “Combines scholarly analysis with a historian’s eye for trends and colorful details . . . readable and illuminating, for the trade expert and for all Americans wanting a deeper understanding of America’s evolving role in the global economy.” —National Review “Magisterial.” —Foreign Affairs

Includes. "Foreign Economic Policy for the 1960s," Report of Joint Economic Committee, Jan., 1962 (p. 101-154). "U.S. Import Duties on Agricultural Products. 1959," Revised, 1962. Agricultural Handbook No. 143, USDA (p. 329-478). "Import Restrictions Maintained by Countries of the European Economic Community by Several Other Countries That May Accede to the EEC, and by Japan" (p. 480-600), pt.1; Includes "Memorandum on H.R. 9900 of the 87th Congress, the "Trade Expansion Act of 1962,"' U.S. Tariff Commission, Apr. 9, 1962 (p. 905-1020), pt.2; Continuation of hearings on legislation to authorize the President to revise and reduce tariff and import restrictions, to authorize a trade adjustment assistance program, and to establish an Office of Special Representative for Trade Negotiations and an Interagency Trade Organization. Includes Joint Economic Committee Print "Trade Restraints in the Western Community with Tariff Comparisons and Selected Statistical Tables Pertinent to Foreign Economic Policy," 1961 (p. 1891-1957), pt.3; Includes "The European Common Market, Trade Expansion Act and California Agriculture," by Sidney Hoos (Mar. 2, 1962. p. 3699-3772), pt.6.

The U.S. antidumping law enjoys broad political support in part because so few people understand how the law actually works. Its rhetoric of “fairness” and “level playing fields” sounds appealing, and its convoluted technical complexities prevent all but a few insiders and experts from understanding the reality that underlies that rhetoric. CONNUM? CEP? FUPDOL? TOTPUDD? DIFMER? NPRICOP? POI? POR? LOT? Confused? You’re not alone. Even members of Congress, whose opinions shape the course of U.S. trade policy, are baffled by those devilish details. Antidumping Exposed book seeks to penetrate the fog of complexity that shields the antidumping law from the scrutiny it deserves. It offers a detailed, step-by-step guide to how dumping is defined and measured under current rules. It identifies the many methodological quirks and biases that allow normal, healthy competition to be stigmatized as “unfair” and punished with often cripplingly high antidumping duties. The inescapable conclusion is that the antidumping law, as it currently stands, has nothing to do with maintaining a “level playing field.” Instead, antidumping’s primary function is to provide an elaborate excuse for old-fashioned protectionism. The authors offer 20 specific proposals for reform of the World Trade Organization’s Antidumping Agreement. Their analysis and ideas should be of great interest to businesses, trade lawyers, and trade negotiators around the world.