Herman Cain on Trade Policy

Summary

Herman Cain is generally supportive of free trade policies and believes that no country should be protectionist. He once stated that free trade was not a zero sum game and that everyone could benefit from it. He notes that the US should have trade deals with it's friends and make trade agreements that are done appropriately.

However, Mr Cain does not believe that agreements such as NAFTA and CAFTA have worked to the benfit of the US. He once stated that Uncle Sam needed to stop being Uncle Sucker when it comes to free trade agreements.

GATT 

In 1994, Herman Cain reacted to the passage of the General Agreement on Treaties and Tariffs by stating that trade was not a zero sum game and could benefit all involved parties.

"Free trade is not a zero sum game. Everyone can benefit.

RedState Interview

In 2005, Herman Cain was briefly interviewed by RedState.com organizer Erik Ericson and discussed free trade somewhat. He states that the US needs fair trade and not to simply give away the farm to other countries.

Uncle Sam has got to stop being Uncle Sucker. We don't need "free trade" where other countries get rich at our expense, but "fair trade" where everyone plays by the same rules and everyone benefits.

CPAC Interview

In February of 2011, Herman Cain was interviewed by Jason Pye at a booth in CPAC. He was asked about his views on free trade. He states that he is generally supportive of free trade, but only ones where we come out equal.

Jason Pye: On free trade, do you support NAFTA, do you support CAFTA, do you support these free trade agreements? Where do you stand on trade?

Herman Cain: There are parts of NAFTA and CAFTA that I support, but I am sure that there are parts that I don't support, so I can't give you a specific answer. Basically though, I do support free trade agreements that are done correctly, where we don't give away more than we gain. And the reason is because we truly are in a global economy. It doesn't make sense to be protectionist in a global economy the way we have.

Secondly, the fact that we've lost so many jobs to other countries ... One of the ways to help with jobs in our own economy is to have good free trade agreements with our friends. Not these one-sided ones, but good trade agreements with other countries around the world.

References

[1] Website: BNET Article: GATT pact's passage could smooth international bumps for industry Author: Robin Lee Allen Accessed on: 09/05/2011

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