"If we increase the number of H-1B visas that are available to U.S. companies, employment of U.S. nationals would likely grow as well. For instance, Microsoft has found that for every H-1B hire we make, we add on average four additional employees to support them in various capacities."
Bill Gates,
Testimony before the Committee on Science and Technology, US House of Representatives,
March 12, 2008.
The expansion of international trade has provided considerable benefits to the United States and its trading partners. Yet the growth of trade also raises concerns about its impact on domestic firms and their workers. In "Trade, Protectionism, and the U.S. Economy," author Robert Krol surveys the economic research on the causes of expanded international trade, the benefits of trade, the impact of trade on employment and wages, and the cost of international trade restrictions.
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July 25, 2008 Featuring U.S. Rep. Earl Blumenauer, D-Oregon, Ed Gresser, Progressive Policy Institute, and William Hawkins, U.S. Business and Industry Council. Among the highest remaining U.S. tariffs are those imposed on imported shoes, with the highest duties applying to the cheapest shoes. Critics of the tariffs contend that they fall most heavily on the poorest American households while “saving” few domestic jobs. Defenders argue that the tariffs provide revenue for the federal government, have little impact on consumer prices, and steer trade to our free-trade partners at the expense of China. A bill in Congress to eliminate certain shoe tariffs, the Affordable Footwear Act, currently has more than 140 co-sponsors in the House and may be attached to the upcoming Miscellaneous Tariff Bill.
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Cato web feature offers access and analysis of key trade votes
We just added five NEW votes (two in the Senate, three in the House)!
 | In 2008, the Cato Institute's Center for Trade Policy Studies launched a powerful new interactive web feature that allows users to access and analyze the trade voting record of any member of Congress spanning more than a decade. |
The new feature reveals how members have voted on 84 major trade votes cast in the House and 64 in the Senate. The votes begin with the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) in 1993 through the Congress overriding a presidential veto of the Farm, Nutrition and Bioenergy Act in May 2008. Other major votes include the Uruguay Round Agreements Act, Permanent Normal Trade Relations with China, subsidies and protection for U.S. farm commodities, the Cuban trade embargo, and various bilateral and regional free trade agreements.
Trade Deficits Don't Matter, featuring Daniel T. Griswold, 08/15/2008 (MP3 
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American Ag Subsidies and Doha, featuring Donald J. Boudreaux, 08/11/2008 (MP3 )
Sep 2, 2008
OC Register -- "America's changes will be less than we think. We've already become a more open, dynamic country. What will happen to America is what has already been happening to California, Texas, New York City, and other economically successful regions."
Aug 28, 2008 Workforce Management, Ca -- But crimping trade is a bad idea for U.S. manufacturers and their employees. U.S. manufacturers have been achieving record exports, and the loss of jobs in the sector has slowed. U.S. manufacturing wages have been relatively stagnant, but overall compensation—including health care benefits—is rising.
Aug 27, 2008 The National, United Arab Emirates -- In the wake of Doha, countries are asking, ‘What next?’ Bilaterals seem to be the only game in town. The growth in bilaterals showed the US policy of competitive liberalisation, giving impetus to the Doha talks by simultaneously seeking bilateral deals, had backfired. It didn’t have the intended effect. Other World Trade Organisation members said, ‘We can play this game, too.’ So, off went Japan and China and Thailand and Australia, and now Europe and India, pursuing their own bilaterals.
Despite Doha collapse, free trade is marching on
Bad Trade
Expanding trade is a key to winning presidency
Punish Goverments, Not People
by Juan Carlos Hidalgo
October 6, 2008
HRW's Deafening Denunciation of Hugo Chávez
by Juan Carlos Hidalgo
September 19, 2008
U.S. Slips in Economic Freedom Rankings
by Cato Editors
September 16, 2008
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