Free Trade vs Protectionism

[Okay, maybe Mike Johnson is a competent parliamentarian.]

Protectionism, but only in that I support more protectionism than the fashionable political and economic orthodoxy would suggest, which is different to supporting it as some sort of general rule. There is no point in being a consumer if there is no structural basis for production; you end up at the wobbly, morally and spiritually deadened pinnacle of Wallerstein's pyramid. But it's also stupid to seal one's country off from all others out of terror that industrial specialization might readjust in a way that one might not like. Tariffs need to be used moderately and pragmatically, particularly with regards to countries that our current policy is so fond of pretending don't engage in predatory mercantilism against us.

I also agree that there is a far bigger problem with reducing people to consumers (or 'taxpayers', for that matter) than with having an emotional attachment to such-and-such an industry.