A double dose of pointlessness: Two reasons Trump-Trudeau trade tiff irrelevant
WASHINGTON — There are dead-end conversations. Then there’s the image of Justin Trudeau quibbling about the Canada-U.S. trade deficit with U.S. President Donald Trump, who recently revealed some backroom bickering between the two about which country buys more imports from the other.
So who won the debate?
Critics say it doesn’t matter, for two reasons: First, a number of economists, frustrated by the way some politicians talk about trade deficits, say it’s a pointless academic exercise. Second, there’s scant evidence a disputed fact on trade will dissuade Trump.
A different president might by now have noticed and heeded the overwhelming consensus of opinion among elite economists that it’s utterly futile to try fixing a trade deficit as a means to foster greater national well-being.