Outsourcing US Jobs
Getting US trade policy right is an important factor in spurring a sustainable American economic recovery. Some are urging President Obama to depart from his business-as-usual approach to trade and push to strengthen pending trade deals with Colombia, Korea and Panama that were negotiated by his predecessor to reduce the outsourcing of US jobs.
Unlike many alternatives, trade policy can be a way to spur private sector growth and employment without worsening budget deficits or consumer indebtedness. However, the US trade balance has been in a massive deficit for decades, and the Obama-Bush trade agenda looks to only make the situation worse as it reduces growth and hiring and adds to dangerous levels of national debt. Policy mistakes are credited by some with turning US trade policy into an engine of deficit and debt creation, as well as job loss.