What Is Ron Paul's Position on Free Trade?:
Ron Paul would abolish existing free trade agreements (FTA's), including NAFTA and CAFTA. He opposes the NAFTA Superhighway, and the establishment of a NAFTA economic union. He would end U.S. involvement in the U.N., the IMF, the World Bank, and the WTO, saying these organizations are a form of world government. (Source: RonPaul.com)
How Would Ron Paul's Trade Position Impact the Economy?:
If the U.S. ended its FTA's, tariffs would be reinstated, which would lead to higher prices for imported goods, spurring inflation. This would also lower global GDP growth, since many countries like Japan, China, Mexico and Canada depend to a large degree on exports to the U.S. market to drive their economic engine.
It would also make U.S. exports to other countries more expensive, thus decreasing U.S. export trade, which would lower GDP growth.
Withdrawing from all international bodies, like the UN and WTO, would increase the costs of doing business for U.S. based companies. For example, the WTO investigates and ends dumping by foreign countries, who artificially price their goods below market to gain share and put U.S. companies out of business.
What Trade Issues Is Ron Paul Missing?:
The NAFTA Superhighway is basically a non-issue. What Paul is referring to is Highway I-35, which already exists. Furthermore, there are no plans to create a North American Union, along the lines of the EU. (Source: FactCheck.org, Wrong Paul)
