Statist Economic Writer Defends Protectionism

Bob Kuttner writing in the Boston Globe:

Some have proposed smart strategies to reclaim competitive industry and good jobs in the United States. A plan by Senator Barack Obama of Illinois would relieve automakers of the ''legacy costs" of retiree expenses in exchange for Detroit's commitment to put serious money into state-of-the art hybrid cars. This idea is disparaged in some circles as ''industrial policy," as if Japan, Korea, and China did not have industrial policies.

We never get an answer from the protectionists on why certain industries deserve to get protection.If GM makes bad cars they deserve to go out of business.I guess Bob Kuttner is a friend of the overpaid.