The Heritage Foundation Was One of Free Trade’s Strongest Supporters

By Dominic Pino

Monday, March 31, 2025

 

Heritage Foundation president Kevin Roberts posted today on X, “President Trump’s reciprocal tariffs are a tool of statecraft that can level the playing field.” Roberts said he supports tariffs on China and on Mexico and other Latin American countries. He said, “Tragically, trade policies over the last several decades coincided with middling economic growth, stagnating middle-class wages, a mass exiting of the labor force by young people, the breakup of the American family, and decaying communities.”

 

If you disagree with Trump’s trade policies, Roberts says you’re one of the “globalist elites” who “are spitting mad that we are finally putting the interests of American workers, families, and communities over the pocketbooks of self-anointed ‘citizens of the world.’”

 

This is a major departure from the president of a think tank that has, historically, been among the foremost supporters of free trade in Washington.

 

The Heritage Foundation has been around since 1973. Through administrations of both parties, it has been consistently supportive of free trade and opposed to protectionism. Here’s a sample of Heritage’s research and commentary on trade issues over the past few decades:

 

·         October 19, 1983: “The Eight Myths of Protectionism”

·         June 10, 1986: “The United States vs. Canada: Blood Flows in the First Trade War”

·         July 30, 1986: “The Textile and Apparel Trade Act: Saving Jobs at a Cost of $4 Million Each”

·         June 17, 1987: “Free Trade Areas: Removing Trade Obstacles and Bucking Protection”

·         May 1, 1990: “Toward A Common Market for Mexico and the United States”

·         July 1, 1990: “Promoting Prosperity Through a U.S. -Mexico Free Trade Area”

·         January 15, 1992: “How The North American Free Trade Agreement Creates Jobs”

·         April 29, 1993: “A Jobs Strategy for America: Expanding Free Trade with Asia”

·         November 23, 1993: “The North American Free Trade Agreement: Ronald Reagan’s Vision Realized”

·         October 12, 1995: “The Caribbean Basin Trade Bill: Good Economic Policy and Good Neighbor Policy”

·         December 15, 1995: “Expanding NAFTA to Include Chile: The Next Step for Free Trade”

·         March 22, 1996: “How to Bring China and Taiwan into the World Trade Organization”

·         November 6, 1998: “Why Free Trade Matters to the American Farmer”

·         August 25, 2000: “The Benefits of Free Trade: A Guide For Policymakers”

·         August 6, 2001: “Trade Benefits All”

·         August 31, 2001: “Free Trade Drives the Auto Industry”

·         February 7, 2002: “The Myths of the Steel Industry’s Arguments for Increased Government Intervention”

·         February 26, 2002: “10 Reasons Why President Bush Should Not Apply Tariffs on Steel Imports”

·         March 15, 2002: “Now Is the Right Time to Sign a Free Trade Agreement with Australia”

·         May 22, 2002: “Why Russia’s Accession to the WTO Is in America’s Economic and Strategic Interests”

·         February 19, 2003: “Liberalizing Agriculture: Why the U.S. Should Look to New Zealand and Australia”

·         September 29, 2003: “Rusty Thinking on Steel Tariffs”

·         December 22, 2003: “One Tariff Down, Many More to Go”

·         August 10, 2004: “Free Trade by Any Means: How the Global Free Trade Alliance Enhances America’s Overall Trading Strategy”

·         June 13, 2005: “Stop Provoking a Trade War”

·         January 12, 2006: “Free Trade with Switzerland: Time for Action”

·         May 12, 2006: “Lift Tariffs on Foreign Ethanol”

·         June 5, 2006: “The Free Trade Future of the African Growth and Opportunity Act”

·         September 16, 2005: “Cutting Tariffs Will Speed Post-Katrina Rebuilding”

·         September 26, 2006: “The Economic and Strategic Rewards of the U.S.-Oman Free Trade Agreement”

·         April 16, 2007: “Why Free Trade Works for America”

·         December 21, 2007: “Cut Shoe Tariffs to Help Low-Income Families”

·         May 7, 2008: “The Best U.S. Export-Promotion Strategy: Free Trade”

·         March 30, 2009: “The Perils of Protectionism”

·         June 15, 2009: “KORUS FTA Strengthens the U.S. Economy and Alliance with Korea”

·         August 18, 2009: “‘Buy America’ Is Bad for National Security”

·         December 12, 2008: “Free Trade: The Fairest Trade Policy for America”

·         December 12, 2008: “Pass Pending Trade Agreements with Colombia, Panama, and South Korea in 2009”

·         June 17, 2011: “Smoot–Hawley Anniversary Serves as Reminder of Protectionism’s Damage”

·         August 25, 2011: “U.S. Tariffs Penalize Back-to-School Shoppers”

·         October 7, 2011: “Global Trade Freedom Needs a Boost”

·         April 24, 2012: “Give Shoe Taxes the Boot”

·         May 15, 2012: “U.S. Free Trade Agreement with Colombia Enters into Force Today — Finally!”

·         March 24, 2013: “The Best Plan for Farmers and Ranchers: Free Trade”

·         April 29, 2013: “Tariff Reform Needed to Boost the U.S. Economy”

·         October 4, 2013: “A Tariff Cut Can Boost U.S. Output”

·         October 23, 2013: “Congress Should Get Smart and Cut Tariffs to Boost Trade Freedom”

·         June 5, 2014: “U.S. Trade Policy Gouges American Sugar Consumers”

·         December 21, 2015: “2016 Index of Economic Freedom: Yet More Evidence of Free Trade’s Benefits”

·         August 9, 2016: “Lessons on Free Trade From the Great Depression”

·         September 12, 2016: “The U.S. Steel Market Needs Free Trade, Not Favoritism”

·         October 6, 2016: “Feds Should End Protectionist Steel Tariffs”

 

Extensive as that record is, it was also relatively low-cost for a right-leaning think tank because most Republicans were openly supportive of free trade since Ronald Reagan. Donald Trump changed that by elevating trade issues to the center of his platform and taking a staunchly protectionist stance. Did Heritage change its view during the first Trump administration? Admirably, no.

 

Heritage stuck by its free trade position while cheering for the Trump administration in many other aspects. Heritage bragged about how Trump included about two-thirds of the policy recommendations from its “Mandate for Leadership” agenda in his budget proposal in 2018. Around 70 former Heritage employees worked for the administration or on the transition team.

 

Many of the arguments the Trump administration uses today to push tariffs were also made during Trump’s first term. You can find a Heritage report, statement, or article published between 2017 and 2021 to refute just about every single one.

 

Are tariffs taxes on Americans?

 

·         March 8, 2018: “Heritage President: ‘Tariffs are a tax increase on American workers and their families.’”

·         March 21, 2019: “How Trump’s Tariffs Hiked Taxes on Americans by $14.4 Billion in 2018”

Do tariffs raise prices for Americans?

 

·         March 1, 2018: “Higher Tariffs Mean Higher Prices — And Fewer Jobs”

·         August 21, 2020: “Get Ready to Pay More for Goods Made With Aluminum, Thanks to New Tariffs”

·         May 18, 2021: “Tariffs on Canadian Softwood Lumber Hitting U.S. Homebuyers Hard”

 

Are tariffs job creators?

 

·         May 31, 2018: “Heritage Expert: Tariffs Are in Fact Big Job Killers”

 

History shows that tariffs work, right?

 

·         March 15, 2019: “The Long History of the Economic Costs of Higher Tariffs”

 

Is building industry behind high tariffs and other barriers a way to prosperity?

 

·         July 26, 2018: “Zero Tariffs and Zero Barriers Are the Way to Prosperity”

 

Should the president be able to impose tariffs unilaterally, without Congress?

 

·         March 8, 2018: “Trump’s Tariffs Will Hurt the Economy. Congress Should Reassert Its Constitutional Authority on Trade.”

 

Do tariffs help the working class?

 

·         December 15, 2017: “How Tariffs and Regressive Trade Policies Hurt the Poor”

 

Do tariffs make for a good negotiating tactic?

 

·         April 26, 2018: “Tariffs Make for a Poor Negotiating Tactic: The Trump Administration Should Abandon Them Without Delay”

 

Will they help strengthen the U.S. geopolitical position?

 

·         June 6, 2018: “Trump’s Tariffs Threaten to Weaken Key U.S. Alliances”

·         June 11, 2018: “Trump’s Dangerous Brinkmanship on Trade”

 

What about using tariffs to address the crisis at the border?

 

·         May 31, 2019: “Carafano, Spencer: Mexico Tariffs ‘Wrong Policy for Addressing the Crisis At the Border’”

 

Is the U.S. a sucker for reducing its tariffs while other countries keep theirs high?

 

·         May 1, 2017: “Is the US the ‘Least Protectionist Country’? Not Really.”

·         June 27, 2018: “Tariffs Harm the Exporting Country and the Importing Country”

 

Are tariffs good for manufacturing?

 

·         November 10, 2020: “Eliminating Tariffs on Manufactured Goods Is a Pro-Growth Strategy”

 

What about steel? Steel’s different, right?

 

·         June 16, 2017: “Steel Imports Do Not Threaten National Security”

·         February 27, 2018: “Tariffs on Steel Will Hurt Steel-Using Industries in the U.S.”

·         February 27, 2018: “President Should Reject Flawed Commerce Report on Steel Tariffs”

·         November 6, 2020: “Americans Do Not Need More Steel Tariffs”

·         November 12, 2020: “Steel Yourself for New Steel Tariffs, Even Though They Harm Consumers and Cost Jobs”

 

Will tariffs help Detroit? Did free trade wreck the U.S. car industry?

 

·         May 31, 2018: “Detroit Wins With NAFTA”

·         July 22, 2019: “Automobiles Do Not Threaten U.S. National Security”

·         November 8, 2019: “Why New Auto Tariffs Won’t Increase Research and Development”

 

What about China?

 

·         March 28, 2018: “A Trade War With China Is Not in America’s Interest”

·         June 20, 2018: “Tariffs on Chinese Goods Will Only Punish Americans”

·         December 20, 2018: “Free Trade: America’s Best Strategy to Counter China”

·         April 5, 2019: “The Data Are Clear: Remove Tariffs on China”

 

Do tariffs help with “reshoring”?

 

·         July 2, 2018: “Trump’s Tariffs Are Pushing American Companies to Leave”

·         April 27, 2020: “It’s Naive to Assume ‘Supply Chains’ Will Return to the U.S.”

Are reciprocal tariffs a good idea?

·         February 26, 2019: “Why the Reciprocal Trade Act’s Tit-for-Tat Tariffs Aren’t a Good Idea”

 

What about using tariffs as a tax swap to cut other taxes?

 

·         October 21, 2019: “Cutting Tariffs Is Better Than Cutting Payroll Taxes to Boost the Economy”

·         June 28, 2018: “Trump Administration’s Trade Policies Undermining Business Benefits of Tax Cuts, Slashing Regulations”

 

Are tariffs the true conservative trade policy?

 

·         June 29, 2018: “Heritage Explains: Why Tariffs Are Not Conservative”

 

Will tariffs make America great again?

 

·         March 20, 2018: “Big-Government Tariffs Do Not Make America Great”

 

Are tariffs ever a good idea?

 

·         September 13, 2021: “Tariffs Are Never a Good Idea. Those on Aluminum Are Especially Bad.”

 

Maybe Roberts thinks Heritage has been a malign influence on U.S. trade policy for nearly all of its history. Or maybe he is blowing with the political breeze in a way that Heritage never has before.