Times are tough for market liberalism. Pressures to embrace protectionist policies are intensifying, as are calls for the state to intervene more widely to bolster those occupations, industries, and regions considered net-losers from economic globalization. Governments, according to economic nationalists, should be more actively shaping economic life to realize specific national goals.
Many market liberals have responded by defending economic liberalization's benefits inside and across borders. But direct critiques of economic nationalism per se are equally necessary. There is good reason to believe that economic nationalist policies will negatively impact the long-term well-being of those nations pursuing them—including America. Before demonstrating this, however, we need a concrete definition of what economic nationalism means.
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