Tornado Alley (PROG)

[lesgetrich]

You hold up free trade as the prime example of Democrats supporting big business over the working class. However, this is not a black and white illustration of your point. While free trade has been traditionally opposed by US labor unions, the record of which groups have benefited the most is pretty murky. It's not as clear cut as tax breaks for corporations.

Workers have benefited from NAFTA and other trade agreements as prices came down or were held in check on goods purchased by the poor and middle classes. While many jobs were lost to cheaper labor overseas, many jobs were also created here in the US. Going back to my distinction between the warrior and empathetic classes, an argument can also be made that lower prices for the poor and raising of living standards in Latin America and the Asia Pacific countries struck a chord in the empathetic class.

Consequently, pointing to this as proof that Democrats gave up on the poor and somehow went all in on Big Business doesn't fly. Moreover, free trade has always been promoted primarily by Republicans. What opposition there was usually came from Democrats...

Are the Republicans Switching Places with the Democrats on Trade?

Until recently, conventional wisdom had it that the Republicans were the party of free trade while the Democrats were more inclined towards protectionism. There were always gaping holes in this characterization, as we never came close to free trade when the Republicans had power, and Democratic presidents often pursued a bit of trade liberalization. But it was probably fair to say that, on average, Republican politicians were more sympathetic to free trade than Democratic politicians were...

...It will probably take a few more election cycles to be sure. My instinct, though, is that we are likely to go back to something like the recent historical norm, with Republicans pushing (albeit modestly) for freer trade, and the Democrats controlled by their protectionist interest groups and politicians. There’s only so much mileage you can get out of trade as an issue when many polls show it’s not something voters care that much about.

...Which takes me back to my original question...

Please explain exactly what laws were sponsored by a majority of (i.e. primarily by) democrats that favored big business and made the population poorer.