Pundits have agreed that one of the big casualties of the flip in congressional leadership will likely be U.S. trade policy. Under the new leadership, President Bush, whose Trade Promotion Authority expires midway through next year, will face a very serious challenge in trying to enact free trade agreements.

Today's Detroit News reports on the protectionist impulse of some of the Michigan delegation. These lawmakers have urged Ford, GM, and DaimlerChrysler to "be blunt" with the Bush administration when discussing the struggles of Michigan's auto industry.

"There have been no steps taken by this administration to support manufacturing. They need to understand, and I hope the Big Three will be blunt and direct with the administration, that their competitors are not companies overseas. Their competitors are countries overseas," Carl Levin said.

Levin's statement represents the all-too-common protectionist argument that, when it comes to international trade, it's an us-against-them affair. But, as Daniella Markheim and Anthony Kim explained recently, that's not the case:

Because today’s global economy offers unparalleled opportunities for the U.S., it is in America's economic interest to continue to expand trade by lowering barriers to trade in goods and services....

Trade has been a driving force behind America’s high living standards and promises even more if trade barriers can be broken down further. Gary Clyde Hufbauer of the Institute for International Economics estimates that trade liberalization over the last fifty years has brought an additional $10,000 per year to the typical American household. If all trade barriers were eliminated and global trade and investment became truly free, Hufbauer estimates that American households would gain an additional $5,000 per year. According to a University of Michigan study, if today’s international trade barriers were reduced by just a third, the average American family of four would enjoy $2,500 per year in additional income.

Freer trade enables more goods and services to reach American consumers at lower prices, giving families more income to save or spend on other goods and services. Moreover, the benefits of free trade extend well beyond American households. Free trade helps spread freedom globally, reinforces the rule of law, and fosters economic development in poor countries.

Markheim and Kim's analysis should be kept in mind during the tough battles of trade that will ensue during this Congress.