[Hoot Gibson]

I've decided to engage in a Hobby Project based upon the promise that if Free Trade is producing jobs in the country to negate or exceed jobs lost in manufacturing, then that should be reflected in the tax revenue the country collected. I found the tax revenue data fairly easily. Now, I'm looking for manufacturing job loss data from 1985 - 2015. Wish me luck!

Tax receipts are at an all time high, but the total cost that our federal government adds to the cost of manufacturing is much more difficult to measure than considering any one variable. Your time would be better spent studying the works of Milton Friedman and Friedrich Hayek. The works of Thomas Sowell would also be a great starting point. You cannot be a conservative and at the same time deny the merits of capitalism and a free market.

Look within our own country at how capital flows. Manufacturing and jobs have fled states like California, Michigan, New York, and New Jersey, not only to foreign destinations, but also to states in the southern U.S., where taxes, wages, regulatory costs, and the cost of living are lower.

Why would you suspect that high tax rates and regulatory costs drive manufacturing and jobs offshore, when the same migration is obvious in this country? Trade has driven the spread of civilization throughout history. We cannot thrive as a nation by coercing American companies to operating in this country through high tariffs and anti-trade policies and expect to maintain our standard of living.

Trump has actually threatened to, if elected, punish Ford Motor Company for moving jobs to Mexico with a 35 percent tax on each vehicle imported from Mexico.

Yet, Trump ties and various other Trump products are manufactured in China and other countries. Is he going to punish himself if he is elected for not creating jobs for Americans - for hiring foreign workers where Americans were willing to work for him instead?

Don't fall for Trump's demagoguery on economics. Trump has always supported liberal politicians who have choked the life out of manufacturing and mining operations in this country. As they say, follow the money - and you sill see most of it has ended up in the pockets of corrupt liberal politicians.

Trump's character and core values did not magically change when he decided to run for president. The fact that Trump has convinced so many of his supporters that "free trade" is antithetical to American values and self interests is perhaps the most destructive thing Trump has done as a candidate.