Free Market Policies Did Not “Empty Out” the Midwest

Norbert Michel, Jai Kedia, and Jerome Famularo

Amid new reports of shrinking manufacturing activity and employment, the Trump administration is struggling more than ever to justify its economic policies. Those policies, restricting trade and immigration, now coincide with fewer Americans working in manufacturing than at any point since the end of the COVID-19 pandemic.

This outcome would be bad for any administration, but it’s particularly problematic for one that’s promised...