However, there are fewer jobs to be had at these factories, as
1. They've been mostly assembly plants for NAFTA markets with overseas supply chains (there's a good part of your increased trade deficit) instead of base component manufacturing, and
2. They're increasingly technical, which requires far fewer workers - as in, what used to require a shift of 20 workers now needs a shift of 4.
Another issue is tooling factories for the required work. If you're going to build a base component manufacturing plant, you need enough serious investment to pretty much build your facilities from the ground up; one of the reasons that during the 1970's and 1980's, U.S. Auto Manufacturing had serious problems being able to transition from those heavy framed gas guzzlers to the lighter framed modular and fuel efficient cars that were becoming increasingly popular.
It's why once a factory is built for, say, Air Conditioners, that's all that factory will build - it won't branch out to furnaces or water heaters, even though most of the components built on the site may be the same. The tooling of the factory determines what sort of product it's going to manufacture with very few modifications.
An assembly plant doesn't typically have the same costs.
It's modern business in a global economy. Fewer costs, greater profits, greater ROI to be handed over to shareholders.
So these stakeholder communities that are hard hit.
Most of the U.S. Debt is to the government and citizens of the US (numbers are averaged, not exact)-
35% of our debt is to U.S. banks, investors, mutual, pension, and state funds, etc.. These are held by citizens or U.S. organizations that purchase U.S. Treasury bonds and securities for various reasons.
Intergovernmental debt is 30% of our debt. Government agencies will use U.S. Treasury bonds to fund projects not already allocated. This includes block grant funding for infrastructure and community projects, Medicaid, etc.
Next is China and Japan, each owning about 8 - 9% of our national debt.
Ireland and Brazil owns about 3% each.
UK and Switzerland owns about 2% each.
The tax havens of Caymen Islands, Belgium and Luxemburg own about 1 - 2% each, though it's not certain how much U.S. wealth they actually hold, as these are mostly individual and fund accounts rather than Central Bank holdings or ImEx banks.
Finally, Hong Kong, Saudi Arabia, Taiwan, India, round out with around 1% each.
And that's the U.S. debt.
And one thing I learned in Economics 233 was that deficits are transitory, not something that is writ in stone. A trade deficit can be modified, increased or erased rapidly based on all sorts of economic tools - especially currency rates and trade deals. When used properly, Tariffs are exquisitely targeted and for set situational and time periods, not to be wielded like a axe - tearing out walls and destroying furniture while trying to get at a rat in the dining room.
Hawley Smoot kept the U.S. from recovering from a recession and unexpected drought, keeping us in a depression for 8 years because some politicians ignored economists and wanted to pretend they were protecting the 'Murican Worker and bring down our National Debt.
Let me put it this way.
You go into long term debt when you buy a house or get a Student Loan. Is that a bad thing? Or is getting a mortgage a good thing?
Or would your rather continue paying rent to a management company for your household's shelter, potentially running deficits in your monthly budget as they keep raising the cost on you? Do you continue to suffer because you never invested the $40K in federally funded student loans in that education that would soon add an extra $20K a year to your family income and continue to keep you employable?
Do you get punish your kids when it becomes too expensive to feed and clothe them as they grow?
Or do you get another job, sell that third car (yes, at a loss), or start going to the thrift store instead of Nordstrom's or Saks to buy equivalent clothes at a more affordable price?
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