The presidential campaign and the future of US trade policy: implications for transatlantic relations. EPC Policy Brief, 27 October 2016

Since the start of the 2016 US presidential campaign, US trade policy has been a contentious topic. Donald Trump’s hostility towards free trade deals and liberal immigration got him the winning ticket for the Republican nomination, while Hillary Clinton was able to secure the Democratic nomination by a comfortable margin, but only after addressing Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders’ criticism of US free trade pacts. In this Policy Brief, Peter S. Rashish discusses the future of US trade policy based on the positions of the candidates in the presidential campaign, and maps out the different possible implications for transatlantic relations. Under a Clinton administration, the US could become an attractive economic partner for the EU; but if Donald Trump sits in the White House, the US may retreat from its historical leadership role in the global economy, leaving behind a much less stable world