Opening America's Market

“In a perceptive analysis of U.S. trade policy since 1776, Eckes destroys some of the myths about free trade. He demonstrates the inaccuracy of assertions that Smoot-Hawley caused or exacerbated the Great Depression and shows how perceived security needs in recent years have led to a one-sided giveaway of the U.S. market and U.S. manufacturing jobs.” — Herman Starobin, International Ladies' Garment Workers' Union

“Alfred Eckes has given those who work with international trade issues what we have long needed: a comprehensive, analytical history of trade policy and its consequences to the United States.” — Joseph F. Toot, Jr., President and CEO of The Timken Company

“The book poses important issues about the relationships between policy and economic performance and areas deserving fuller study in terms of business-government relations. . . . [Eckes] study will be useful to business historians concerned with international trade business form 1945 to 1970 or the changing nature of the U.S. economy.” — Business History

“A dispassionate, informed and accessible account of the history of United States trade policy that can help Americans evaluate the arguments of both free-traders and protectionists. . . . [Eckes] unites scholarly rigor with a policy maker’s sensitivity to the political factors influencing trade. . . . One hopes that future historians will provide their readers with a perspective on the past as helpful as the one Mr. Eckes has given us.” — New York Times Book Review (1995)

“A former trade official in the Bush and Reagan Administrations traces the history of American trade policy to help readers sort through the arguments of both free-traders and protectionists.” — New York Times Book Review, New and Noteworthy Paperbacks (1998)

“[Eckes] has written a clear but controversial book on a very controversial topic. . . . This is a well-argued and amply documented work of historical scholarship and contemporary policy advocacy.” — CHOICE

“An up-to-date history of U.S. trade policies, written by a historian, has long been sorely needed; Eckes fills the gap.” — American Historical Review

“Should alert elites (historians included!) to the dangers of free-trade, market dogmatism to American economic vitality.” — Journal of American History

“The book is thoughtful, fresh, and should appeal to a wide audience, from undergraduates to specialists (including policymakers).” — Perspectives on Political Science

“As an historian at Ohio University and a former commissioner for the U.S. International Trade Commission, Eckes provides an insider’s knowledge coupled with the nuance and analysis that one expects of a seasoned historian. . . . The story Eckes tells is a fascinating one, and his conclusions necessitate a reexamination of America’s current obsession with the doctrine of free trade. . . . In attempting to explain trade policy since 1776, Eckes has made a major contribution to the existing scholarship on American foreign economic policy. . . . Along with politicians and trade negotiators, business and diplomatic historians must take Eckes’s arguments into account: his research is thorough, his knowledge of the issues impressive, and the questions he raises cannot be ignored.” — Bruce A. Khula, H-Business