Economics
The Political Economy of Trade Policy and Protectionism
Quick fact
Although most economists endorse free trade, the United States' Smoot-Hawley tariff of 1930 raised average tariffs to over 40%, and many economists believe it worsened the Great Depression; yet similar protectionist pressures persist today.
Why this is interesting
If free trade makes everyone richer, why do governments keep erecting trade barriers that economists say are harmful?