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Thomas Jefferson once said, “With great risk, comes great reward.” While that may be a great way to describe the revolution that resulted in the greatest nation the world has ever known, we all know by our own experiences this saying is not always the case in life.
Bold investments don’t always pan out. Aggressive trades can come back to haunt you. Leaps of faith sometimes lead to a hard crash back down to earth.
Right now, a great risk is being taken with the American economy in the hopes it will lead to a great reward. Only time will tell if it will work.
The nation’s economy is booming. Gross domestic product was growing at a rate of 4.2 percent last quarter, the strongest pace in four years. Profits, once inventory and capital adjustments are made, are up 16 percent, a six-year high.
Federal Reserve Chairman Powell said just last week, “The economy is strong? most people who want a job are finding one.”
Why are we seeing this growth? The answer is smart national policy decisions.
Last year, Congress and the president passed tax relief intended to spur domestic investment and repatriate dollars back to the U.S. The tax package included, among other things, a major reduction to the corporate tax rate (from 35 percent down to 21 percent). That’s a big reason profits are higher, leading to increased investment and more job opportunities for American workers.
Also, there has a been a continued focus on reducing regulations and red tape over the last two years. Since taking office, President Trump’s administration has repealed 22 regulations for each new rule or regulation put in place. This focus has lifted the wet blanket that had previously smothered economic growth across many industries and ushered in a new level of confidence in employers of all sizes.
Momentum is building, and the economy is growing. But a new risk is being taken with this momentum and the balance between risk and reward is a moving target.
Trade tariffs have been implemented by the administration in the hopes of finally bringing to light some solutions to long-standing problems. For years, America has fought to no avail to bring China to the table and end theft of our intellectual property, lower harmful tariffs on our products and improve the treatment of their own workers. Our trade deficit with China last year reached a staggering $375 billion, roughly 65 percent of the entire U.S trade deficit.
That percentage is not sustainable, and China is long overdue for being called to the carpet on these issues.
But are tariffs really the best way to get there? President Trump says, in the long run, the answer is no, but in the short term, it must be yes. He is implementing new tariffs today but his long-term goal is quite different, as described in June when he said, “You go tariff-free, you go barrier-free, you go subsidy-free... I mean, that would be the ultimate thing.”
That end game sounds good to me. Get governments across the globe out of the market as much as possible and let consumer demand and business investment drive economic growth. Left to its own devices, I have confidence that American buying power, ingenuityand market share will have a great shot at doing very well in that type of competition.
The question is whether the risk of damaging short-term trade tariffs is worth the possibility of better trade deals with countries like China on the back end? It’s a question lots of businesses and economists are asking themselves these days.
Louisiana has more than 550,000 jobs supported by international trade. 136,600 of those jobs are created by Louisiana manufacturers, pumping out 21 percent of the state’s gross state product and paying an average annual compensation of $87,212. Roughly $30 billion in manufactured goods were exported from Louisiana in 2106, with about 40 percent of that amount going to our 20 free trade agreement partners around the world.
One such Louisiana manufacturer is Laitram LLC. Based just outside New Orleans, this Louisiana success story started in the 1940’s when it patented the world’s first automated shrimp peeling machine and has grown through hard work and smart planning to an employer of 1,900 people across the globe. They are a fantastic community partner and have stepped up time and time again through the years to help Louisiana in countless ways. They also were one of many American manufacturers riding a euphoric wave of economic optimism in the last year thanks in part to smart federal regulatory and tax relief. But now, due to the temporary use of trade tariffs, anxiety and concern are setting in.
“In the first five months of the year, we saw remarkable growth due to regulatory and tax changes, but in June our booking was soft, infact lower than last year,” said Laitram CEO Jay Lapeyre. “What we know is these tariffs have put us in a competitive disadvantage to foreign manufacturers of equipment.”
That’s a problem if the very same tariffs being used to fight unfair trade challenges with other countries are in fact giving a leg up to foreign manufacturers as they compete with American, home-grown manufacturers here in Louisiana. We don’t want to incentivize U.S. companies to import foreign manufactured goods built with cheaper steel, inadvertently punishing American manufacturers that use steel to make their products here at home.
As for the Louisiana Association of Business and Industry’s members, a recent survey tells us the immediate impact of the tariff game is evenly split between those positively affected, negatively affected or not affected at all.
Trade is the lifeblood of Louisiana. The stated goals to improve U.S. trade policy are noble: the deficit must be reduced, American manufacturing must be re-energized and other countries must protect our intellectual property and lower their tariffs on American goods. But the tactics currently being used to get there are, without question, risky.
The president is right to describe the ideal trade policy as “tariff-free, barrier-free, subsidy-free.” The question is whether his flirtation on the short term with these tariffs will eventually lead to such an ideal long-term policy? And if so, when?
Only time will tell if this risk is worth the potential reward. Let’s hope Jefferson was right.
Stephen Waguespack is president of the Louisiana Association of Business and Industry.

NEW YORK — New York Fashion Week has opened its glamorous tent wider to feature models with disabilities wearing adaptive clothing designs by Tommy Hilfiger, Nike and Target.
Organized by the Runway of Dreams Foundation, the show on Wednesday included a catwalk welcoming to wheelchairs, crutches, walking canes and more. Actor and model RJ Mitte of “Breaking Bad” was host.
Mitte said he understood the importance of inclusion on a personal level, having been diagnosed with cerebral palsy at age 3. “I’m really excited to see all this inclusivity and all of these strides to be diverse,” he said.
The founder of Runway of Dreams, Mindy Scheier, was inspired to start her foundation when her son, Oliver, who has muscular dystrophy, told her he wanted to wear clothes like everyone else. His request was for blue jeans, a clothing item that would prove difficult to pull on and off with his condition unless the pants were modified. She decided to make him an adaptive pair on her own and realized the need for more adaptive clothing lines for individuals with disabilities.
“Fashion is a direct correlation to how we feel about ourselves, our confidence, our self-esteem,” said Scheier. “And if you don’t have that, if you don’t have options, it can really affect how you feel about yourself. So truly, clothing is a basic need. So, shouldn’t we all feel really good and have options like everybody else?”
Model Mama Cax, recently featured on the cover of Teen Vogue’s September issue for “The New Faces of Fashion,” lost her leg during a battle with cancer. She is now an advocate for inclusion in the fashion industry and walked the runway Wednesday.
She said she wanted to see people with disabilities cast in movies and TV in lead roles or as love interests but without any “inspiration piece attached to it,” adding: “We want to see them in a normal role, average role, like we do in our everyday lives.”
Jason Redman never expected to find himself at a fashion show. Redman was a U.S. Navy SEAL who suffered injury to his face and body when he was struck by machine gun fire during a special operative mission in Iraq. He received the Inspirational Achievement Award for the clothing company he founded, Wounded Wear.
“People underestimate the power of clothing, the power of wanting to feel good and look like everybody else around us. And that’s what this organization does. So to be here, to be an awardee, to be a part of it, it’s pretty awesome.”

The Morgan City High School Tigers will host Hanson Memorial in its home opener Friday at Tiger Stadium.
Both teams enter the contest 0-1. Morgan City fell in week 1 34-7 at Berwick, while Hanson fell to St. Edmund 45-12.
Last week, St. Edmund took a 38-0 halftime lead en route to the victory.
The Blue Jays rushed 32 times for 261 yards.
Hanson scored its points in the final quarter as Stephan Rosamond hit receiver Brandon Loustait for a 19-yard touchdown, while Collin Faucheaux completed an 81-yard touchdown pass to Pierce Hanagriff.
In Morgan City’s loss, the Tigers trailed 14-0 at halftime before Berwick outscored Morgan City 20-7 in the third quarter for the eventual final score.
Morgan City quarterback Tate Alcina completed 4 of 10 passes for 65 yards with a touchdown and an interception.
Hayden Barron was his top receiver with two receptions for 49 yards and a score.
Mitchell Mancuso led the Tigers’ ground game with eight carries for 29 yards.
As a team, Morgan City totaled 234 yards of offense (141 passing and 93 rushing).
Defensively, Morgan City surrendered 400 yards of offense (274 rushing and 126 passing).
A year ago, Hanson finished 3-8, and advanced to the Division IV playoffs where it fell in the first round. Morgan City defeated Hanson 29-24 in Franklin in week 2 of the regular season.
Morgan City High School Coach Chris Stroud was not available for comment.
Friday’s game is set for a 7 p.m. kickoff.
Additional reporting by The Opelousas Daily World.