protectionist

noun

pro·tec·tion·ist | \ prə-ˈtek-sh(ə-)nist

Definition of protectionist

: an advocate of government economic protection for domestic producers through restrictions on foreign competitors

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Examples of protectionist in a Sentence

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However his rhetoric and actions reveal the heart of a classic protectionist with a deeply troubling misunderstanding about how to analyze the meaning of trade flows in today’s world. — WSJ, "A Trade Imbalance Is Not Harmful or Unfair," 6 Aug. 2017 This investment then produces more factories and jobs in the U.S.—something protectionists inexplicably ignore. — Gerard Gayou, WSJ, "A Trade Deficit Isn’t A Mortgage," 15 Nov. 2018 Trump’s tilt against open trade and overt embrace of protectionist rhetoric and policy has led to widespread speculation that the parties might realign on trade, with Democrats becoming a free-trade party and Republicans becoming protectionists. — Matthew Yglesias, Vox, "Elizabeth Warren wants to outflank Trump on trade," 29 Nov. 2018 The Democratic Party has its share of protectionists too. — Greg Rushford, WSJ, "Trump’s War on the WTO," 4 July 2018 The practical link was obvious to protectionists and free traders alike as far back as the 1600s, says Douglas A. Irwin, an economist and trade historian at Dartmouth College. — Greg Ip, WSJ, "U.S. Exporters Will Be a Surprise Loser From Tariff Fight," 9 July 2018 And with protectionists at the helm in its two biggest member-states, NAFTA could well collapse. — The Economist, "AMLO, Mexico’s answer to Donald Trump," 23 June 2018 But as Cohn exits, power is flowing to protectionists like Trump trade adviser Peter Navarro, a once-fringe trade-war advocate drafted into the White House after the president’s son-in-law encountered his anti-China writing on Amazon. — Ishaan Tharoor, Washington Post, "The far-right slur at the heart of Trump’s economic agenda," 9 Mar. 2018 But with the protectionists seemingly in the ascendancy in the White House, the possibility of further escalation is high. — Andrew Mayeda, Bloomberg.com, "Trump Veers Into Uncharted Trade Territory as Markets See Risks," 26 Mar. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'protectionist.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.