As Obama and Romney debate offshoring, many commentators have pointed out that estimating the total job loss from offshoring is difficult.
However, we can answer a different but related question: How many manufacturing jobs could we bring back if we closed the trade deficit? A recent analysis by the Progressive Policy Institute, Manufacturing in the App Economy, showed that closing the trade deficit would add roughly 3.5-4 million direct and indirect manufacturing jobs,raising total manufacturing employment to about 15.5-16 million, or 2001 levels.
There would be a cost, equalling a one-time rise of 1.8-2% in overall economy-wide prices, but that seems manageable at a time of low inflation. What’s more, the U.S. will be borrowing a lot less.
Obama should adopt the goal of bringing back 4 million manufacturing jobs as one of the key goals of his campaign. It’s very achievable, and can only benefit Americans.
From the paper:
We as a country need to pay more attention to innovation and production across every sector of the economy, including manufacturing. Our goal should be to create a balanced economy. That means producing as much as we consume; sustaining our standard of living without taking on loads of debt; and excelling in both tangible industries, such as manufacturing,and intangible industries, such as healthcare and computer programming.
Mandel on Innovation and Growth 
Send this directly to Obama’s man/woman responsible for this area at the white house or post it on the “Obama for America”, website. Of course you could also send it to Jim Missiana (sp of last name?).
P.S. Jim M. is on his re-election team.
Excellent point, we need more manufacturing jobs to boost the economy and provide much-needed jobs. Losing so much ground in manufacturing has hit America hard and it needs to be a major focus right now.
Obama closed down American energy sources high efficiency coal power plants because of declaring CO2 an unnatural group of elements to please his new world order masters coal power is very clean but by closing them down it is now not possible to manufacture in the usa as not enough power as china opens 36 dirty coal plants a year a corporate welfare EG is exempt from killing tax and regulations obaminating energy systems the windmills are more hopeless than Don Quixote as it is the wrong size technology built to put money in the hands of do it for corrupt profit banks who care less that it was never ment to work A back yard grid could heat 20 homes if proper new innovations were used in the proper way and stored correctly the green technology seen through eyes that understand is a farce and most people know nothing about proper use and conversion of energy .the concept of kill co2 by killing a cow or better yet kill people as you can kill co2 and steel property rights as well how to fix the usa realize who has their hand around the honey pot and stop them