Critics say Ms. Warren — with her proposals for new business regulation and focus on encouraging companies to locate production in the United States, rather than seeking the lowest-cost and most efficient production hubs around the world — will hinder American companies as they attempt to sell into India, China and other developing nations.
“To me that is the biggest risk in this, that you hobble American corporations so they cannot be globally competitive,” Mr. Fratto said. “We want these companies to compete globally. Because sooner or later, they have to.”
Ms. Warren would also risk hurting consumers by breaking up technology companies, particularly Amazon, said Natasha Sarin, a University of Pennsylvania economist who favors many of Ms. Warren’s goals but has written skeptically about her proposed wealth tax. She said taxing wealth could discourage innovation and risk-taking by entrepreneurs who invest time in their ideas hoping for a large payoff down the road.
“It’s a really important shift in how tax policy works in the U.S.,” she said, “and it’s not obvious to me that it’s a shift for the better.”
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