Protectionist policies like blocking solar panel imports and offering tax subsidies visibly benefit domestic manufacturers and workers, but impose less visible costs on consumers, making them the anonymous losers.
When the government blocks imports of solar panels and provides domestic manufacturers with tax subsidies, it creates visible benefits for U.S. solar panel manufacturers and their workers. However, the bearers of the costs, such as the consumers who would prefer the imported goods, are more anonymous and their disadvantages are less apparent. While the subsidized industries and their employees become clear winners, the dispersed costs across consumers make it difficult to identify the losers of such policy.
The conclusion is that while the benefits to certain industries from protectionist policies like subsidies and import restrictions are clear, the costs are borne by a wider, less visible group. Over time, the interests of these consumers may not be counterbalanced, leaving them at a disadvantage.