Trump’s Tariffs Are Terrible for the U.S. And the World
From the moment President Trump – without warning any member of Congress, any of his White House staff, or any foreign governments – announced blanket tariffs on steel and aluminum imports, the markets tanked while public opposition surged.
Foreign governments – friend and foe alike – threatened reciprocal measures that will make it more difficult for the U.S. to export goods, while further eroding relationships already fraying under Trump’s “America First” policy.
Major economists have warned the Trump tariffs are dangerous, the markets have repeatedly plummeted, and President Trump just lost his chief economic advisor, Gary Cohn, over the tariff decision.
All the while, Trump has insisted on the blanket approach, punishing both friend and foe, Canada and China, for example – not to mention Germany, Mexico, and the EU. Every American consumer, too, will be punished in the process, paying more for many things, from cars to cans of Coke and Campbell’s soup, despite the crackpot claims of Trump’s Commerce Secretary.
“We have no choice,” Trump insisted.
Now, after demanding his staff ready an actual program announcement on the tariffs – Trump just spitball the announcement with zero policies in place – the president is walking back the formal announcement date from today to Friday.
He’s also just indicated he will not go for broke – but will take into account relationships with countries who “are real friends and treat us fairly.”
Trump will still get his tariffs and the cost of goods for Americans will still rise – as will inflation, but at least a few countries might hate the U.S. a little less.
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