how good economics works. Stupid command and control systems only screw things up and make everything more expensive. But free market economics makes things cheaper. DUH! And it is very clear that the more regulation, the more expensive things are. Things with little regulation are much cheaper.
to admit: On the tariffs, Trump was right and the “experts” were wrong. I mean, not even in the right zip code wrong. Cataclysmically wrong.
The evidence shows that it’s time for a reckoning. The doomsaying economists who swore tariffs would trigger disaster were wrong: not just on the math but on the realities of power and negotiation. When tariffs can cut other taxes, open markets, and give America leverage, it’s worth reevaluating instead of parroting outdated talking points.
It’s time for the soi-disant “experts” to come clean and admit that they were wrong and Trump was right. And if they are honest, they will do so. Let’s just say that I’m not holding my breath…
And I have to admit that even myself, while not an economist, long bought the orthodox economist line that tariffs were inevitably bad. You know, free trade and all.
But the actual data are absolutely clear. Donald Trump was right. Almost all the economists were wrong. I think that should give us pause when some”expert” tells us something in the future. Maybe we need to be just a little more careful about what and whom we believe.
Ya think maybe?
Maybe the real world is not the antiseptic “petrie dish” environment of university professors. Maybe the world of received academic wisdom is not directly applicable to the real world. Maybe retaliatory tariffs are different than tariffs unilaterally imposed by one side on a level playing field.
In any case, it’s time to come clean.
important to understand the tariff issue. It’s pretty clear that Trump has espoused free trade. And I think there’s little question that that is the ideal. So country A has no tariffs on country B, but also country B has no tariffs on country A. THAT is free trade!
And several big countries (including India if I’m not mistaken–I think) have decided that they will no longer charge ANY tariffs at all on American goods. And in response, Trump has said that he will not charge any tariffs on them. Again, THAT is free trade.
You know what is NOT free trade? When country A charges no tariffs at all, while country B charges 80% tariffs on country A’s products. THAT is the issue. I mean, how many Ford dealerships are in China? And why do you think that is?
But it is rather amusing to have Leftists squeal like stuck pigs when Trump applies retaliatory tariffs! It’s not like we start from zero on both sides, and it is clear that if that were the case there would be no tariffs at all. But it is utterly foolish to say that I will charge no tariffs on your products but I will pay 80% tariffs on yours.
That ain’t free trade!
It’s just funny (and rather ironic) to have Democrats, who have never been on the side of free trade, suddenly present themselves as the modern incarnation of Milton Friedman! I don’t believe them. I think it’s merely more googley-eyed Trump hatred. These folks don’t actually know a dang thing about economics.
a good move. Trump has indisputably made things a lot better, here. Doofy, nattering Lefty idiots notwithstanding.
“They have come to us with very good offers, and what I will tell you is that, in negotiating with some of them, they may not like the tariff wall that President Trump has put up. But they have them, so if tariffs are so bad, why do they like them? And then more insidious, we can see that from a practical matter and from academic research, are the non-tariff barriers,” Bessent said. [emphasis added]
Please understand, Trump’s obvious preference is to have no tariffs on either side–that makes the most economic sense. But these are in response to what other countries place on us–they are reciprocal and retaliatory tariffs! They are not an end to themselves, they are a response to tariffs that other countries place on US.
Well, yes, but really only in the abstract. I agree, in the faculty lounge they are not very defensible. But in real life, they are a wonderful way of using a carrot/stick approach. And we have seen proof of that in many other nations recently coming to us and wanting to form a free trade alliance. Even Britain has very recently negotiated a deal with us. And all that is far from abstract.
I agree that in an ideal world, there would be no tariffs. But we don’t live in an ideal world, so what now? We have a bunch of nations who have charged us exorbitant tariffs for years, and we have charged them very little or nothing. The result has been to destroy manufacturing in the United States. That approach has certainly pleased the economists, but really has not worked out very well for the nation, or for American workers.
OK, so what do we do now? Because other countries are already charging us large tariffs. And that has crippled industry here. So do we now just hold to some esoteric ideal and unreal world scenario and not charge on goods coming into our country while paying big tariffs to others?
So tell me, Democrats. What would you recommend, and why?
But just how is the current arrangement to our benefit? What Trump has proposed are retaliatory tariffs. Not ex nihilo ones. Democrats, you have to look a little beyond your Trump hatred…
The truth is, Democrats rarely know crap about the economy. RINOs are often at least as bad. Both of them are absolutely not a good source of ideas about what to do.
just don’t know much about international trade (the extent of their experience is having eaten at the International House of Pancakes once when driving through Las Vegas), and so wig out about Trump’s tariffs. But we didn’t start the trade war.
So the brilliant Thomas Sowell is totally correct about how tariffs are harmful–in the abstract. But what was NOT clear in the little video blurb that was circulated, was if he understands that many countries have already imposed aggressive tariffs on the US, and now it is time for us to respond, after laying supine and cringing for many years! He probably does.
So the question is NOT whether we should start imposing tariffs ex nihilo onto what was a level playing field. No, the question is how we respond in the face of punitive tariffs that other countries already have in place! THAT is a totally different question. And there is a different answer to it.
For example, Argentina’s President offered to have NO tariffs on US commodities if the US dropped all tariffs on what Argentina exports to the US. Trump was fine with that. In other words, it is not the tariff itself that is the driving issue, it is exploitation of the American worker!
And MANY (especially Democrats and Democrat-adjacent folks) have ignored that or are totally unaware. A bigger picture tells a much different story!
the tariffs are “tit-for-tat. Yes, but let’s not be ignorant of the fact that we are responding to their “tat.” Other countries (like China and even Canada) have egregious tariffs on US products. And we are supposed to just ignore that? These tariffs that Trump is imposing are merely retaliatory. This did NOT start from zero! And countries have a way to negotiate different tariffs. And many have!
So all you armchair economists, help me understand why it is good for us to tolerate an uneven playing field and to sacrifice American workers on the altar of global trade.
Go ahead, I’ll just wait for your answer…
My sense is that 95% of the critics don’t know diddley-squat about international trade, and are just aping others–letting their Trump hatred flow through them rather than looking at the actual facts. Their only expertise in international commerce is that they once ate at the International House of Pancakes.
My bet is that 5% actually DO know, but there are aspects about it that they don’t know, which, of course, very much changes things…
I’m not a fan of tariffs, economically speaking. But it is one thing for one side to unilaterally impose tariffs, and quite another to start imposing tariffs on countries who already impose them on us!
Now granted, these are not tariffs as we usually think of them. This is not an increase in monetary penalty designed to protect a struggling domestic industry (though that could be a secondary effect).
No, this is “Either you do what I say, or I slap a tariff on you. And then we will see who caves first.”
In short, for Trump a tariff is a weapon of diplomacy, not primarily an economic act. And therefore it is not subject to all the usual economic factors that are involved with tariffs. In fact, the word “tariff” is not really all that accurate in many senses. And in fact they are exquisitely tailored to each situation. Maybe there is not a better term. But it is certainly not a traditional tariff. It is simply a carrot and stick approach to International relations.
So when you hear economist wig out about Trump’s “tariffs,” just know that they are spectacularly wrong and don’t understand what Trump is doing. They need to step back a little and get a broader picture. Maybe they are just jaded and merely Trump opponents.
awesome! Follow the link and listen to his 8-minute explanation. It is great.
The short synopsis is that Trump is using tariffs, not in their historical role as a way protect a vulnerable US industry, but as a cudgel with which to beat our enemies in retaliation for their bad behavior toward us. Yes, they are called “tariffs.” But they are not really tariffs in the way that is usually thought of.
It is more “encouragement” than a traditional tariff. In the world of carrots and sticks, this is a stick, with a carrot built into the back end. This is why the traditional economists have it all wrong.
This is not a way to protect a vulnerable US industry. This is a way to punish those who are not acting fairly. It has nothing to do (except obliquely) with any particular industry. It’s not really a “tariff” as we usually think of it.
It is merely a diplomatic weapon. And an extremely effective one, at that.
It turns out that conservative economic policies really are a lot better. This is no fluke. It has happened over and over and over again. You would think that Democrats would get a clue, here. But no.
Here’s the bottom line: Democrat economic policies totally suck. The data are incredibly clear about this. Unfortunately, many Democrats successfully (for themselves) fight back against the data with willful and determined ignorance.
Maybe it’s time for Democrats to admit what the rest of us have known all along: their economic policies failed miserably, and Trump’s America First approach delivers results for working families. But don’t hold your breath waiting for that admission — they’re too busy planning their next round of failed talking points.
Regular people who vote Democrat: You need to get a clue!