Why Donald Trump's love affair with tariffs will only end badly

[Joinfortmill]

https://www.cityam.com/why-does-donald-trump-love-tariffs-so-much/

My words: Good info here, folks. I keep breaking my hiatus, so I guess I'm back.

'So why Donald Trump’s love affair with tariffs will only end badly... Trump wants to think of himself as a master deal-maker. The threat of tariffs is therefore just a bargaining chip to bring partners to the negotiating table....He wants to cajole European economies into meeting their NATO spending commitments and to contain China’s growing influence...

Trump... has a completely unorthodox view of trade in which there are always winners and losers...known as mercantilism – that went out of fashion 300 years ago... (they) believed that exports should be maximised...and imports minimised through the use of tariffs....The major problem with Trump’s penchant for tariffs is his apparent inclination to view trade deficits like losses on a corporate balance sheet. This is misguided. Even though all deficits and surpluses must balance, global trade is not a zero-sum game...In fact it is the opposite.

Trade enables the more efficient use of economic resources by allowing countries to specialise in areas in which they have a comparative advantage. This, in theory, should provide benefits to all participating economies...Put another way, it’s hard to see how American consumers are ‘losing’ by importing lots of cheap goods from China.'

[dalton99a]

1. What American kids want to do when they grow up

[Johnny2X2X]

2. I'm old enough to remember

I'm old enough to remember when Republicanism was synonymous with Free Trade. They have no core values anymore, it's whatever Trump says on a whim. I'm convinced Trump could wake up one day and say he wants legal abortions up to 22 weeks everywhere, and his party would be lockstep with him by dinner time.

[Walleye]

4. And then we would have to listen to all their lame rationalizations

[Walleye]

3. Trump like tariffs because he doesn't have to go through Congress. And he thinks it results in tax revenue.

Also, I think he just likes the word tariff. Keep in mind he’s essentially a five-year-old

[viva la]

5. Now he's talking about bigger tariffs on Mexico and Canada.

Our neighbors and biggest partners.
And who knows if he understands... a tariff is paid through higher prices. So all those cars with parts imported from Mexico and Canada... 10% more expensive almost immediately.
Talk about inflation!