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Ah, tariffs! They're like the bouncers of international trade, making sure the cool, domestic goods get to stay while the imports pay a little extra to get in. Here's the lowdown:

- **Protection for Local Industries**: Tariffs can act as a shield, protecting domestic industries from cheaper foreign competition. Think of it as giving your local producers a VIP pass to a less crowded market. They've been used historically for this purpose, but like any good bouncer, they can sometimes get a bit too enthusiastic and overdo it, leading to unintended consequences like higher prices for consumers.[](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tariff)[](https://www.investopedia.com/news/what-are-tariffs-and-how-do-they-affect-you/)

- **Revenue Generation**: Once upon a time, before the era of income taxes, tariffs were the rock stars of government revenue. Now, they're more like the backup singers. They still bring in some cash, but they're not the main act. For instance, in 2023, tariffs contributed less than 2% to U.S. federal revenue.[](https://finance.yahoo.com/personal-finance/what-is-a-tariff-194059448.html)

- **The Price Hike Effect**: Tariffs often just pass the cost onto consumers. It's like if you're at a bar and the bouncer charges you an extra fee to enter, you're not likely to tip more generously for your drinks. Economists generally nod in agreement that this means higher prices for goods, reducing consumer welfare but giving a boost to domestic industries (at least for a while).[](https://www.cfr.org/backgrounder/what-are-tariffs)

- **Trade Wars**: Sometimes tariffs are thrown around like gauntlets in medieval times, leading to trade wars where countries retaliate with their own tariffs. This can escalate into everyone trying to out-tariff each other, which might benefit a few but often leaves everyone worse off, like a game of economic chicken.[](https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/nov/29/what-are-tariffs-and-how-do-they-work-explained-in-30-seconds)[](https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c20myx1erl6o)

- **Economic Impact**: While tariffs might protect jobs in certain sectors, they can also lead to job losses in industries that rely on imports for raw materials or components. It's a bit like trying to keep all the water in one compartment of a sinking ship; you might save that section, but the rest could go under.[](https://taxfoundation.org/research/all/federal/tariffs/)

So, do tariffs work? Well, they work in the sense that they can achieve specific short-term goals like protecting certain industries or raising some revenue. But in the grand, cosmic dance of economic policy, they're often seen as a move that's out of step with the free trade waltz most economists prefer. They can indeed be a double-edged sword, slicing through consumer wallets while trying to carve a niche for domestic producers. However, like many things in life, their effectiveness depends on how they're used and the broader economic context.

President Trump just nuked Putin’s BRICS currency. And President Vance will keep it dead.

...do tariffs work? Well, they work in the sense that they can achieve specific short-term goals...

And the simple truth is, if Mr. Trump can't get Congress to control spending and our sky-rocketing debt, the US dollar will continue to inflate until... well, it won't just be the BRICS countries that look elsewhere for a stable currency...

I disagree. 13 former colonies on the arse end of the world consistently used tariffs to build local industries and economies to became the industrial power of the world. The name of that country is the United States of America.

Incontrovertible.

The “Free Trade Waltz” is what got us here. It doesn’t have to be all free trade no brakes OR all Tariffs. There is a spot far away from the Free Trade Waltz that will work well for everyone. The pendulum has been stuck on Free Tradecat all costs for so long that people think that’s normal and not destructive.

Tariffs was explained on Bannon War Room a couple of days ago

They are applied at the point of manufacturing...that is the original Wholesale price...

So a 10% tariff applied to the original manufacturers price out the door for bulk quantities goes down to small fractional increase by the time the consumer purchased it.