But what do you mean by least “intrusive”?
It would lead to retaliatory tariffs and a major brake on free trade and the wealth that comes from comparative advantage.
No tax is a very good option, really, but a tariff is the least intrusive into the lives of the American People. The despicable income tax allows the feds to snoop and intrude into our private lives where they have no business.
“Retaliation” is probably true but so many miss the fact that a tariff is a tax on the country creating the tariff. Tariffs create higher prices in the country setting the tariff, so tariffs hurt the country setting the tariff. It’s like shooting yourself in the foot. Why do they use it? Because, like minimum wage, it make the government LOOK like it’s doing something to help the economy when in fact it is doing just the opposite. Other countries’ tariff do not affect our costs and prices to them - it artificially raises their prices to their own consumers so it hurts them.