Posted on 04/02/2025 8:05:47 AM PDT by Twotone
Every time Donald Trump has mentioned his plan to levy massive tariffs on imports into the US, there has been a widespread assumption that they will be delayed, watered down or rowed back.
Today, he will reveal in the White House Rose Garden not just how serious he is about "the most beautiful word in the dictionary", but effectively call time on decades of economic globalisation.
And it is still possible that he will do this by launching the equivalent of a salvo of ballistic missiles into the global trading system, with a universal tariff on all imports into the USA.
The option of a 20% universal tariff is the only way to get to some of the massive revenues of trillions of dollars claimed by some of his advisers.
In recent days, President Trump has been adamant that the tariffs will be "reciprocal" and the US will be "nicer" to its trade partners.
That doesn't rule out wide-scale imposition of tariffs at 10 or 20%, if, for example, the US deems that Value Added Taxes are tariffs.
It is possible that countries could be very broadly bracketed into different levels of a basically universal tariff. As one G7 negotiator told me at the weekend, "it all comes down to President Trump".
A system such as this, with equivalent global retaliation, would see the UK economy shrinking by 1%, enough to wipe out growth and lead to pressure for tax rises or spending cuts.
The total cost around the world could, according to an Aston University Business School study, be $1.4 trillion (£1.1tn), as trade is diverted, and prices rise.
(Excerpt) Read more at bbc.com ...
Faisel Islam? No thanks!
Just a wee bit of hyperbole there.
Another article said you don’t play chicken with a garbage truck. Sounds appropriate now that Trump is putting the light of day on our being the chumps of the world.
Faisal, could you please explain how "economic globalization" must also include exactly one and only one nation being forbidden from having the same tariffs that the other 200 nations all have. How exactly is that "global"?
Other countries can also use tariffs to raise money.
Then they can lower other taxes or eliminate them completely, like income tax for the middle and working class.
Why not just do that instead of complaining?
No more Uncle Sucker.
This is a globalist lie/propaganda. ALL trade TO the USA amounts to 14% of US gdp. Doing the math, 14% of GDP is $27T x .14 = $378B. So how in the world does a measly 25% import tariff cause a global impact of $1.4T!!!! Answer: It can't.
Corrected
This is a globalist lie/propaganda. ALL trade TO the USA amounts to 14% of US gdp. Doing the math, 14% of GDP is $27T x .14 = $3.78T. So how in the world does a measly 25% import tariff of $378B cause a global impact of $1.4T!!!! Answer: It can't.
I voted for that.
The “outrage” at fair, equitable tariffs goes right along with the democRAT outrage at DOGE, USAID, etc.
What is most important, first, last, and always, to democRATS is....$$$$$$.
We should start talking about tariffs with the Left’s favorite terms: we need equity in the tariff system. Sustainable, organic, fair.
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