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The Evening Campaign Update (Because The Campaign Never Ends) So, President Donald Trump spent all day Friday getting hammered by the fake news media, Democrats and many Republicans in congress, and leaders of other countries all over the world for his announcement Thursday afternoon that he plans to implement tariffs on imports of steel and aluminum next week. If that reaction mix sounds familiar to you, it should. It’s exactly the same reaction from a very similar mix of players he received last summer when he announced he was pulling the United States from the Paris Climate Accords. Coincidence? Not...

BERLIN — The European Union will hit back at the heart of the United States, slapping tariffs on products like Harley-Davidsons, Kentucky bourbon and bluejeans, if President Trump goes ahead with a plan to place tariffs on steel and aluminum imports, the president of the bloc’s executive arm vowed on Friday. Jean-Claude Juncker, president of the European Commission, made the remarks to the German news media in reaction to the proposed tariffs. Mr. Junker said the plans to tax the American goods, produced in the home states of key Republic leaders, had not yet been finalized, but amounted to treating...

When U.S. president Donald Trump announced sweeping new tariffs of 25 percent on imported steel and 10 percent on aluminum Thursday, the world’s commentariat broke out in a frenzy of condemnation. Trump was accused of playing politics in a way that could “destabilize the global economy.” It was said that Trump’s actions could “bring global trade growth to a halt” (notwithstanding the fact that levels of global trade have already been declining since 2011). His critics screamed “trade war.” Canadian and European leaders immediately threatened retaliation. China didn’t, but American China experts predicted that Beijing soon would. It is likely...

President Trump is raising tariffs 25% on steel and 10% on aluminum, claiming that cheap steel from other countries has hurt the American steel industry.  His claim, that steel imported at lower prices hurts our steel industry, is certainly true. But talk show host Mark Levin says Trump's tariffs are crony capitalist gifts for wealthy steel-owners that are bad for the economy as a whole.  On his talk show last night, he listed a number of reasons why: 1. Industries that depend heavily on steel, such as auto and airplane manufacturers, will take a big hit.  With the increase in the price...

Donald Trump made the biggest policy blunder of his Presidency Thursday by announcing that next week he’ll impose tariffs of 25% on imported steel and 10% on aluminum. This tax increase will punish American workers, invite retaliation that will harm U.S. exports, divide his political coalition at home, anger allies abroad, and undermine his tax and regulatory reforms. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 1.7% on the news, as investors absorbed the self-inflicted folly. ... The immediate impact will be to make the U.S. an island of high-priced steel and aluminum. The U.S. companies will raise their prices to nearly...

Stocks got slammed Thursday as President Trump said he will impose stiff new tariffs on steel and aluminum imports. Looking to get tough on overseas competitors like China, Trump said the US will impose tariffs of 25 percent on steel and 10 percent on aluminum, sending the Dow Jones industrial average plunging more than 500 points. The president is looking to make good on a key campaign promise despite opposition from some inside the White House who fear the tariffs could spark a trade war. By 2:04 p.m., the blue-chip index was down 517.41 points — or 2 percent —...

President Donald Trump said Thursday his administration will impose tariffs on steel and aluminum imports as early as next week, a highly controversial move that Trump framed along economic and national security lines. Trump said the US will impose a 25% tariff on steel imports and 10% tariff on aluminum to shore up the struggling industries, capping a fierce, months-long internal debate that divided some of the President's top advisers. The move is likely to invite retaliatory measures from foreign countries, raising the specter of a trade war between the US and several other steel-producing countries.

The stronger economy we’re enjoying now is no accident. Lower taxes, more jobs and fewer regulations are creating a much-needed boost. So why do we still have one foot on the brake? I’m referring to trade. Protectionist measures act as a drag on our progress. Indeed, they threaten to undo much of it. Consider the tariffs and quotas that the Trump administration recently slapped on imports of solar cells and modules, large residential washers, and washer parts. The price? As researcher Tori Whiting notes in a Daily Signal article, we get fewer jobs (roughly 23,000 American jobs this year, according...

The economy is picking up steam, but President Trump could reduce the benefits of his tax cuts and regulatory rollback with protectionism. This risk became more serious after the Commerce Department on Friday recommended broad restrictions on aluminum and steel imports that would punish American businesses and consumers. Last year the President directed Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross to investigate whether steel and aluminum imports threaten national security under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962. Commerce concluded that they do and has proposed quota and tariff options to mitigate the putative harm. But the evidence in Commerce’s reports...

Americans are increasingly supportive of tariffs on cheap, imported goods from foreign countries to protect American industries and workers against wild globalization. In a poll by Rasmussen Reports, roughly 50 percent of Americans said the federal government should “place tariffs on goods from countries that pay very low wages to their workers,” as opposed to only 26 percent of Americans who said tariffs should not be imposed on foreign countries. About 24 percent of Americans said they were “not sure” if the government should use tariffs to protect American industries. Additionally, a plurality of Americans, about 44 percent, said the...

South Carolina, a state that strongly backed President Donald Trump, isn’t happy about his move to impose hefty tariffs on imported washing machines. That is because Samsung Electronics Co. recently started production at a $380 million manufacturing plant in the state, hiring 600 employees and promising to expand as it increases production for the U.S. market. Republican Gov. Henry McMaster and other GOP state leaders expressed concern that the tariffs announced Monday would slow production at the new factory and have a chilling effect on investment. Gov. McMaster had traveled repeatedly to Washington, D.C., to lobby against the tariffs, telling...

President Donald Trump has approved steep tariffs on imports of solar panels and washing machines to protect US producers, triggering an outcry in China and South Korea and even protests at home. Seoul said Tuesday it planned to take the issue to the World Trade Organization while Beijing expressed "strong dissatisfaction". "Together with other WTO members, China will resolutely defend its legitimate interests," its commerce ministry warned, without indicating any specific counteraction. At home in the US, the move was decried by the solar industry, which said the tariffs would create a "crisis" and cost thousands of US jobs and...

China and South Korea have vowed to defend their interests after the US imposed new tariffs on imported washing machines and solar panels. The tariffs - of up to 50% - will affect the two Asian countries more than any other. They are part of US President Donald Trump's "America First" trade policy, which aims to protect local manufacturers from foreign competition. South Korea said it would complain to the World Trade Organization (WTO).

Despite Whirlpool’s arguments being the corporate equivalent of a child who wants dessert but not to clean his room, the ITC sided with Whirlpool and is now considering which “remedies” to impose. Whirlpool, for its part, suggests a prohibitively high 50 percent tariff on washing machine imports from LG and Samsung. Implementing this tariff, even in a temporary manner, would harm opportunities for thousands of American workers. Samsung is already in the process of building a washing machine factory in South Carolina, expected to employ nearly 1,000 American workers. LG is constructing a factory in Clarksville, Tennessee, which would employ...

The Commerce Department slapped duties of nearly 220 percent on Canada’s Bombardier C Series aircraft Tuesday in a victory for Boeing that is likely to raise tensions between the United States and its allies Canada and Britain. Commerce ruled that Montreal-based Bombardier used unfair government subsidies to sell jets at artificially low prices in the U.S. “The U.S. values its relationships with Canada, but even our closest allies must play by the rules,” Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross said. Canada responded by saying it “strongly disagrees” with the U.S. move. “This is clearly aimed at eliminating Bombardier’s C Series aircraft from...

So far, the Trump administration’s trade policy has seen an internal division among economic nationalists and “globalists” on the president’s senior staff. The economic nationalists, and the president himself, believe protectionism will strengthen the American economy. “Look at the 19th century,” said former White House chief strategist Steve Bannon in his recent “60 Minutes” interview. “What built America’s so called ‘American system,’ from Hamilton to Polk to Henry Clay to Lincoln to the Roosevelts? A system of protection of our manufacturing, financial system that lends to manufacturers, OK, and the control of our borders.” In the nationalists’ narrative, high tariffs...

The following is a rare account of President Trump in a small Oval Office meeting, venting at senior staff for sometimes resisting his hawkish trade agenda. This account — confirmed by sources with knowledge of the meeting and undisputed by the White House — hints at where Trump may be heading with his trade agenda. And it shows he believes some of his top economic advisors are resisting his agenda because they are "globalists." The scene: The Oval Office, during Gen. Kelly's first week as Chief of Staff. Kelly convened a meeting to discuss the administration's plans to investigate China...

Back in April, President Trump slapped tariffs of around 20 percent on the Canadian softwood lumber industry. At the time, I wrote that it would cause lumber prices to rise, citing estimates that prices could increase by around 6.4 percent. Well, it turns out I was wrong, and lumber prices have not risen by around 6 or 7 percent. Instead, they’ve risen by much more since the spring—as much as 25 percent. One contributing factor for this spike is not hard to see. Tariffs are taxes on the consumer, restricting the consumer’s options when purchasing a product. The levies make...

With the political world distracted by President Trump's media wars, one of the most consequential and contentious internal debates of his presidency unfolded during a tense meeting Monday in the Roosevelt Room of the White House, administration sources tell Axios. The outcome, with a potentially profound effect on U.S. economic and foreign policy, will be decided in coming days. With more than 20 top officials present, including Trump and Vice President Pence, the president and a small band of America First advisers made it clear they're hell-bent on imposing tariffs — potentially in the 20% range — on steel, and...

Donald Trump has ordered a “national security” review of steel imports with a goal of justifying a broad-based tariff. If his advisers look honestly at the evidence, they can’t possibly find enough to justify such a job-killing, economically harmful policy. ... The greatest harm from broad-based steel tariffs would be to the thousands of American businesses and workers that use steel. These would include the higher cost of American steel for construction (42% of steel shipments), automotive (27%) and machinery (9%). Public works and homes would cost more to build. Many U.S. companies that compete globally would risk losing business...