President Donald Trump is set to gamble the success of his second term, the economy and the personal finances of millions of Americans this week on his long-held belief that tariffs can re-create a golden age of US wealth and independence.
Or is he? Such is Trump’s capricious leadership that nothing is certain until it happens. And adamant orders — especially on trade — are often reversed as soon as they are given.
But Trump promises that Wednesday, April 2, will be “Liberation Day” — when he imposes reciprocal dollar-for-dollar tariffs on nations that levy duties on US goods.
His most robust move yet to transform the global trading system could end up affecting every American, raising prices at a time when family budgets are already stretched. But the president is implicitly asking everyone to buy into a strategy that promises tantalizing future benefits but requires sacrifice for years to come.
Trump’s trade-war policies have already wiped trillions of dollars of stock markets — the Dow Jones Industrial Average plunged 700 points on Friday alone — and worsened fears of a recession as consumer confidence ebbs. He’s also alienated US allies as his foreign policy starts to unravel the Western system of alliances.
As Wednesday’s deadline approaches, the president is further damaging the confidence on which economic stability depends by raising contradictory expectations — suggesting, for instance, that some nations or industries may get opt-outs from the new tariffs. His whiplash leadership risks as much damage as the policies themselves.
Trump reasons that by imposing tariffs on imports, he’ll force firms to relocate manufacturing and supply chains to the United States, thereby creating jobs and reviving regions left destitute by globalization.
The downside, however, is that tariffs will spike prices for consumers weary of the high cost of living. And there’s no guarantee firms will bring production back stateside, since such a reorientation would take years and presumably outlast Trump’s time in power.
Read Collinson’s full analysis here.
