President Donald Trump is tweeting again, and this time it is in relation to economic ignorance.
On Thursday, the president threatened to raise tariffs on aluminum and steel imports as a way to protect these industries in the U.S.
He tweeted:
Our Steel and Aluminum industries (and many others) have been decimated by decades of unfair trade and bad policy with countries from around the world. We must not let our country, companies and workers be taken advantage of any longer. We want free, fair and SMART TRADE!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) March 1, 2018
This is a ridiculous argument. Just to summarize why it’s a bad idea:
- Foreigners don’t pay the tariffs; Americans bear most of the burden.
- Other U.S. industries shed jobs and lose money.
- Domestic industries should not be afforded special privileges.
- Why tax consumers who decide to buy foreign imports?
Thankfully, some conservatives are speaking out against this.
In addition to his latest demands, he has now tergiversated on guns and has returned to his left-wing positions from 20 years ago.
Just another way of giving subsidies to favored industries payed for by we the people.