It's amazing to me that we never learn from history.

During the Great Depression, they tried tariffs. The Hawley-Smoot (sp?) Tariff Act. It didn't work, and made the Depression even worse.

Assuming the tariffs hold (that is still in doubt, since the courts have yet to rule whether the Executive can levy them at all), the economy is going to go south for a while. Recession likely. Maybe full depression. Limited, targeted tariffs can be useful. But this general "tariff everyone we have a trade deficit with" is going to be a disaster.

Hopefully the courts stop it (as they should...Congress has tariff power, not the Executive). Of course, Congress may legitimize his tariffs since they are all bending the knee to him. In which case, they all would be on the hook when disaster hits. I'm not sure they would be willing to risk that, but they might.

US Policy FAQ

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