Member-only story
The Truth about Tariffs.
Hint — they are not what Trump says they are.
President-elect Donald Trump has been talking about tariffs quite a bit, both before election night and in the weeks following.
Trump says countries like Canada, Mexico and China “are going to pay” if they want to ship their products into the USA and he is prepared to slap a 25% tariff on goods from Canada and Mexico and a 60% tariff on goods coming from China.
He’s used this line over and over again much to the delight of the MAGA faithful, they like the idea of Trump sticking up for the USA and finally making other countries pay after, what they believe, is years of the USA being taken advantage of.
If you have a hard time understanding the MAGA faithful, you’re not alone. I think if they lived in Roman times, it would be the MAGA faithful who would fill the colosseum to see the slaves lose to the lion. The “damnatio ad bestias” was a common form of entertainment for the lower class. They were also hugely effective as propaganda stunts designed to showcase the emperors wealth. It’s something Trump has understood for a very long time.
Like those games in Rome, the threats Trump is making are nothing more than a game. More importantly, how he describes the way tariff’s work is a lie. He knows this. He doesn’t care. He simply wants to make sure his crowd…