He really doesn't
understand just how bad his own plan is.
To watch this video on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a6bi4ENiExs
President Donald Trump kicked Monday morning off with a series of tweets defending his new tariffs against China. His latest tactic is to urge Americans not to buy products from American companies if they manufacture in China.
The way tariffs work is
that American businesses pay the fees for bringing in goods manufactured in
China, which they then pass on to consumers. The president reasons, however,
that Americans can easily avoid these increased costs.
Trump said there is “no
reason” for U.S. consumers to pay the tariffs, before claiming that companies
inside China would soon move to other countries. In the meantime, Trump said
people should just buy products from inside the United States.
….completely avoided if you by from a non-Tariffed Country, or you buy the product inside the USA (the best idea). That’s Zero Tariffs. Many Tariffed companies will be leaving China for Vietnam and other such countries in Asia. That’s why China wants to make a deal so badly!…— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) May 13, 2019
Tariffs can still have
an impact on the cost of a product, even if you buy it from inside the United
States.
And avoiding products manufactured in China could be a lot more challenging than Trump realizes. Countless American companies have factories in China that will be impacted by the broad list of targeted products. A variety of Trump-branded productsare even manufactured in China and could be impacted.
As NBC News’ Jonathan
Allen pointed out on Monday, Trump’s call not to buy from American companies
paints U.S. farmers further into a corner.
Already, they will likely bear the brunt of the tariffs, as China counters with its own tariffs on U.S. agricultural products like soy. But now they will face increased costs on the very machinery they need to operate their farms.
Already, they will likely bear the brunt of the tariffs, as China counters with its own tariffs on U.S. agricultural products like soy. But now they will face increased costs on the very machinery they need to operate their farms.
Wow!
An American president just urged Americans to stop buying products from
American companies like John Deere, Caterpillar and Ford. The argument is you
should avoid the cost of tariffs by picking companies without facilities in
China. But wow.
Deere. Ford. Caterpillar
Deere. Ford. Caterpillar
Trump’s suggestion will
also likely get in the way of his own plans to build a wall along the southern
border. During his campaign, he insisted that the wall should be built
exclusively with equipment manufactured by Caterpillar and John Deere.
In an interview Sunday,
Trump’s top economic adviser Larry Kudlow admitted that
it’s Americans who pay the cost of tariffs.
Kudlow tried to insist that China will suffer losses as well, but he couldn’t substantiate that claim. Most economic researchers agree that American consumers will pay the cost of the tariffs in the higher prices of goods.
Kudlow tried to insist that China will suffer losses as well, but he couldn’t substantiate that claim. Most economic researchers agree that American consumers will pay the cost of the tariffs in the higher prices of goods.
Kudlow promised there
would be additional bailouts for the farmers who are ravaged by the trade war,
but there is currently no relief in sight. The Trump administration announced
an original $12 billion bailout for farmers last year, but it’s unclear that
the funding has actually reached them.
It’s likewise unclear whether more bailouts would compensate for the additional burdens they might now face purchasing the equipment they require to run their farms.
It’s likewise unclear whether more bailouts would compensate for the additional burdens they might now face purchasing the equipment they require to run their farms.
China, which had
promised to retaliate against the tariffs, announced on Monday that it would
impose tariffs on $60 billion in U.S. goods beginning June 1.