Your mistake is assuming Trump has a logical rationale for anything he does.
I guess we should be thankful for small mercies.
Trump said it.
I don’t believe it.
That settles it.
Canada is probably the hardest hit by the tariffs, and this is just another trade policy that has stung our “friend” to the north. It’s unfortunate because Canada’s in a difficult position to fight back. If Canada were having a spat with the UK or the rest of the EU, they would have options. We’re Canada’s biggest purchaser and geography makes it difficult to change that. Doesn’t mean that they can’t find ways to eventually return some of the favor, though.
On the other side of the border, Brazil is also potentially hit by any tariff on steel. Trump has made it obvious that his administration has contempt for the rest of the Americas, but unlike Canada, I could see them fighting back and giving us some tough love at some point if things get too far out of hand. If they can’t hurt us economically, they could do so politically. Deeper relations with Russia and China, for instance.
What kind of deal?
Trade Wars was very good, although it hasn’t aged all that well. For a BBS turn-based game you don’t get much better, though.
Wait, you meant the actual activity of a trade war? <checks chart> Nope, it looks like that’s classified as ‘chaotic neutral’.
My stock in cupronickel mining operations and research has gone up
It’s possible that it’s a national security issue. I did some consulting for a steel distributor, and for the kind of steel that they dealt in there was only one steel forge in the entire United States, and the only time they ordered steel from it was when they needed steel that had to be made in the US because it was being bought by defense contractors. If that steel forge is unable to make a profit just from customers that have to buy US-made steel, then the tariff can be seen as a measure of national security because they don’t want to have to buy these grades of steel from other countries to use in defense applications.
The better answer to the conundrum is simply to nationalize the steel forge if it’s that important to national security but not turning a profit, but that probably wouldn’t go over well with Republicans.
If that’s the case, then that one forge is in absolutely no danger of folding or even losing jobs. Matter of fact, if any of the other mill owners had any brains, they’d try to make the same product.
It’s meant to target Trump’s core vote.
Yeah, cause Republicans don’t buy American-made cars…
That’s missing the point by a couple of continents.
Wait until China cancels **20 BILLION **dollars in pending Boeing orders, giving them instead to Airbus. Yeah, we’ll win for sure.
Was Trump bluffing when he threatened to withdraw from the TPP, or when he said that he wanted to renegotiate NAFTA?
Either he sincerely believes all the protectionist nonsense, or else he realizes that enough of his base does that he doesn’t dare do anything else.
Or (as China Guy pointed out in another thread), they decide not to show up to the next T-Bill auction.
Before he pisses off China, Trump better remember he’s going to need to borrow 1.5 trillion to finance his larcenous tax cuts.
The levers of governmental power are being manipulated by a moron.
We are in deep trouble.
Crane
Right, their assaults on our democracy have been scary.
And, that video showing nuclear missiles raining on FL … holy cow.
We really need to do some damage to Canada!
He regularly says something radically ridiculous on the “other” side of whatever it is that he otherwise seems to want. And, sometimes he flip flops multiple times.
It’s like he’s working for chaos.
Now, he’s tossing the economy into chaos.
I’m not so sure he has any actual interest in policy. He seems fixated on clapping crowds and his name in the news.
Sadly, the steel tariff will be the most effective sanction Trump has ever enforced against the Russians.
Not to mention the only one.
It’s the defensive ranting of a pitiful moron.