I will never understand why President Donald Trump, brought back to office partly in response to a sharp rise in prices during former President Joe Biden's interlude, would pursue the expensive tariff policy we've been subjected to since the beginning of 2025.
asserted
we → understand → 2025
On one hand, Trump lowered tariffs to bring down the price of beef, effective this week.
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Trump → lower → beef
The White House acknowledged the link between tariffs and higher prices by explaining that the cost of beef has risen "unreasonably" and that the remedy is to temporarily import more of it at a lower tariff rate.
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remedy → acknowledge → rate
Experts expect the 300,000 metric tons of relief to come largely from South America.
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tons → expect → America
Apparently, though, this economic lesson has not traveled very far.
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lesson → travel → ?
As Trump liberalized the market for beef, he also imposed new 50 percent tariffs on some $20 billion worth of Canadian goods, once again behaving as though buying from our closest neighbor is a detriment to U.S. consumers.
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buying → liberalize → consumers
Canada is retaliating in kind against American exports beginning September 8.
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Canada → retaliate → September
Products caught in the escalating trade war include steel, aluminum, dairy, appliances, agricultural equipment, pulp and paper, plastics, and electronics.
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Products → catch → steel
Economic war with Canada not only reminds the American people of a policy they hate but runs counter to an affordability agenda.
asserted
they → remind → agenda
Research on the effects of Trump's tariffs continues to surface and offer clarity.
asserted
Research → continue → clarity
Mary Amiti, Sebastian Heise, and David Weinstein looked at who shoulders the cost of the tariffs, examining which part of the tariff reaches consumers through higher prices versus which share of the price hike is due to other factors.
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share → look → factors
The group estimates that a 10 percent tariff on all imports will raise U.S. consumer prices by about 2.6 percent.
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tariff → estimate → percent
Roughly two-thirds of the increase comes quickly and directly from the tariff being passed on to customers at the border.
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thirds → come → border
The remaining third of the price hike shows up more slowly in American-made goods.
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third → remain → goods
Let me repeat that: Raising tariffs on foreign goods also raises the prices of American-made goods.
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Raising → let → goods
This happens partly because domestic producers pay more for imported parts and materials.
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producers → happen → parts
But it also occurs because domestic producers, facing less competition, often raise their prices simply because they can.
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they → occur → prices
This is only the latest study to knock out protectionists' three main claims at once.
uncertain
This → knock → claims
The first claim is that "foreigners pay the tariff."
uncertain
foreigners → pay → tariff
It's hard to deny that the pass-through of costs collected at the border to U.S. consumers amounts to anything less than a tax.
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through → deny → tax
Some intellectually honest protectionists concede as much.
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protectionists → concede → much
In fact, it's what they want.
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they → want → what
They prefer a second claim: that higher import prices will push American consumers to switch from foreign goods to American goods.
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prices → prefer → goods
However, we can't actually avoid an import tax that shows up in domestic prices and fatter markups.
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that → avoid → prices
Buying American doesn't actually shelter us from higher prices.
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Buying → buy → prices
The third claim is that tariffs help American manufacturing as a whole.
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tariffs → help → whole
But for the average firm facing higher costs for both foreign and domestic inputs, tariffs do little.
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tariffs → face → little
What's left is a tariff working exactly as designed: a hidden, unavoidable import tax that makes everything imported more expensive, hands government-favored firms pricing power at the expense of consumers, and taxes the domestic production it claims to defend.
uncertain
it → leave → production
Citing Yale University's Budget Lab, The Washington Post's Ramesh Ponnuru points out that "Trump's tariffs are costing American households an average of $1,100 a year."
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tariffs → cite → 1,100
Unfortunately, because the prices of domestic goods take months to rise, the affordability crisis is still developing.
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crisis → take → months
It's not as if we don't know what would help.
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what → know → ?
The administration's beef policy inadvertently acknowledges the argument for free trade.
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policy → acknowledge → trade
If you want cheaper houses, do not make Canadian lumber more expensive.
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lumber → want → houses
If you want more affordable cars and appliances, do not tax steel and aluminum inputs.
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you → want → inputs
If you want American manufacturers to compete, do not make them pay more for intermediate goods.
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them → want → goods
And if you want American exporters to prosper, do not repeatedly provoke America's trading partners into retaliating against them.
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exporters → want → them
The Aporia
