Wall Street is puking big-time, and the Sell buttons are working overtime whenever the word “tariff” passes from Donald Trump’s lips. If you listen to the fat cat community long enough, you’d think Trump has been in office four years rather than four weeks, and that a small trade surcharge on a car from Mexico is leading us into economic Armageddon.
I’m no fan of tariffs for lots of reasons — including that I hate paying too much for stuff — but I’ve also taken enough econ and studied markets long enough to know that they’re not the end of the world as we know it. I also know that the Trump economic plan is much more than tariffs; it’s about tax cuts, deleveraging the federal government’s involvement in the private sector and allowing the private sector to thrive.
It’s about unleashing the animal spirits of the US entrepreneur through deregulation.
Yes, what Trump wants to do — and has to do, given the load he was left with — was always destined to create some short-term pain for the long-term gain.