I know it sounds absurd but one of Trump's tactics seems to be to push Humpty Dumpty off the wall and let other people pick up the pieces. Maybe that works for Trump's business empire but it's no way to run a country.
I don't know, it is kind of refreashing to see our president standing with workers (literally) instead of the corporate type. Not that the later would be bad except for the fact that with trickle-down economics for the last forty years and the Citizens United ruling that pretty much allowed the rich to buy their politicians, anytime you would see such a photo op with our politicians and the smiling business guys it meant workers were going to get the short straw and see their prodoctivity gains go straight into the pockets of their bosses instead of their paychecks. Meanwhile, you had Obama and Hillary pushing the TPP, a NAFTA-on-steroids trade agreement. Is it any wonder why she and Obama's legacy lost?
Trump has a strange idea that in negotiations one wins and the other gets bruised. To understand how Trump deals, watch the documentary "You've Been Trumped" about his ham fisted appropriation of property for a golf course in Scotland. His organization even cut the water from a woman in her 90s. He even went to far as to build berms to prevent the neighbours having their traditional views.
2
The "experts" have been in charge over the last 50 years, as our manufacturing has been shipped over seas. Time for new tactic, and leadership doesn't always mean taking the path of least resistance.
2
And the problem with this is? When you are the single largest economy on the planet, you can make the rules and while it won't make the smaller economies happy, they'll find a way to deal with it. We've been punching FAR below our weight for too long. MAGA
1
Actually, by many measures China is already the biggest economy on the planet. And it's growing 3 or 4 times faster. Something like 90% of world economic growth in the next decade is in Asia. Our companies need access to these markets or they will fall behind. Making trade with Asia more open and free is a prerequisite to MAGA.
1
The hypocrite-in-chief con artist strikes again. He had no qualms importing Chinese steel for his own building projects. Perhaps if he and his ilk had used American produced steel the industry wouldn’t be in decline. It sickened me to see steel workers used as props for another of the emperor’s photo-op edict signings.
http://www.newsweek.com/how-donald-trump-ditched-us-steel-workers-china-...
https://www.cwa-union.org/news/donald-trump-uses-foreign-steel-in-his-bu...
https://aflcio.org/2016/10/12/six-facts-donald-trumps-use-chinese-steel
1
So I guess extortion is a legitimate bargaining chip in the US now. "Lovely agreement you have there, it'd be a pity if something happened to it."
2
Free trade's existential defects are manifest.
• Specialization is both a byproduct & a hallmark of free trade. Specialization is, by definition, loss of self-sufficiency. Loss of self-sufficiency is de facto loss of national security. A post-industrial America is free trade’s logical—and untenable— endpoint.
• Specialization enlarges and potentially globalizes the organic whole beyond its optimal—and ultimately viable—size.
But political leverage, in the end, may be the most important advantage of economic nationalism: Trump's tariffs/nationalistic fervor may be the weapon that ultimately compels Kim (via Xi Jinping) to capitulate on nukes.
1
What if bronze age humanoids had decided "Make Humanoids Great Again" by insisting on stone-axes instead of marching forward to the iron age. This is the age of technology. More money for education, retraining, innovation and business especially in communities that have lost factories, mills and mines. Would have been a far better and wiser to pour money into these struggling communities than give trillions of dollars in tax breaks to a few. That would have been a deficit and a debt worth working to pay off.
Do steel, aluminum, coal workers really want their sons and daughters to follow them into the factory and down the mine? Although I think robots will be getting first dibs on that one in the near future.
Robots are already flipping burgers and pouring milkshakes, the fast food business is next. And yet still no push for quality education and innovation, new economic models, out of the box thinking, new ways to live and thrive.
2
Could this "strategy" be no more than to garner votes in PA 18th district?
5
He's very short-sighted and doesn't seem to be aware of any details that are part of policy decisions. Let alone the possibility of a domino effect radiating from a particular policy.
2
Not just the 18th district.....the whole midwest. Delivering on those promises for 2020. Growing heavy manufacturing never hurt a candidate.
2
Bradley, You probably don't buy much steel directly from US Steel. Their customers are people like the auto companies. If steel prices go up, GM et al will have to raise their prices and will sell fewer cars. So they will buy less steel. US Steel will probably make more, but US manufacturing will be hurt by the proposed tariffs.
Blackmail and bullying is always a messy business. I read that it would be illegal to levy tariffs on Canada and Mexico while signature to NAFTA, which, if true, means the US would have to pull out of NAFTA to make good on that threat. Less a concession and more caught in trap - and then there's the fall out from other targeted countries.
"The mix of bluster and openness to compromise is consistent with a longstanding pattern that was evident in President Trump’s business career."
And how many times did he go bankrupt? Five.
And his father's money provided a giant cushion, the US doesn't have that luxury, it's trillions of dollars in debt as is. It can't just up and walk away from the mess, grinning.
2
If you were in collections in the Bronx, here’s how you did it:
No, no, it’s not me. I’m just here for the man. And he wants his money. You’re six months behind on your big-screen TV, yet I see you thought it was a good time to buy a used car. That’s the kind of thing that might make some people angry. Not me. But my partner here is a little more excitable than I am; that’s why he was locked up. I can try talking to him, but you might prefer talking to me. He might even think there are some body parts you might not still want to have use of; he’s a little crazy that way, very vivid imagination. Do you understand what I’m saying? He can be a handful. You’ve got to understand my position: I’m in the middle of this. I don’t really care; it’ll go to the marshal’s office eventually anyway. I just have to prove to the man that I showed up. But my friend, he doesn’t listen so well. And he’s got a kind of old-fashioned sense of justice. You know what I’m saying? Now, I know you’re new to this country, and wouldn’t want to be embarrassed in front of your girl here. I wouldn’t want to do that—if I didn’t have to. And I know you wouldn’t want to have to deal with the IRS. But it’s out of my hands. So, maybe we can work with each other. Any payment you could make right now would be much appreciated. Much appreciated. Cash would be fine. Whatever you have on you.
2
That about covers it!
1
If you could consider "twittter-winging-it" a tactic...
1
In 2016, the U.S. exported $320 billion of goods and services to Canda while importing $307 billion. Unfortunately the American president is entirely unaware that the U.S. enjoys what is usually a small surplus in trade between the countries.
Canada is a country absurdly blessed with natural resources and Nafta gives equal access to those resources for the U.S.
Many of the major "Canadian " corporations are owned by American corporations, subsidiaries like the Canadian auto industry. Perhaps Trump could visit Detroit/Windsor to witness the total integration of the motor industry.
Canada continued in Nafta despite having higher environmental and labour standards and a more advanced welfare state than the U.S. and Mexico.
In response to the madness of Trump, Canada has negotiated free trade with Europe and enhancement of the Trans-Pacific Partnership.
Until a couple of years ago Canada and the U.S. had the world's largest bilateral trade. No longer. Trump is dragging his country back to zero-sum gaming and a prefeudal distribution of wealth and incomes. Perhaps the American ruling plutocracy will change policy after the financial markets crater.
9
Trump has yet to make any deal with anybody. In typical con-man fashion, it's all talk. However, there is one thing that Trump has assured people, he can't be trusted.
3
Unraveling the poor trade agreements made over decades is the whole point. There is virtually nothing the US can't produce on its own entirely without trade. EVERY other country is more dependent on trade with the US than it is with them. Considering percentages of GDP, most countries are at 4x that of the US. "Experts" need to sit down and watch how it's done if the last 50 years are any indication.
1
I think the self-proclaimed master negotiator is a one-trick pony: he acts completely irrational and insane, everybody gets worried the moron is going to blow up the world, and then his actual demands seem more palatable.
The problem is that this tactic only works a few times before opponents realize they can call his bluff. I doubt China, for example, will be intimidated by one of his little tirades.
5
Trump needs a scapegoat, always. And that makes pretty much everyone on the globe a target. No strategy, not even a tactic. Lets see where his buddies have their steel shares invested: Mexico? Canada?
4
trump has certainly made the usa seem like a country of whiners.
poor little us....so weak, so dumb, so patient, so meek, so gullible, so cowed because of our weak defence, so incompetent, such terrible potus' before me.
has the nyt done a story yet with stories of America refusing to put everything on the table? is the usa the only country in the world that never cheats or acts in a less than open way? does the usa have trade deficits with every other country on the face of the earth? if not, is it cheating when it has a surplus? are deficits horrible? should i sue my dealership when i buy a car because they're making profit from me and i lose a large chunk of its value when i drive off the lot?
3
Just another red herring to deflect attention from Mueller’s investigations? Maybe.
An effort to get a soon dissolving congressional district to vote for his minion? Maybe.
A tempor tantrum? Maybe.
A presidential impersonator? Fired!
2
"Suggest" that it's a tactic?
1
Tariff strategy? It's called extortion folks. It is what criminals, err... Trump does.
4
A dirty little secret will be exposed with this dustup, i.e., tariffs already exist throughout "free trade".
2
https://www.cnbc.com/2018/03/01/canada-brazil--but-not-china--will-be-hi...
"Brazil, a major exporter of steel to the US, will also be hurt by the new tariffs. The South American nation exported 2.9 million metric tons of semi-finished steel to the US in 2017, making it the second-largest exporter after Canada."
Brazil is an important friend and ally of the USA. The Brazilian people as a group really love and respect all things American. English is the language many aspire to learn. However, the Brazilian economy took a downturn a few years ago and their people as a group are already suffering. The value of their currency against the dollar has sunk since 2012. So we are kicking a friend who is already down. Just a few years ago Brazilian visiting tourists spent more in the US than any other nationality. (The number of Brazilian tourists has dropped somewhat recently due to the economic downturn there.)
If we are exempting Canada from the steel tariffs, let's not forget our longtime and much more vulnerable friends in Brazil. Brazilian steel imports clearly don't hurt our national security. Do we really want to push Brazil into the arms of China? That is clearly more of a national security issue for us.
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-brazil-china-investment/china-investm...
2
Has the trump organization used American Steel in all of it's buildings?
5
He didn’t.
1
Does anyone ever bring this up? How do the steel workers feel about this.
No he's used Chinese steel and ...
1
This is the type of heading that gives too much credit to this administration...
This is not smart manoeuvring, is just a naive, dumb initiative to try and look strong... the kind of move an 8 year-old bully would make.
There are no benefits is disrupting world economy, damaging your friends and forcing everyone to come to the table, for no other reason than a stupid GOP ego and distracting the base from the arms debate and the tax break robbery...
Common NYT, let's be more critical. It is imperative.
1
more critical? you mean more pro-democrat...
I thought the piece was quite fair and balanced.
Oh, an international version of Let's Make a Deal, hosted by a foul-mouthed crank who oversimplifies everything and doesn't seem to possess a grasp of the complexities involved. Great idea. Another great idea: put troops in Ukraine, threaten Russia, and take counter-proposals.
1
What a truly liberating thing it is to not have to live under a glad-handing poseur globalist president.
How ironic that we had to wait until our personally wealthiest president to get one who actually keeps the workers in our country closest to his heart.
2
It is amazing how the Red Rubes ignore the thousands of H-2B immigrants Trump has hired for decades. Including this year, again.
They ignore the illegal laborers, that built Trump Towers @ $4.00hr. that won millions after suing, of course, to be paid.
They never ask why if he is sooo patriotic that he never brings his, nor his mistresses, clothing and jewelry manuf. here to the US.
Nope!
The Rubes fall for a bullying, braying, buffoon and think that the grifter that puts his name upon tacky buildings around the globe cares about them.
Sad, bigley.
2
Right, that’s why he imported his steel from China. Why he and his family manufacture their wares in China and other countries. Why he never retrofitted an abandoned factory or steel mill to put Americans back to work. The Trump machine partially owns the export of good manufacturing jobs to overseas. The Trump machine will never accept responsibility for their part in the decline of the steel and manufacturing industries.
1
Psychopaths like Trump fully believe that strong arm tactics are a terrific negotiating tool. Fear does motivate people. . .in the short run. In the long run though it’s a terrible way to lead. Eventually the power of the people topples these dictators. Oppressed people with nothing left to lose give voice to their human rights. Trump’s claim to fame is being obnoxious and a bully. A leader who inspires creates change that lasts and improves the lives of those around him/her.
1
It is an incredible mistake to think of the Canada and Mexico exemption, or anything Trump does for that matter, as a negotiating tactic. When Trump saw the pushback against his tariffs, he simply started to morph them so they seem less offensive, even attractive. You can put lipstick on a pig, but it is still a pig. I doubt if Canada or Mexico will be so gullible.
2
This is not about trade. It's about electioneering.
He throws down the gauntlet: a deliberately exaggerated, reckless policy -- massive tariffs. This is 'bold action', for 'more jobs' to 'stand up' to other countries which are 'cheating' the U.S.
This pits him defiantly against the Democratic and Republican establishment, other countries, all his naysayers and 'haters'.
His base cheers. Everyone else recoils in horror, lambastes his ineptitutde, and predicts all sorts of doom.
Trump then smiles and quietly backtracks.
The world is saved. His critics look like foolish alarmists. He walks away the lone wolf hero, with the huzzahs of his supporters ringing in his ears.
We should know this pattern by now. You should have seen it coming.
I did.
2
Reality TV is the worst way to run a country; DISASTER AHEAD Ray Sipe
1
Our childish President seems to also have a childlike understanding of trade and negotiating with allies. He sees everyone as an enemy of sorts.
1
The message is that bullying works. So much for Melania's campaign.
2
But those that have been bullied don't forget and will not come to the aid of the bully once he has met his match.
2
What campaign? She mentioned it once. We’ve heard. nothing since. The invisible first lady.
1
She was probably bullied into abandoning it.
For god’s sake NYT, please stop pretending that Trump has a “strategy.” He lurches from one incoherent policy position to another, usually either to distract from the malfeasance and incompetence of his administration, and/or for the personal financial benefit of the policy involved.
Trump’s business-world negotiations usually ended with him stiffing his contractors and partners, using the bankruptcy laws to avoid paying what he owed, and then moving on to the next round of suckers. That’s not a great “strategy” for world relations in which our allies aren’t going anywhere, and we need their cooperation on a host of issues on an ongoing basis.
And if you believe this guy cares about steelworkers, I’ve got a bridge built out of steel to sell you.
1
Don't buy into it Canada and Mexico. Create your own trade agreement, without the US. You'd be far better off. You'd likely only get played. Stay clear of negotiations with t-Rump.
3
yes, it's mafia style stromg arm bluster... but what's the real objective?
three possibilities:
a red meat appeal to the Trump base, from which the President draws his daily dose of ardor. otherwise, meaningless.
a noisy distraction from he encroaching Mueller investigation.
an effort to reset America's international relationships with both allies and adversaries in the bullying Trump mold. getting NY tough. grrr.
1
I wouldn't put the word 'strategy' and the name 'Trump' together in the same sentence.
3
The strategy is, make an outlandish and potentially destructive announcement, then say you could back off if you get something in return. However, if the response is "go ahead" then Trump has no choice but to do it and face the consequences or come off as a fool that does not know what he's doing. In real estate he can say, I'll try another strategy to get what I want or I will give up. Nothing gained, nothing lost. But in government it is nothing gained, everything lost.
Did someone say voodoo economics?
Trump: "IF YOU DON'T HAVE STEEL, YOU DON'T HAVE A COUNTRY"
So how many of your hotels were built with American steel????
4
Uh. None. He’s into do as I say, not as I do..
3
President Trump appears completely clueless and does not look optimistic in the photo shot. He’s probably thinking to himself…what am I doing here? Nobody knows how this will end but chances are these tariffs and so called Trump strategy will negatively impact domestic businesses and U.S. consumers in addition to upsetting a majority of U.S. trade partners all over the world.
With that said, President Trump has a way out should anything drastically go wrong…..he’ll just blame former President Obama and Hillary.
1
While the communists, I mean progressives work to transform the United States into a socialist workers paradise by conjuring delusional conspiracies, fomenting racial tensions and destroying traditions and institutions. President Trump actually is addressing issues the American people care about, bringing about American prosperity. As Vice President Joe said in 2008 "... a three-letter word J.O.B.S."
1
This isn't a "kind of blackmail" it is blackmail. It also has nothing to do with NAFTA. Canada cannot afford to be blackmailed. Neither can Mexico. Time to line up tariffs of our own on American goods and coordinate with China and the EU about punishing the US. If we let the US get away with this, there is no end to what the bully will try next.
3
While we're "what iffing", let's propose an another scenario:
Steel is made up of many components, including pig-iron. Guess where most of the pig-iron imported to the US comes from?
Yes, Russia. Russia holds a 59% market share of pig iron in the US.
Since the US consumes all the pig iron it produces, if the US levies import tariffs on steel--essentially, processed pig-iron (among other components)--American steel producers will be forced to buy more imported pig iron to meet production demands.
Now that brings me back to my earlier "what if". Who might be a net beneficiary of the steel tariff?
You got it, Russia.
And this is why "the whole Russia thing" casts a dark cloud over this administration.
3
It is all reality TV whether it is trade war or let's make a deal. Trump has no grasp of the economics here and he never will. This is all about playing to his base as the 2018 elections approach. The steel industry is not going to come back any more than the coal industry. It's about the votes. He wants to keep the Congressional GOP majority and have at least two-terms in office if not more. It's about distracting from the Mueller investigation as the noose tightens around his administration. Americans have to keep looking at the big picture of what he is doing, not what Trump is saying. We keep getting fooled again.
1
The question for Trump is always who will implement Trump's rant of the day. Most of the departments assigned to implement the policy of the day have been either emptied of competent people or filled with incompetent people--As a former manager--at the end of the day--whatever bright idea a front office comes up with, someone down the chain of the command will have to implement it--if the chain is broken, rusty, or non-existent, well, that bright idea of the day or year will never see the light of day.
By all means, rebuild the U.S. steel industry - if there ever is a war, steel will be needed. However, a rebuilt steel industry will be mostly automated with computers and AI. Pretending that it will provide hundreds of thousands of new steel jobs is simply lying.
And yes, Trump is using the tariffs to squeeze Canada and Mexico to give America a NAFTA deal that will benefit the U.S. over the other two countries.
1
President Trump has become so stridently and noisily unpredictable, I am sure a position he feels comfortable with. He insists he wants a "fair deal" with NAFTA - but it is clear he will continue to interfere with his negotiators through the medium of Twitter in pursuit of a favorable-to-America NAFTA. He no doubt will continue to blackmail and dis-respect his trade allies and waste everybody's time by doing everyone's job but his own until he finally decides to pull the plug, plunging all three countries into a chaos he does not understand - and with no backup plan whatsoever.
2
Trump's true motivation for tariffs? It's the special election in Pennsylvania. Trump wants to get "pro-steel" voters in the 18th congressional district on his side before the Tuesday special election between "mini-Trump" slacker Rick Saccone, and the awesome Democrat, Conor Lamb. Don't take the bait, PA. Trump will start a trade war and hurt the entire economy. Trump losing this red district would send a clear signal he's done.
4
Agreed. Fits perfectly with the timing of appointing his 2020 campaign manager. Trump is about winning. His target is the 2020 elections. The PA special election is the next step. He can always back off on the tariffs after the special election and claim victory if he gets even one country to provide concessions.
3
Just how do these tariffs effect China? And who owns the companies that manufacture the steel and aluminum.
Right. Now all we need is someone in the white house who makes good deals...which we don't have right now.
It is very unfortunate that a few, very few, people in the US administration disrupt ongoing negotiations by making threats in the public media. They merely create situations where somebody has to back down & try to save face. Canada never negotiates thru the media. I'm sure that thru proper channels Canada has told the US that the latest threats will be ignored, & that the NAFTA negotiations will continue on the merits of NAFTA alone.
If the US wants to talk about steel & aluminum, do that separately. Canada would be very happy to do that, because Canada imports about twice as much steel from the US than it exports to the US. An imbalance that Canada would be happy to discuss.
Moreover, the US has an overall trade surplus with Canada. So what is all the fuss with Canada about? I can only figure that it is due to ignorance.
Think it is for a re-negotiation of the TPP, not for Nafta. Remember that the TPP is a NAFTA on steroids? It is, and that is what American Corporation's want and it will lead to the TTIP and Globalization of the world economy and the financial markets.
1
Chrystia Freeland, Canada's foreign affairs minister, made clear (in both English and French) that Canada will not countenance Trump's shell game and be intimated to merge steel tariff with NAFTA talks.
And she reiterated the obvious that to paint Canada as a potential "threat to US national security is preposterous.
4
"But it is kind of blackmail."
Tough, uncompromising negotiations in business are just that. Blackmail. Ask Walmart. Ask Carl Icahn. Ask McDonald's. Ask Netflix.
1
Not smart to anger the people you're negotiating with, especially when they're both in your auto manufacturing supply chain.
Tariffs for Europe but not Canada, Mexico and Australia. Creating tension with Europe is a favor to Russia. Collusion.
Lost on Mr. Irwin's sparse and obvious analysis is that within hours of Trump's staged show yesterday, signing the Tariff edict, North Korea is coming to the table, tail between legs, seemingly ready to capitulate. Could it not be that Trump was able to do something pretty unprecedented because he smartly pulled on the right International lever and forced China to do what it would not do before-- command North Korea to stand down? Isn't this what we want from our leadership? I don't know when, the WSJ is there, and Bloomberg is close, but the NYT will eventually have to start reporting on Trumps positive diplomatic moves. They're becoming pretty undeniable.
1
U.S. Steel’s costly battle against China’s cyber-hacking
http://thehill.com/blogs/pundits-blog/technology/323738-us-steels-costly...
One question that arises from cases like this is: Why hack "obsolete" technology?
1
Try to understand - China is a bad guy dumping low-cost steel on the world market, with imports into the US 3-4% of our total steel imports. Our steel mills can't compete with low price steel exports from China. OK. Canada also a big steel exporter - much to the US. Why isn't Canada screaming about how THEIR steel mills can't compete with low price steel exports from China? Maybe US steel mills ought focus on making themselves more efficient, rather than looking for bailout.
1
The industry in the U.S. won't ever "recover." Canada is more important for the American economy than those long-unemployed workers.
It is highly unlikely that Trump's absurd tariffs arose in order to put pressure on NAFTA negotiations. To believe so would be to believe that Mr Trump has a plan about anything. Please remember that he operates like a goldfish: whatever currently is in his field of view is his world, and little else.
I think it is far more likely that the sequence went like this: First, pressured by everything disintigrating around him Trump free associates a little announcement on tariffs. Then just about everyone out there in his goldfish bowl begins to tell him more and more insistently what the political consequences would be when Canada and Mexico slap retaliatory tariffs on things like corn that affect his base. Then his minions develop the rationale that Canada and Mexico should be exempted provisionally to see if they will cave in the next rounds of NAFTA negotiations.
2
Donald Trump's tariff strategy is deeply hidden in his income tax returns and business records along with his gratitude to and fear of Vladimir Putin.
1
This is not economics.
It's political theater.
1
By saying that exceptions may be available could be considered by some to be soliticing for bribes.
Just like what may have happened with the NRA. Trump talked tough on guns before meeting with the NRA. After “talking” with the NRA Trump revised his position on guns.
1
This summary article seems to be a lot closer to the probable plan by the President, than the rants and oratory in Congress and the press that he is starting a trade war. The US has been the sucker in most trade pacts and our industries are frequently undercut by foreign flim flam, so for the Pres to step up for America is actually a big deal. Certainly more bold than the last few guys in the WH.
1
Europe is weak. They need to pursue a mercantilist policy of trade surplus to pay for welfare programs, agriculture subsidies, and one million refugees.
But they refuse to pay their fair share on defense. They refuse to purchase superior US defense products.
And why does the US allow EU cars to be taxed at 2.5% when EU inposes a 10% duty on US cars. Why does US allow protectionist measures on agriculture - a sector where the US is castly more efficient?
We have already been in a trade war, time to call the EU policies what they are and have always been - protectionist measures that have hurt the US ever since the end of WW2
You dont have to like the messenger, but the message is spot on
1
The media is always trying to figure out if there is some method in Trump's madness. The simple answer is: no. He reacts and then others try to make sense of it. Some of his reactions might inadvertently pay off. Most don't. But there's little strategic thinking going on.
2
If Trump is worried about security he should be more concerned about the ongoing intellectual theft and securing our upcoming elections from foreign interference. If he and Congress do nothing about the presidential elections in 2020 the US voters can not assume or be assured that it will be an interference free and secure election.
2
Hey Justin Trudeau. The same day the Trump tariff increases go into effect apply an export charge to all of the power sold to the US market for 35%. This is only fair as the total Trump charges are also 35%. Remember, steel will rise by 25 percent and aluminum by 10 percent, that is to any government official a total of 35%.
1
You're right. The U.S. northeast couldn't "survive" without the hydro power provided by the province of Quebec. Trump may try to sledgehammer his way through the tough NAFTA negotiations coming up, but New York City residents could be paying a lot more for power.
And Ontario itself borders six U.S. states that "survive" because of the goods crossing the border. NY, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota.
Go Canada Go!!
In 2016 Canada bought 59%of US steel exports - 4.5 million MT - the USA has been Canada's top import source for steel for more than 20 years. Info source US Dept of Commerce Global Steel Monitor May 2017.
In 2016 the USA bought 87% of its imports of steel from Canada - 4 million MT. Info source US Dept of Commerce Global Steel Trade Monitor Feb 2017. So USA has a trade surplus in steel with Canada of 500,000 MT. No reason at all to slap tariffs on the steel trade except for PR in the Rust Belt.
8
Being done to help Rick Saccone. This comes on top of the thousands of flyers being mailed Thanking Lamb for opposing gun restrictions (which, by the way, is only a fraction of what Lamb says on the subject). On closer inspection, these flyers (some are getting one a day) are being mailed by the Congressional Leadership Fund which is a republican superPAC that is closely affiliated with the republican speaker of the house. This is a new level of low!
1
Many of us in Canada believe that one of the keys to renegotiating NAFTA would be to insist on a progressive improvement of working conditions in Mexico.
That would help with jobs going to Mexico simply because they pay their people a fraction of the salary you can get in Canada for the same work (and in the US although Canada's salaries may be a bit higher ?).
This would also help raise Mexico's standard of living and make it a much better client for the US and for Canada.
There are more than 125 million people in Mexico. The potential is enormous.
Mexico's GDP per capita is under 10k USD. Imagine it at 35k!
One of the downsides would be that it would put pressure on inflation in the US and in Canada, but I would like to think that you can control this if you do it progressively.
This is the type of win-win solution we should be striving to find and implement.
This is NOT a zero sum game.
16
Why does a vaunted news source like the NY Times even pretend Trump has the capacity to play chess? The man would cheat at checkers, if he understood how the pieces move.
13
I happen to share your view of this president's integrity. And I have a suspicion deep down that Kim Jong Un and Donald Trump secretly share a bit of the demented mutual admiration of Strong Men.
But if Donald Trump has success in North Korea, it may be because of something even more unsettling for many of us: that he is actually right about something.
Our piously cautious long-standing strategy with respect to North Korea has served mostly to paint ourselves into a corner and to make it easy for the other side to play us. Relieved of the need to be open and truthful with the American people, Trump is free to fabricate, posture and pivot with utter impunity. If these tools work as well for him on North Korea and/or trade, as I believe they will, the case for integrity will become even harder to make, and something exceptional about this country will be lost.
The art of the deal, before your very eyes. The guy is crazy but a half a trillion trade deficit annually with China makes my skin crawl too. Look at those zeros in a trillion, 1,000,000,000,000
2
Trump should be much more concerned with China stealing our intellectual property which costs the US more money than the steel imports from China.
He has said nothing and has done nothing about attacking that problem.
3
Those poor steel and aluminum workers.
3
Some days I feel like this country will never truly be safe from authoritarianism until the last steel mill and the last coal mine closes. No population should ever be so dependent on a single industry that all the political concerns are enslaved to it.
2
More horsefeathers from a guy who just doesn't get it. But if his 'base' is happy, then he thinks it's great. Have fun with this one, republicans!
6
Either as a negotiating tactic or a trade strategy, the tariffs are monumentally stupid. Having this loose cannon in the White House is incredibly frightening.
7
All bluster and no brains!
5
Alternatively, this is purely a face saving device as the whole thing was about to blow up in his face.
However, if it does go to WTO arbitration he will lose as he has proved to everybody this is nothing about security but just bullying.
Just plain stupid twice over.
9
Many are saying that this also has something to do with the special election next week in the PA steel belt. It is an effort to bolster Saccone. I hope the people of that area are smart enough to realize that steel isn’t coming back there, at least not in the way they think. If they see any mills at all, they will be “manned” with robotics and people with tech degrees.
14
Just like Trump's hollow promises to coal workers, this just might be all show - or mostly. There is no long game or strategery with him - it's just short term fleeting antics to appease the appeasables. Given the geographic spread of steel workers, he must demonstrate to the key states that he did something. In the end, with carve outs, exemptions, and other operational dilutions, this might amount to nothing but ill-will from allies and collateral damage at home. But, he'd have scored his points with those whose myopia will excuse him even in the absence of promised benefits. He's a Pied Piper with acquiescing mice.
4
What about Curtain #3: It's an election strategy for the Pennsylvania special election, which happens to be right in the heart of steel country. The timing makes sense. After the election, Trump softens his stance and says that it was a negotiating tactic. He makes a lot of noise, grabs for the votes, and then tweets like it never happened.
19
Agreed -- take a look at the photo for this article and the photo illustrating the article on the Pennsylvania special election: https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/08/us/politics/pennsylvania-special-hous...
Just another move on the chess board without counting the cost.
1
Successful negotiating requires that the negotiator play hardball. That is what Trump is doing. Set your goals high, then reach a settlement that you can live with. Would the Democrats, liberals and progressives who are whining about Trump's attempt to protect American jobs and manufacturing prefer that he give in without a fight to China and the other third world countries which highly subsidize their major industries? It appears so.
2
Let's remember that our exports of agricultural products, autos, aircraft and many others are also "highly subsidized" by direct federal supports, bailouts and sweetheart tax giveaways by states and localities.
7
We only import 2.2% of our steel from China to begin with... They don't threaten our steel industry, the obsolescence and noncompetitive practices of our steel industry does that to itself.
10
You are right. Trump should care much more about China stealing our intellectual property.
To me this theft has real security implications.
If the tariffs were for NAFTA negotiations, it's funny that he's already walked back "no exemptions" to now NOT including our North American neighbors.
The tariffs seemed more of a tantrum and/or cover on the final day of NAFTA talks in response to his inability to cut a new deal.
(He promised new trade deals over and over and all we're getting is a trade war.)
At the same time, it is more chaos to distract us from the rolling Mueller Investigation, the Stormy Daniels affair, the loss of more staff and internal strife.
Finally, it pretends to do something for Pennsylvanian workers right before a special election.
He thinks he looks strong by taking on the world now uniting against us. Ask ISIS how that will work out.
Ultimately, what continues to be a payoff for Putin is now an even greater boon to Xi Jinping.
8
What you see is the truth about this totally unsuccessful business person, who inherited wealth, has used bullying tactics, lawsuits, and televised self-promotion to build a ponzi scheme structure that periodically declares bankruptcy. This tactic has nothing to do with negotiation and everything to do with shallow showmanship.
1
I don't think this is just about trade. South Korea is on the list, and their recent talks,and participation with North Korea in the Olympics didn't appear to sit well with Trump. The "less make a deal" approach could easily extend beyond trade.
1
The Times is finally starting to understand Trump's tactics. Countries respond to extreme actions like tariffs and unprecedented sanctions. These bold moves command attention and give credence to the possibility that extreme opening bargaining positions have the possibility of becoming reality. This jolts other countries into action, which is the whole point. The resulting negotiations will begin from a position of strength, allowing us to offer compromises that look like olive branches, but are exactly what we were looking for in the first place.
8
The effectiveness of tariffs as an opening bargaining position is directly related to how much credibility the US has as a negotiating partner i.e. not much. My impression, from following the conversation in Canada, is that the Trump administration has decimated the US's credibility, and that Canada is looking to minimize risk from an increasingly protectionist US, while looking elsewhere for growth opportunities.
1
Yeah, sure.
He can't negotiate so he goes straight to trade war. His words.
This is an attempt to bully due to lack of results.
1
Not necessarily ... T-Rump is like a poker player who bluffs on every hand. Once your opponents figure out that you are always bluffing they can adjust their play to take you to the cleaners. If you have any doubt watch how the Chinese have played him for a chump.
1
The trade war is already lost, in fact those concocting a tariff remind one of Macbeth's witches saying "when the battle's lost and won." Because the GOP is the party that panders to Big Money, multinationals and what's left of large American banks. For some time now a yuge portion of American capital has flowed ineluctably into the coffers of China. How long indeed can Trump play to the working-class voters whose ignorance helped install him in office with such farces as tariff games?
9
The fact that Trump feels he has to use tariffs as a cudgel in Nafta negotiations suggests that he lacks faith in his negotiators ability to strike a good deal. If I was Lighthizer I'd be thinking about resigning right about now.
10
It's also just a show for DJT. If he's not out in front and if he's not on TV, then he's not alive. Such a psychological basket case.
1
Not a strategy. Don't undermine the valu eof the word "STRATEGY".
He is coward and resorting to blackmail since no allies or other countries are either inviting him or talking to him over the phone.
He feels an insecure bully in international arena.
And as Nic Robertson said, "Trump will make us (The Americans) alone w/o any allies, very soon".
4
This is the type of clumsy, obvious and obnoxious negotiating tactic you use in business when the deal is going to be a one-time thing between the parties, which is the exact opposite of what you want with a neighbor who fought and died alongside the U.S. numerous times.
It's a simple carrot/stick tactic; do NAFTA as we want and we'll forgo tariffs.
Much as it bothers me to say it though, I can see tRump coming out ahead in this game. The world is awash in steel currently, and there's no place for Canada to turn if it effectively loses the American market.
3
Using this tariff as leverage in negotiations is not a terrible idea if you consider that other countries put tariffs on US exports and we don't have a reciprocal tariff. Now there is something to negotiate.
Missing from NYT reporting is any investigation and fact-based reporting on the level of tariffs on US goods and what is the motivation behind this; also what are specific goals for NAFTA to remove tariffs on US goods that don't exist for sales of Canadian and Mexico goods.
Instead there is a lot of talk about economic theory based on Econ 101 on trade that does not take into account the reality of one side using tariffs and the other one not and how that works out: it works out with one country with a huge trade deficit.
More analysis and examination of specifics would be good NYT.
5
The U.S. has a trade surplus with Canada. The trade between the two countries is roughly reciprocal. If you don't believe me, check the official numbers from the U.S. Dept. of Commerce (not the ones Trump picks out of thin air). In such a circumstance, using tariff as "leverage" with your reciprocal trading partner is a very stupid idea and will be seen by that partner, quite rightfully, as nothing but bullying.
4
This is his style. He's made his way by being a bully. This is no different. Is this what we want representing our country? Sad.
16
This "tactic" is ill conceived at best. Bullying nations will result in blocking U.S. products and even blocking export of raw materials to the U.S.
Result, the U.S. economy will crash and burn. Of course, the least affected will be the wealthy. Thank you very much Donald!
3
You just realized this???
This may beTrump's way to get Mexico to pay for the wall.
It may be more than that: Trump makes/sets his own artificial deadlines, and then beats his opponent into submission. The problem is that unlike in his real estate ventures, he cannot simply move on to the next deal if things do not go his way. And the people he is dealing with in these talks are just as smart as he is, if not smarter.
3
Oh, smarter.
They're all definitely smarter.
1
" ... also sent a different signal. There would be exceptions in the nations that the tariffs are applied to ..."
This kind of carrot and stick negotiations used to work before the world and it's economy became globalized.
These days the produces simply orient themselves towards other markets and recalculate with longer delivery lines.
In the end the US will lose out on its own greed and will come back like they did during the Bush attempts of imposing tariffs.
Even then these tariffs were lower and they too did not work towards the intended direction and therefore had to be cancelled with not much of a public announcement.
All that Trump is doing is to shoot his nation into the foot.
Let's hope he does not hurt his bone spur...
2
Most of the Americans are deceived by the "America First" policy by Trump. This is another disguised strategy by Putin to divide the U.S. and the rest of the world. Even the division between the U.S. and China is helpful for Putin. Trump has been obviously threatened by Putin and has done so far everything Putin wants. However, Special Counsel Mueller has been doing a great job, and he is the mutual enemy for Putin and Trump. Because of the nasty tactics Putin takes, we need to make sure keeping Mueller safe.
12
Biggest gainers in this tariff are RUSSIAN STEEL companies that own plants in the USA. There is not an American-owned steel plant in the top five to gain from this.
2
He has no strategy. Here's his typical strategy.
Rant, rave, throw tantrum, post on twitter then offer up a policy that has no teeth compared to his initial offer or renege.
He is clueless and most likely has very forethought or
planners on his staff implement policy.
They still have not enforced the Russia sanctions passed by Congress last year.
8
Hopefully the tariffs will be limited to an economically beneficial level.
"The mix of bluster and openness to compromise is consistent with a longstanding pattern that was evident in President Trump’s business career."
You've got to be kidding?
The grifter is a known cheat. He has been sued, literally, thousands of times for failure to pay, or incomplete payment etc.
He has been named in at least 169 federal lawsuits, his businesses have been involved in at least 3,500 legal actions in federal and state courts during the past three decades. They range from skirmishes with casino patrons to million-dollar real estate suits to personal defamation lawsuits.
Since he announced his candidacy a year ago, at least 70 new cases have been filed, about evenly divided between lawsuits filed by him and his companies and those filed against them. And the records review found at least 50 civil lawsuits remain open.
His companies have been involved in more than 100 tax disputes, and the New York State Department of Finance has obtained liens on Trump properties for unpaid tax bills at least three dozen times.
6 bankruptcy's.
$25 million dollar fraud settlement for his University scam.
Feb. he was ordered to pay $5.77 million to Golf Club Members He Stiffed.
The man can't even make money running a casino for gosh sakes.
"The mix of bluster and openness to compromise is..." a total farce. The only correct phrases used in the Op-Ed called it "blackmail" and an "extortion racket".
Americas braying bully boy in thief.
13
when you are the self proclaimed king of debt and your yuge business empire runs on borrowed money... and almost all banks have learned your tricks and slam the door in your face... in desparation you seek out other financing sources:
perhaps the underworld. perhaps loan sharks of various sorts. perhaps financing things on the backs of those you owe, which is a very common tactic, especially in the real estate business. make America wait again.
now, Trump also has a handy dandy new tool: the mint.
1
Hhhhhhmmmmm.
Tariffs?!?!
I think it's six of one half dozen of another.
It certainly scores points for novelty and innovation
but if it will really lead to anything more than Trump
being on the news more often is yet to be seen.
And it could have negative effects as well as positive
and may pigeonhole American strategy and paint us
into a corner. Like I said six of one half dozen of the other more to get Trump attention than anything else.
I really don't care if Trump get's attention because that's not necessarily a good thing for America.
As has become normal in this and other "reputable" newspapers, we have journalists chasing bizarre stories and creating meaning out of both need and survival. But explaining never ending idiocy is turning journalists into seers and psychologists at best and apologists at worse. This isn't about a Trump "zero sum game" or any supposed tactic. Because whatever Trump does, the sun somes up the next day and the adults, in many orbits, step in and clean things up enough, try to explain things enough so that to looks like a semblance of governance. The system "saves" him, he never deals with error. This guy is so far over his head, it is embarrassing,(I think Trump's anger is seated in deep embarrassment) Maybe now there is a enough of a quorum to get rid of him, but some, for short term personal benefit , want him around.
5
I would not judge this move by Trump so soon. I do not think anyone but him knows what the end result should look like. Trump so far has brought this country very far up the economic ladder in eighteen months I do not think he is ready to destroy his achievements with a poorly thought out trade war.
1
He is not that clever.
It's hard to know how much better things could be for the US under Nafta. This from the Office of the United States Trade Representative: U.S. goods and services trade with Canada totaled an estimated $627.8 billion in 2016. Exports were $320.1 billion; imports were $307.6 billion. The U.S. goods and services trade surplus with Canada was $12.5 billion in 2016.
7
Dear US Americans
I visited your country a few times already and I always really enjoyed it. I met nice people over there and I still think the majority of you are great people.
But I can't help to feel more and more repulsed and disgusted by your politics. I simply can't understand how a country with so many outstanding people in all possible branches can elect such an unworthy and incapable person to its supreme leader.
These tariffs now are the latest of a series of acts which made me think that the EU and the rest of the world finally got to realise that the time in which the US is to be seen as a avant-garde role model for the modern world has ended.
The negative economic consequences of these tariffs is one thing - but I'd rather worry about the immense damage to the US reputation these tariffs - and your president in general - have dealt and will continue to deal.
12
I can only say “duh.” This is a classic Trump. He threatens tariffs for exactly two reasons: to distract from the Russia probe, and other crises of the moment, and as a typical bluff negotiating tactic to get some small concession from Canada so he can say “I won”. Simple as pie. Who knew making pie could be so complicated. I hope Canada sticks it in his eye!
7
Once again President Trump has the whole world guessing.
And after the criticism he took on the North Korean situation, and today's announcements we may have to go a little gently with our criticism of this deal.
The man produces results.
2
“I have a feeling we’re going to make a deal on Nafta,” Mr. Trump said as he announced the tariffs. “If we do, there won’t be any tariffs on Canada and there won’t be any on Mexico.”
Trump looks around, sees what's already working nicely between the US and her friends, like NATO, Nafta, and her relationship with Israel, and then says he's going to fix it. This isn't leading, this is behaving like the little boy at the beach who so craves attention that he kicks sand at his parents and their friends and then makes a run for it meanwhile giggling his fool head off.
6
Trump behaves and talks like a gangster. He learned gangster tactics while hanging out with the mob in Queens. Now he's applying them to his presidency. His supporters are ecstatic that he is such a clever negotiator after all he was the one that gave them each $1.50 extra in their paychecks. What more can one ask for?
4
The most obvious explanation supported by past practice is that Trump seeks first and foremost to get attention, but that his deep ignorance and disinterest in all topics other than his own self -regard also means that he can vacilate based on whatever the last person he spoke to said
And that's an abuse of power relative to using Section 232 and claiming a national security issue. Same flim flam as the immigration ban.
2
Who in their right mind would "negotiate" with Trump when he reserves the right to change the rules in his favour for any reason, or for no reason at all. Virtually all of the arguments he advances to support his NAFTA renegotiation and steel tariffs are easily demonstrable as complete nonsense. What is to stop him from making up new "facts" to justify the next round of extortion?
This is the kind of behaviour one expects from a sleazy landlord who threatens to illegally increase a poor woman's rent, unless she puts out. The only guarantee is that if you agree to it he will be back for more.
Canada and Mexico have little choice but to tell him where he can stick his tariffs.
4
It's pretty obvious, in this photo, that Trump does not like anyone else but him at the podium. What a product of narcissism he is! President for life he was not kidding. Workers or Managers?
1
The word "tactic" implies that there is a thoughtful strategy or plan to achieve an end goal. That would be new.
1
this is will be the pretext for the next great recession. wall street is catching the chills and the sickness will flow from this white house.
This article failed to mention that tariffs on these items are illegal under NAFTA, which like it or not remains under full force and effect. It is an international legal agreement in good standing. You cannot use illegal measures as bargaining levers to amend it. Of course if the agreement were to collapse with nothing to replace it, Canada and Mexico would be legally exposed to US tariffs. Right now they are not. The argument that these tariffs are needed for national security wouldn't pass the smell test in a court of arbitration because the countries have been trading these products for about three quarters of a century with zero national security implications whatsoever and no evidence of any likely future trade interruption unless Donald Trump, Peter Navarro and Wilbur Ross trigger it.
5
Only congress can abrograte a trade agreement like NAFTA.
Only congress can impose tax or tariffs, specifically, The House.
Canada, as a ally, a staunch one at that (NORAD, NAT0, 5 Eyes, et cetera) cannot be a security threat to the United States.
Only once in the past 24 hours, on the BBC news last night, have I seen this tariff described correctly in one word. Here it is: Symbolic.
1
Trump does not know how to make a deal, what deal has he made since he’s been in office.What Trump is good at is manipulating his base. He is pandering to the Rust Belt Votes that gave him the Presidency, who are still waiting for their factory jobs to come back, which was a lie when he promised he would bring them back.The tariffs will last until the Mid Term Elections.
2
I would have thought the obvious choice for Trump's motivation would have been next Tuesdays special election in steel country. Too obvious a choice, eh?
4
At the 1993 NAFTA signing ceremony President Clinton said “I believe we have made a decision now that will permit us to create an economic order in the world that will promote more growth, more equality, better preservation of the environment, and a greater possibility of world peace. NAFTA means jobs. American jobs, and good-paying American jobs. If I didn't believe that, I wouldn't support this agreement …. I believe that NAFTA will create a million jobs in the first five years of its impact.” Clinton was absolutely wrong on all his rosy predictions. First, it caused the loss of some 700,000 jobs as companies moved their production to Mexico, where labor was cheaper. Second, NAFTA strengthened the ability of U.S. employers to force workers to accept lower wages and benefits.Third, NAFTA drove several million Mexican workers and their families out of the agriculture and small business sectors, which could not compete with the flood of products — often subsidized — from U.S. producers. This dislocation was a major cause of the dramatic increase of illegal immigration in the United States. Fourth, and ultimately most importantly, NAFTA created a template for the rules of the emerging global economy, in which all the benefits would flow to corporations and all the costs to workers. NAFTA is an unfair treaty. It's been a disaster for the American working class. It has too be re-negotiated. If it's Trump's intent to use tariffs as a negotiating tactic then that's the right move.
4
This is all about trying to bully Mexico and Canada in renegotiating NAFTA. Those talks are in session 7, and going nowhere. The Great Charlatan has no leverage on NAFTA except to pull out, which he knows would be a disaster.
Thus his position to include Canada and Mexico in tariffs, but provide a temporary stay allowing them to renegotiate "other" agreements. First the threat, then the offer to not carry it out, simply because Trump's renegotiation of NAFTA is an EPIC FAIL!
4
Trump. Strategy? No
Trump. Chaos? Yes
1
Chaos IS Trump's strategy. Robert Costa has been writing about this for quite sometime.
Considering the fact that he is a billionaire and the POTUS, it seems the strategy has worked out quite well for him.
The tariffs are long overdue, our critical metal working industries have been mothballed, closed and ripped down, all the metals in the closed factories have been ripped out and exported as scrap, as were all the tool and die equipment, the workers that knew how to use the tools are retired old men now, our manufacturing base is getting to be an anachronism .
The general feelings is to allow it to atrophy and become a begone as a vestige of the "Industrial Age".
WE need these industries, period.
Elon Musk pointed out some obvious differences in a tweet storm earlier today. He pointed to the fees associated with importing cars to China and the USA. US cars pay a 25% up front tax upon entering China, Chinese cars pay 2.5%, that is a factor of 10x different.
When US companies open factories in China they are not allowed to own more than 50% of their own factories, here the Chinese are allowed to own 100%.
Are we that dumb ? This is going on too long and President Trump is about to stop this nonsense.
WE need to level the playing field so that US business is allowed to compete equally and fairly. The main concept is equity, what is good for you is good for me. Lawyers hate the concept of turnabout but gee lets get real here everyone hates to get a bad deal.
So while tariffs may seem as though they are bad for the economy they are actually a useful tool needed at this particular time.
2
The one criticism I don't see in any analyses is that President Trump is indecisive. He takes a stand, listens to someone, changes it, changes it again and then often abandons it. Why not just negotiate instead of postering for the base? In addition, he spreads so many lies, like the alleged trade deficit with Canada, which is actually a surplus. This is just a mess.
2
The entire discussion on tariffs is disorder and distraction. There is no strategy.
4
Any negotiations begin with both sides knowing there is something to be gained by negotiating. Trump's tariff announcement appears to have come without any attempt to talk to the countries we trade with. So why would any country believe that this is the beginnings of negotiations?
17
After the TPP abrogation targeting the NAFTA next would be a trade disaster; for, if the trade pact has been a win-win to all the trade partners-Us, Canada, and Mexico - and added to prosperity in the area, what remains to be renegotiated further? Moreover, any jolt to the existing trade pact is sure to disrupt the supply chain that criscrosses the boundaries of the US, Canada, and Mexico affording each partner the competitive advantage they respectively enjoy. It's his ego and protectionist impulse that's guiding Trump on such a confrontational course in the arena of international trade.
15
Follow the money. To understand the tariffs you need to ask how do they benefit Trump, Inc., i.e., Trump and family.
Some will quickly point out that the projects he profits from will have to pay more for steel and aluminum, but those material costs aren't the most costly part of a project and are most likely to be borne by the companies actually building the projects, not his own licensing corporations.
We've seen that Trump doesn't do anything that will cost him money or won't benefit him in the long run. Whether he profits directly from the tariffs, or in deals he can make, or in what he really wants/gets for backing off from the tariffs.
That's the problem when, as president, especially a president who embraces nepotism, where you and your family keep you hands in the money pot, your motives are always suspect.
11
Trumps wealth decline on the Forbes list of wealthiest Americans would seem to challenge your theory of pushing policymaking that benefits him and his family business.
After all the bluster, more smoke than fire.
4
I want to bring the potential symbolic value of this tariff.
The very fact that Trump excluded Mexico and Canada from it obviously means the USA wants to renegotiate NAFTA. But why does it want to renegotiate NAFTA?
My opinion is that this is a symptom of the decline of the USA. From 1992 to 2008, it was the undisputed sole superpower - we undoubtedly lived in an unipolar world order. In it, the USA didn't need to bother dividing the world: it had all the world. So, its foreign trade policy was, the more free trade, the better.
But now the USA is showing the willingness to consolidate position. It is regime changing what it can (and putting pro-USA leaders in charge). It is using protectionism to strengthen its position in the American continent (specially North America, Brazil and Argentina -- and soon Venezuela). A superpower that needs to consolidate position doesn't do it without an existential threat.
3
Wasn't it Theodore Roosevelt who said, "Walk softly but carry a big stick"? Trump is trying to do the same but his bargaining chips are limited by the nature of trade in 2018. He can rant to his heart's content but the fact remains that international cooperation in trade makes us increasingly interdependent and insures that big sticks are obsolete.
6
Donnie walks bigly and carries a soft stick. Teddy Roosevelt would have been appalled by someone like trump.
2
Teddy would also have run into that high school
People like CNBC contributor Josh Brown are well aware of Trump's negotiation style, i.e., punch-people-in-the-face-first-then-negotiate. This bullying style may work with adversaries but not so with allies. Worse, the building of ill-will will come back to haunt America.
For now, the investment community may ignore the rhetoric while good timing is rolling. However, like WWI, calamity can be triggered by one false move. It doesn't matter what or how a miscue might happen but it will.
30
Yes, we have long memories.
"those two close allies [Canada and Mexico]"
Mexico is a leading trading partner with the US. It is *not* an ally much less a close ally. Someone at the White House or the NYT is very confused.
13
Or someone doesn’t understand the dynamic between Mexico and the US DEA in the war against drugs, a war that only benefits a United States eager to fill it’s for profit prisons.
4
The new TPP agreement, in which Canada is included, is a quite interesting offset for Canada. According to the St. Louis Fed the US dollar is off roughly 11% with major US trading partners since the election of Trump. Should I move my declining USD into a CAD bank account?
13
Trump undercuts his contention that the steel and aluminum tariffs are for security reasons by exempting our two neighbors. And this is important because the EU’s objections before the WTO will be a much easier case to make. Like much of what Trump has done it’s impetuousity excludes forethought.
39
Nothing like trying to disrupt the world/global economy in our favor. I guess Trump's idea of making America great again is to try and make himself and America a great thorn in the collective side of the rest of the planet.
Who does Trump think part of our success as a nation is based on? Martians? Or does he think that tariffs are a weapon of first resort? As usual with him it's the thoughtless response that takes over and will, in this case, lead to more problems than any of us need. Perhaps he should go back to being a reality tv star. At least there we know he's harmless.
46
You are sorely under-informed concerning our balance of trade over the past generation and what that has COST our citizens financially.
Where did you THINK the opiate crisis came from? The no-longer-needed people whose families had always worked before.
2
What post are you answering L'osservatore? I know exactly how it feels to be unneeded and have for years. Where do you think the problem comes from? The far side of reality or the unrealistic moves by our elected representatives, most of whom haven't spent any time on unemployment, in poverty, in dire need of medical care, etc. And to be even more realistic, the opiate crisis is the result of greed and duplicity from the pharmaceutical industry, specifically Purdue Pharma and others who created these medications.
“I guess it’s encouraging that he’s moved from ‘there will be no exceptions’ to being willing to negotiate,” Ms. Whitman said. “But it is a kind of blackmail.”
Of course it is "a kind of blackmail", that is how Mr. Trump operates/negotiates.
59
I'll ask one simple question:
Let's say trump does want to use tariffs as a threat in negotiations.
It takes years to negotiate trade agreements, which is what this is. How exactly does trump plan to carry out all these negotiations with Europe, Canada, Mexico and China?
I seriously doubt he has the infrastructure in terms of policy and personnel to carry this all out effectively.
29
Blackmail is how things work on the global stage...to think otherwise is plain naive.
1