#Trump just claimed other #America has for many years been “loot pillaged & raped” by other nations. More proof he has no idea what it means to be raped.

#economy #tariffs #inflation #recession #TrumpTariffs #Trumpcession #geopolitics #USpol

#Trump called the announcement “our declaration of economic independence” & described it as one of the most important moments in American history.

Trump said his #tariff policies would generate “trillions and trillions of dollars to reduce our taxes & pay down our national debt.”

Again, the opposite is true according to most financial experts.

#economy #inflation #recession #Trumpcession #geopolitics #USpol

#Trump claims that many countries have targeted the #US w/ “non-monetary barriers,” like currency manipulation, subsidies, exorbitant taxes & theft of intellectual property.

Trump specifically talked about the #EuropeanUnion’s value-added tax, which he has long despised. #VAT rates are common outside of the United States, & the U.S. is actually an outlier for not having one.

#FactCheck #TrumpLies #economy #tariffs #inflation #recession #TrumpTariffs #Trumpcession #geopolitics #USpol

#Trump singled out other countries for their #tariffs on US cars, but important to remember his admin already announced 25% tariffs on cars & auto parts imported into the US. Those go into effect just after midnight Thurs.

Trump is mentioning tariffs that other countries put on American products, but not the high tariffs that the US charges on certain products from other countries. For example, he mentioned a 10% tariff that Europe puts on American vehicles.

#economy #inflation #recession

The 25% #tariff on cars & car parts that #Trump is talking about goes into effect just after midnight. The #UAW union is a strong supporter of those #tariffs, but auto companies & economists have said they will lead to significantly higher car #prices & could even slow US auto production.

Trump said his tariffs offered an example of his admin “standing up for our great farmers & ranchers.” Reminder: in his first term, he had to bail farmers out after they were hurt by his #TradeWar w/ #China.

#Trump talks about the #trade deficits the US has amassed w/other countries and says, “We’re really not taking it anymore.” The trade deficit is the difference between what a country #exports & what it #imports. The #US has long imported more goods than it exports.

Economists don’t agree #TrumpTariffs will really lower the US trade deficit.

#FactCheck #TrumpLies #economy #tariffs #inflation #recession #Trumpcession #geopolitics #USpol
nytimes.com/2025/02/05/us/poli…

Trump Prepares to Take On the US Trade Deficit, a Familiar Nemesis

The trade deficit has long drawn the president’s ire. Now, he’s preparing to take it on again.

^{Ana Swanson (The New York Times)}

#Trump is cherry picking a lot of high #tariffs that foreign countries charge on American products. But the US has high tariffs on certain products too, like sugar, footwear, apparel & peanuts, a legacy of efforts to protect those industries. The United States charges 350% tariffs on tobacco from many countries, 260% tariffs on Irish butter substitutes & 197% tariffs on Chinese stainless steel kitchenware, for example.

#FactCheck #TrumpLies #economy #tariffs #inflation #recession #Trumpcession

#Trump claims that the price #eggs have gone down under his watch after an outbreak of #BirdFlu. But economists warn that #tariffs of the kind that Trump is pursuing are likely to lead to much higher #prices for #consumers. The big question is whether that will translate to persistently higher #inflation.

#FactCheck #TrumpLies #economy #inflation #recession #TrumpTariffs #Trumpcession #geopolitics #USpol

#Trump again criticizes the creation of the #IncomeTax in the US in 1913, arguing that it’s a mystery why the nation ever instituted one. American policymakers embraced the income tax for 2 reasons: to collect more taxes from the #rich & to pay for a growing federal govt.

Conversly, #tariffs disproportionately burden #LowIncome Americans, who spend more of their earnings on goods that tariffs make more expensive.

#economy #inflation #recession #TrumpTariffs #Trumpcession #geopolitics #USpol

#Trump calling the #trade deficit a “national emergency” that threatens US #security, lays out his *legal* argument for his actions.

“They rip us off,”Trump says of the #EU, announcing a 20% #tariff on the 27-nation bloc.

Trump holds a chart showing reciprocal tariff rates for US trading partners & says he will charge half of that much? There is no explanation for the calculations that he is using to justify the #tariffs. Likely because they’re arbitrary revenge tactics.

#economy #geopolitics

Many of these tariff rates seem much higher than some economists & policymakers had been expecting.

#Trump says the US will calculate a tariff rate for other countries based on #tariffs & “other forms of cheating” — whatever that means.

He says #China will face a 34% tariff, while the #EU will be 20%. #Japan will be 24% & #India 26%.

#RevengePolitics #economy #tariffs #inflation #recession #TrumpTariffs #Trumpcession #geopolitics #USpol