I’m guessing there is more that goes into the cost of gas than just tariffs.
Was just a token example of the things taken in stride in other countries that would have a collosal impact here. Happens in a number of other industries as well.
I think a strong manufacturing base makes a country better.
Depends on multiple factors. Doesn’t hurt in most cases. But it isn’t the middle class savior that it was 50 years ago.
Having policies that make it easy for goods to be manufactured in other countries and sold here for cheaper than we can make them has helped make other countries stronger while we have gotten weaker.
Has nothing to do with the policies. Has a lot more to do with the private sector continually pushing for the better mousetrap as it pertains to increasing profits, and the lack of willingness for even the uneducated Americans to do the work they used to do for shít wages. If Americans would accept new jobs for $7 per hour to work 8-10 hr shifts - that sometimes rotate every couple of weeks from days to nights and vice versa - then you could make the argument that creating thousands of such jobs en masse could boost several local economies. But they aren’t willing to do that, and they are in Mexico and China. So, what the hell do you expect the private sector to do if you want your 401k to keep going up?
Hell, the policy argument falls on deaf ears immediately when you realize the shít that Trump is doing is in violation of USMCA, which is a policy that his first administration literally wrote. Can’t blame the policy at all when the policy was 17ing written by the dude violating it. Insert “pointing Spider-Man” meme here.
Have there also been some benefits to the US from these cheap goods, yes.
To say the least.
Have these policies also made some things worse? Yes.
What policies? NAFTA? You mean that thing that Trump already updated 5 years ago for the very reasons you mentioned?
Do I think there will be an increase cost of certain goods with new tariffs rolling out? Yes. I also think there is a chance they improve the overall health of the US.
Agree to disagree. Economic health in the US has its ups and downs. But inflation is forever. Prices don’t ever come back down after new price discovery. They only go up less fast.
If NAFTA caused so many manufacturing jobs to leave the US and devastated many towns where those jobs once were (this has a cost as well), it seems that getting rid of those policies may help those jobs come back to the US.
Again, Trump already did this. NAFTA has already been gone for 5 years. He’s now declaring war on the USMCA, his very own replacement for NAFTA. It’s the damned twilight zone.
Will it happen tomorrow? Of course not.
Nope.
Will future politicians make changes that undo any potential goods from these changes? Maybe.
There is no “maybe”. It’s a 110% certainty.
But that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t try. The current path our country has been on financially was headed to some potentially bleak destinations.
What kinds of bleak destinations? Like, only getting 8% return on the S&P 500 index? 5% unemployment? What are we talking here?
We need to try something else.
Why?
I’m all for giving this a chance and seeing what happens. If gas costs $5/gallon (not guaranteed) but more people have manufacturing jobs and and many of the costs associated with joblessness go away, that might be a good trade off.
Except you’re not going to see what happens. Federal courts are eventually going to strike down half the stuff that Trump is doing, because it’s illegal per the law on the books for at least North America trade agreements.
i view this new approach as an obese person making some drastic changes. Will eating right and exercising hurt for a bit? Oh yeah. Will that person be better off in 3 years? You bet.
It’s more like an obese person decide he’s going to start doing coke twice a day, start intermittently fasting, and also start Ozympic shots. He’ll lose weight, but he’s only going to be a total basketcase in 3 years, and will have completely alienated all his buddies who sorely miss the rational, laid back person they used to know.