by HIGH POINT — Earlier this week, in his address to a joint session of Congress, President Trump made it clear that tariffs are a key ingredient in his recipe to “make America great again.”
In that address, he described the word tariff as “a beautiful word,” and in addition to imposing them on countries including China, Mexico and Canada, on April 2, will impose reciprocal tariffs on every country we do business with.
Specifically, President Trump said, “On April 2, reciprocal tariffs kick in and whatever they tariff us, other countries, we will tariff them. That’s reciprocal back and forth. Whatever they tax us, we will tax them.”
In doing so, Trump said he intends to level the tariff playing field. “Other countries have used tariffs against us for decades, and now it’s our turn to start using them against those other countries. On average, the European Union, China, Brazil, India, Mexico and Canada.
“Have you heard of them? And countless other nations charge us tremendously higher tariffs than we charge them. It’s very unfair. India charges us auto tariffs higher than 100%. China’s average tariff on our products is twice what we charge them. And South Korea’s average tariff is four times higher.”
Trump said that he believes this move will allow the United States to “take in trillions and trillions of dollars and create jobs like we have never seen before.”
So, can one make a case for reciprocal tariffs?
Proponents would agree with Trump that imposing reciprocal tariffs is a sound and necessary move to promote fair trade and to protect American interests.
In addition, a case can be made that reciprocal tariffs could also open the door for expanded domestic production here at home.
In addition to economic benefits, reciprocal tariffs can potentially bolster national security. By encouraging domestic production, the U.S. can reduce its dependence on foreign supply chains, which can be particularly vulnerable during geopolitical tensions or global crises.
Clearly, however, this policy also has the potential to set the stage for tit-for-tat trade wars.
In conclusion, the case for the United States to impose tariffs at the same rate as those levied by other countries is rooted in principles of fairness, economic growth and national security.
My hope is that by taking a measured approach that truly seeks equal treatment, the U.S. can foster dialogue and negotiation rather than confrontation.
Stay tuned!
