What purpose do Trump's tariffs serve?
- Thread starter knoblock
- Start date
Yep, Look at Mexico, they saw what was happening with the Tariffs on China and decided it would be easier to help with all the Migrants entering their Country enroute to America.
I know liberals hate seeing a President that is not weak like Obama was and thats a good thing.
I don't know...
Sounds like it will end our reign at #1.
It's the end of western civilization as we know it.
Ooo, call Kevorkian.
Sounds like it will end our reign at #1.
It's the end of western civilization as we know it.
Ooo, call Kevorkian.
Swallow your pride and watch Fox News. You are missing half of every story.
how’s your 401k?
tax bill?
what happened to your healthcare coverage under otard?
that’s the easy win/win stuff that should help your tds...
wanna talk foreign policy?
sending palates of cash to a belligerent iran?
you a law and order guy?
this fisa court/steele dossier thing bother you?
you know spying on an opposition campaign...
oh i know weaponized govmt pisses you off
watching brennan comey clapper strozk use their govmt positions to undermine an opposition campaign
that bugs you right????
or do you just sit at home watching cnn
in your tighty whiteys
going reeeeeeee reeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee??????
OMG mildred orange man is soooo bad
The sign companies.
Dollar Twenty Five Tree
Dollar Twenty Five General
Family Dollar Twenty Five
Poor wittle WalMart. Poor wittle Target.
US Manufacturing employees and those who like buying American made products over foreign junk.
Who pays for illegal aliens and the theft of intellectual property?
Well.... some tariffs aren’t actually engaged. So in the case I cited, Mexico.
You keep saying that. Trump’s tariffs have been in effect for over a year now. How has that leverage worked out?
You have bought into another of Trump’s endless parade of lies and manipulation of his gullible base. Mexico and the USA had agreed to the terms over the immigration issue weeks prior to Trump’s tariff threat. The tariff threat was all for show to trick his sycophants into thinking he’s a super tough SOB, showing those foreigners who’s boss. You fell for it hook, line and sinker.
Can you explain in what way Trump’s tariffs have resolved the two issues you bring up? Have tariffs lowered the expense of illegal aliens? Have they eliminated the theft of intellectual property?
It turns out US manufacturing employees have not seen the bump that was promised (although in true Trump fashion he left success in manufacturing employment unnamed so he can claim victory no
matter what the actual results are).
And Americans who like buying American made products over foreign junk could have done that before Ttumo imposed his tariffs. It’s not like there was a law requiring Americans to buy foreign made junk instead of American made products, and Trump’s tariffs miraculously overthrew it.
American steel mills, forgers and casters are at capacity. That is good news for America. Bad news for my project lead times. But hey, I'll take a strong domestic steel industry over cheap foreign steel any day.
Without a strong steel industry, we'd never be able to crank up the war machine like we did in WWII. But there are so many short-sighted, profits grabbing, self-serving pricks running things, I think it's too late for that.
Enjoy your trip to Dollar Tree today @Ponca Dan.
Without a strong steel industry, we'd never be able to crank up the war machine like we did in WWII. But there are so many short-sighted, profits grabbing, self-serving pricks running things, I think it's too late for that.
Enjoy your trip to Dollar Tree today @Ponca Dan.
Perhaps you missed my post on the effects of the tariffs on steel. You are in error that the mills are at capacity, as well as the increase in employment at the mills.
I think it’s great you prefer American made steel, and I would never want to deny your choice to you. Why do you want to deny other companies the free choice of where they buy their steel? I’m for a free market. Are you?
The Defense Department told Trump repeatedly that access to American made steel is not a problem, yet he ignored them and called his tariffs a national emergency anyway. The American steel industry was robust, but it hated foreign competition horning in on their market, so they persuaded their crony capitalist president to protect them. It hasn’t quite had the results they expected.
I'm for a level playing field. Often times tariffs level that for us when foreign companies/countries don't respect our and other's laws.
Listening to people whine about Trump placing tariffs on certain countries in an effort to get them to trade with our country fairly is kind of strange. It's like these people are content with other countries screwing the US and don't want to do anything to upset the status que.
@Ponca Dan calling a guy who works at the core of heavy manufacturing incorrect, while he sits behind a desk in an air conditioned office, reading economists opinions.
@Ponca Dan doesn’t know defense always takes priority with vendors, pushing out lead times for private sector manufacturing.
@Ponca Dan enjoys the high cost of low prices.
@Ponca Dan doesn’t know defense always takes priority with vendors, pushing out lead times for private sector manufacturing.
@Ponca Dan enjoys the high cost of low prices.
PD another thing that is not ever mentioned in the steel tariffs and metal products, comes from a safety angle. There are many steel products that come from China that are supposed to have say a certain PSI rating (ex valves) or contain a certain % of nickel or some hardening element. Most often when properly tested these products fail miserably which endangers life's. So not only are you paying for crap, it is unsafe crap and there is no accountability when someone is injured or killed. The misrepresentations that are made by Chinese companies, especially in their steel and pipe coating businesses are legion.
You are 100% correct! There's a phrase for that: caveat emptor, buyer beware.
1) I'm simply telling you the data does not agree with your assessment. And by the way I work in construction on jobsites, frequently in attics where it's 140 degrees in the summer. I wish I worked full time in an air conditioned office!
2) When Trump was contemplating tariffs on foreign steel he concluded the only legal way to impose them was to say it is a national defense issue. The DoD flatly told him that was incorrect, but he did it anyway.
3) My clientele is generally people with money, oftentimes lots of money, and they expect high quality coupled with excellent service. That's what we provide. You seem to be mistaking me for someone else. My industry is very competitive and I am almost always the most expensive in any bid. People who deal with me know I have searched for the highest quality materials, and that's why they choose to buy from me. I leave the cheap stuff for others. Satisfied?
It’s all good Ponca Dan. I don’t think free trade is good for America. Fair trade is what we need.
@Ponca Dan
You and I have discussed tariffs on multiple threads and its clear that we have different perspectives on both the value, need, and viability of tariffs, and chances are neither of us are going to change our positions. But I do have a question...why have an OSHA and an EPA regulating industries, if we aren't going to protect those industries from being undercut by countries that ignore common sense rules. You think the mother of 3 living on a welfare check goes to the toy aisle thinking hmmm, I should buy the American toy car because its twice as expensive but I know it doesn't have lead in its paint? You think the save a dollar, DIYer thinks, hmmm, I should buy the twice as expensive drywall because it doesn't have the unreported asbestos in it? By the way, both of these are REAL examples of crap we have gotten from China thanks to our 'free trade' with them.
You and I have discussed tariffs on multiple threads and its clear that we have different perspectives on both the value, need, and viability of tariffs, and chances are neither of us are going to change our positions. But I do have a question...why have an OSHA and an EPA regulating industries, if we aren't going to protect those industries from being undercut by countries that ignore common sense rules. You think the mother of 3 living on a welfare check goes to the toy aisle thinking hmmm, I should buy the American toy car because its twice as expensive but I know it doesn't have lead in its paint? You think the save a dollar, DIYer thinks, hmmm, I should buy the twice as expensive drywall because it doesn't have the unreported asbestos in it? By the way, both of these are REAL examples of crap we have gotten from China thanks to our 'free trade' with them.
Domestic steel production boomed in 2018, bringing long-unused furnaces back on line. Recent softening demand in some industries have left a large inventory and lower prices, so they have idled two furnaces. Supply and demand is nothing new.
That’s a good perception very cleverly stated. You asked a theoretical question which calls for a theoretical answer, and when the theoretical answer is given the response will be “that’s not realistic,” or “that’s not practical,” or as some on this board would say “that’s insane!”
But I’ll give it a shot anyway. What the hell, this is a board for giving opinions is it not?
The first thing I would point out is the question is predicated on the assumption that people are not capable of recognizing what’s in their best interest and therefore someone more enlightened (say a government bureaucrat) needs to step in and direct their choices for them. The assumption is the government bureaucrat will be error free in forcing the “mother of three living on a welfare check” to accede to the bureaucrat’s requirements. And make no mistake about it: the bureaucrat is backed by the police power of the state which always carries with it the subtle (sometimes not so subtle) threat of violence if the orders of the bureaucrat are not obeyed. The assumption is the bureaucrat is always correct in his decisions. I think you will agree with me that assumption flies in the face of reality.
The theoretical part of my answer is based on a different assumption, that people are quite capable of looking out for themselves, that a society of free people will spontaneously organize itself to protect its people from lead paint and whatnot. If organizations or agencies are actually needed there is no reason to suppose that free people would be incapable of establishing them without the heavy hand of an authoritarian state.
I’ll close by telling you that you are in error if you think our economic relationship with China resembles free trade. It is interesting that the situations you so fear have actually happened in spite of the government watchdog agencies you prefer.
I hear that term bandied about all the time, “fair trade.” Can you give me an indication of what that term means to you and how you think it should be properly applied?
Oh, I’m sorry, I must have misunderstood. Trump imposed his first tariffs over a year ago, with the greatest impact aimed at China. When I objected that those tariffs would have no effect on the trade deficit (it’s actually gone up, not down) many people responded that the actual imposition of the tariffs was to apply leverage on China to change its ways. As far as I know those tariffs have not caused China to buckle to the leverage. That’s what I meant about the tariffs being in place for over a year. You were talking about Mexico and I was talking about China. My bad!Trump’s tariffs against Mexico have been in effect for over a year?
First, I don't think I've played the entrapment game with you or others on this board. I like good, solid discussions even if I completely disagree. So while you may be right that others would respond as indicated, it won't be from me.
In premise, I agree with you. People shouldn't need the government to tell them which decisions are best for them. My challenge is that the government already does that. By creating EPA and OSHA regulations, the government is telling creators what they can and can't do when in reality the free market should decide whether they want to support companies that practice bad environmental practices. So the government is already intervening in the free market system and impacting US firms in doing so. As such, I'm willing to accept the same government creating offsets (such as tariffs) to protect those firms whom have to adhere to these regulations against foreign companies whom do not.
Ooohhhh Ponca Dan doesn’t like osha having him tie off his Mexican crews with harnesses that have a current up to date tag on them. His anarchy coupled with open borders is making a little more sense now.
As usual you make a very reasonable argument for the real world. In the theoretical world I am talking about our society's energy would be better spent in trying to abolish an authoritarian agency.
I can't help but think statists, government agents, bureaucrats, etc. get giddy at the mere thought of tariffs. They are multipurpose, they can be used as justification for almost any interference. Donald Trump says he uses them to reduce the trade deficit, Ostatedchi wants to use them to exact revenge on Chinese companies that steal his company's battery technology, and the hell with any collateral damage to innocent bystanders, you see tariffs as an adjunct to regulatory agencies, others think tariffs should be used to bring about "fair trade," whatever that is. Tariffs may be the most multifunctional government action there is. And the great thing from their perspective is no matter what excuse you use to impose them you get a significant section of the population that thinks they're a great idea.
