Dear Commons Community,
Trump’s abrupt reversal on the aggressive global tariffs he announced a week ago left critics shaking their heads after the turmoil rattled financial markets and increased the likelihood of an economic recession. As reported by The Huffington Post.
“This is chaos. This is government by chaos,” Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said at a press conference on Wednesday. “He keeps changing things from day to day. His advisors are fighting among themselves. You cannot run a country with such chaos.”
“This chaos seems just a game for Donald Trump, but it is very real for people’s lives, people’s retirement, their income,” he added. “Trump seems to be playing a game of red light, green light. One day this, one day that. I’ve never seen such a chaotic administration action.”
Trump announced on his social media platform Truth Social that he is reducing tariffs on all countries to 10% for 90 days, rather than keeping the higher rates he announced last week. However, he said, China’s exports to the U.S. would now see a 125% tariff.
“At some point, hopefully in the near future, China will realize that the days of ripping off the U.S.A., and other Countries, is no longer sustainable or acceptable,” Trump posted Wednesday afternoon.
U.S. financial markets rallied immediately on the news, erasing much of their losses from last week. Republican lawmakers and allies of Trump also welcomed the reversal, including some who had expressed concerns with the president’s strategy and its negative impact on the economy.
“This is the right decision,” Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) wrote in a social media post. “We should focus on holding Communist China accountable for its IP theft, currency manipulation, and unfair trade practices.”
Billionaire hedge fund manager Bill Ackman, a Trump ally, wrote that the president had “brilliantly executed” his tariff policies. Earlier on Wednesday, Ackman had warned that “many small businesses will go bankrupt” if Trump continued course.
But Schumer, a longtime China hawk, said it would be difficult to undo the damage caused by Trump’s trade policies. He warned that the remaining universal 10% tariffs would raise prices for consumers and questioned how targeting U.S. allies would help in confronting Ch
“When you have a tariff strategy, it needs to be pinpointed and focused,” Schumer said Wednesday.
“Trump has created a situation where the whole world is against us, and everyone is furious at America,” he added. “The only way you can bring China to be fairer is by creating alliances and having the world focused on China, instead of the whole world angry at America.”
Tony
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