this post was submitted on 12 May 2025
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So what’s the current understanding of Trump’s tariffs? Was it simple market manipulation and they never intended to keep tariffs on long term? Or did the Trump govt really think this was a good idea to bring back manufacturing without understanding how this would impact the US economy and are now running from the consequences?
I think most of Trump’s strategies come down to high stakes games of chicken. He correctly estimates that most world leaders are cowards who will accept any indignity the empire heaps on them, and that he won’t personally suffer consequences for anything he does. Given those two things, there’s little incentive for him to not at least try shaking down the entire planet just to see who capitulates.
Market manipulation was definitely a goal, but I do think that the admin genuinely did not understand the balance of power.
"He's a dumb jackass doing dumb jackass shit."
This blog has some very good analysis of the tariffs: article 1, article 2, and article 3.