This story appeared in The Logoff, a daily newsletter that helps you stay informed about the Trump administration without letting political news take over your life. Subscribe here.
Trump’s massive tariffs, briefly explained
What Trump just announced — and what it means for you.
Patrick Reis is the senior politics and ideas editor at Vox. He previously worked at Rolling Stone, the Washington Post, Politico, National Journal, and Seattle’s Real Change News. As a reporter and editor, he has worked on coverage of campaign politics, economic policy, the federal death penalty, climate change, financial regulation, and homelessness.
Welcome to The Logoff: Today I’m focusing on Donald Trump saying he’s imposing tariffs on products from around the world. If real and permanent — two big ifs — the policies represent a shift in economic policy that will have major effects on all Americans.
What’s the latest? Trump today promised a 10 percent tariff on all foreign goods, with goods from many countries — including some of our largest trading partners — being taxed at a far higher rate. Trump also said certain foreign-made cars would face import taxes of 25 percent. Trump said the tariffs would take effect right away, though the exact timing is unclear.
Is it real this time? This was Trump’s most sweeping tariff announcement to date, and he announced it during a high-profile White House ceremony, suggesting these tariffs may be here to stay. That said, it was only a month ago that Trump announced tariffs on our largest trading partners, only to rescind or delay some of them days after they took effect.
Can Trump do this without Congress? There will likely be legal challenges, but existing law gives the president wide authority to unilaterally impose tariffs.
What do tariffs mean for you? In the short term, higher prices. Tariffs are taxes paid by importers and passed on to consumers, so, if they remain in place, you can expect to pay more for a sweeping range of goods. Economists also fear that this tariff policy could kick off a recession, particularly as other countries promise to counter with taxes on US exports.
What’s the big picture? There are valid critiques of past US free trade policies — particularly in how they’ve hurt certain communities and segments of the labor force. But economists are skeptical Trump can bring back US manufacturing at anywhere near the scale he’s promising, and they’re confident these new taxes will result in severe and widespread economic pain.
And with that, it’s time to log off… If you want a high-brow reprieve from the chaos, Vox’s Unexplainable podcast has a great new episode about deep-sea microbes — ancient organisms so different from the rest of the planet’s creatures that they’re raising questions about what it means to even be alive. (As an added bonus, Vox members can now listen ad-free!) I loved this podcast, but if you’re having a “just get through it” kind of Wednesday, might I recommend 3 minutes and 23 seconds of tropical birds’ mating dances? Thanks so much for reading, and we’ll see you back here tomorrow.
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