Trump Unveils Sweeping Retaliatory Tariffs

Calling his announcement a “declaration of economic independence,” President Trump imposed sweeping retaliatory tariffs at a Rose Garden ceremony, the New York Times reports.

“He said he would establish a universal baseline tariff of 10 percent, and additional rates that apply to certain countries. Some of the rates he announced — 34 percent for China, 26 percent for India, 24 percent for Japan — were much higher than what some economists and policymakers had been expecting.”

Wall Street Journal: “The plan represents a fundamental rethinking of U.S. trade policy on a scale not seen since the post-World War II era, when the U.S. and other nations in 1947 signed the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, a treaty aimed at lowering tariffs and trade barriers between nations.”

Washington Post: “The president’s latest trade initiative represents a breathtaking political gamble. After returning to the White House on a wave of public anger over inflation, Trump is now asking voters to put up with a renewed period of rising prices in return for the distant promise of rebuilding domestic manufacturing.”