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It is amazing that anyone — paying attention to History — would actually give Candidate Trump any kudos on his imaginary Business “smarts.” The guy knows more about Bankruptcy Law and systematic Tax Fraud, than he ever will about the “kitchen table” issues that challenge average Americans.
Case in point: the non-stop lying machine could not give you an accurate definition of Tariffs and how they work, if his pathetic political career depended on it. So here’s a quick refresher, from that Econ 101 course, which he obviously never took (or has long since forgotten):
by Reuters — June 19, 2019
(Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump says China pays the tariffs he has imposed on $250 billion of Chinese exports to the United States.
But that is not how tariffs work. China's government and companies in China do not pay tariffs directly. Tariffs are a tax on imports. They are paid by U.S.-registered firms to U.S. customs for the goods they import into the United States.
Importers often pass the costs of tariffs on to customers — manufacturers and consumers in the United States — by raising their prices.
U.S. business executives and economists say U.S. consumers foot much of the bill through rising prices.
[...]
Soooo, Tariffs are paid by U.S. companies, and that extra cost, in most cases lately, are passed on directly to U.S. consumers. China does NOT pay these Tariffs — no matter how many times he spews his lies to the contrary.
How does a 10% “pass-along tax” help you reduce household bills? It doesn’t.
Worse yet, Tariffs have historically resulted in “a tit-for-tat trade war.” IOW, our trading partners will usually react in kind, and impose their own Tariffs on our exports.
This can lead to a downward spiral that can depress the entire world’s GDP in the long run. Not good. Not smart.
Jacob Jensen, AmericanActionForum.org
Executive Summary
- Former president and presidential candidate Donald Trump has proposed a 10 percent tariff on all imports into the United States, which would result in average estimated additional costs per U.S. household of between $1,700 and $2,350 annually.
- The top 10 U.S. import partners, which represent nearly 70 percent of all imports, would be hit with tariffs up to 3 percent of their gross domestic product (GDP); retaliatory tariffs against the United States could amount to $200 billion in the event of a tit-for-tat trade war, with the aggregate impact of tariff hikes reaching up to 5 percent of GDP for the country’s largest trade partner.
- A targeted 60 percent tariff on China, as candidate Trump also proposed, would balloon additional U.S. consumer costs from $300 billion to over $500 billion and on its own increase household costs by $1,950 annually.
[...]
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Soooo, when President Biden tells us that Trump’s Tariff plan will actually hurt the pocket-books of average Americans — we should believe him ...
Biden: "Economists say (Trump’s proposed tariffs are) going to cost the average American $2,500 a year or more."
Mostly True. Most economists expect that Trump’s proposed 10% across-the-board tariff on foreign products will force consumers to pay more. The specific size of that hit is open to debate, though Biden offered a figure somewhat higher than current estimates.
Just days before the debate, the American Action Forum, a center-right think tank, projected additional costs per household of $1,700 to $2,350 annually.
[...]
PolitiFact — The Poynter Institute
No matter how loudly convicted Felon Trump shouts his imaginary economic lies to the contrary.
Repeat after me:
Trump Tariffs hurt American Taxpayers. China doesn’t pay a dime.
No wonder the world’s autocrats love this failed business-moron so much.
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An object lesson in coercing a “Useful Idiot” … on the World Stage.
And to his easily cowed supporters. Cheers! <i>and thanks a Billion.</i>