Donald Trump declared his unchanging love for tariffs on the Patrick Bet-David (PBD) podcast. When confronted about the possible effects of the tariffs on middle-class Americans, Trump justified their necessity through a vague defense.
Host Bet-David asked Trump about his plans to bring manufacturing back to the United States. He lifted his phone and said that even if they made those in America, the prices would go up. Bet-David used the examples of both phones and cars. Then he asked, “How do you balance and manage tariffs so the average person is not affected by it?”
Trump responded with his fondness for tariffs. “To me, I think it’s the most beautiful word in the dictionary. More beautiful than love. More beautiful than any other word I know: tariff.” He went on to say that tariffs have the capacity to make America “extremely wealthy” again.
While Trump’s obsession over tariffs seems absurd, he defended that imposing steep tariffs on Mexico and other countries will force manufacturing plants to close their doors. Trump’s conclusion is that because Americans will be producing their cars, they’re able to rely less on imports from neighbors. Another overarching assumption is that the auto industry will be incentivized to produce their cars on US soil rather than pass the burden of the tariffs to the consumers.
The average salary of a Mexican automobile factory worker is $2.70 an hour. In 2023, American autoworkers on the production line received an hourly wage of $28. That difference in wages alone will alter the cost of production, but Trump also intends to tariff other imports that are crucial in creating these cars.
Trump’s protectionist strategy isn’t likely to make these cars cheaper in his administration. If anything, his plan is contingent on the thought that Americans are already well-equipped to shield themselves from inflation.
Published: Jan 15, 2025 02:29 pm