On Feb. 1, the Trump administration enacted a series of tariffs on Mexico, Canada and China, claiming they would stop the flow of fentanyl and undocumented migrants into the US country. This includes 25% tariffs on all imports from Mexico and Canada, but only a 10% tariff on goods from China.
Furthermore, on Feb. 11, the president placed a 25% tariff on steel and aluminum imports. This tariff is specifically designed to target long-time allied countries such as Ukraine, Japan, Australia, and Argentina. This was passed despite a study from 2020 finding that only about 23% of American steel consumption is imported.
Historically, tariffs have been terrible for the American economy. From the Smoot-Hawley Tariff, which exacerbated the Great Depression, to the McKinley Tariff, which nearly caused a financial collapse mid-Gilded Age, these tariffs would be comparable to Depression-era policies, which only aided in the collapse of the American economic system.
Landon Wiese, a senior, planning on going into accounting and economics, has a few major concerns with the policies. “For us to return to policies that objectively don’t work is just plain stupid.” Wiese said. “If our economic leadership can’t simply point to the past and figure out what does and doesn’t work, it speaks volumes about the effectiveness of that administration.”
Another interesting aspect of these tariffs is that the Trump Administration has targeted most of the closest allies to the US, rather than its economic rivals. Pleasant Valley sophomore Jack Allers expressed his confusion. “In a time of shifting powers in the White House, tariffing close friends of the country is a stupid decision,” Allers stated.
This sentiment is contrasted by his older brother, senior Henry Allers. “While it is a little silly to be tariffing our allies,” he shared, “I believe that Trump’s long-term goal for the American economy is to become more self-sustainable and decrease the amount of imported goods that American companies have to compete with.”
Only time will tell what these tariffs have in store for the American economy and for Pleasant Valley families.
