Trump’s insipid tariffs are being imposed today: 25% for Canada and Mexico and 10% for China.
The pledge to lower the cost of living for everyday Americans — the reason so many people voted for him — is thrown out the window. These tariffs will have the exact opposite response.
AP News breaks down some of the products that will be the first affected (resulting in a higher cost for Americans to purchase).
Better start stocking up, especially on food items, since deporting migrants will certainly raise food prices.
“President Biden is bequeathing his successor a nation that by many measures is in good shape, even if voters remain unconvinced.”
“To hear President-elect Donald J. Trump tell it, he is about to take over a nation ravaged by crisis, a desolate hellscape of crime, chaos and economic hardship. “Our Country is a disaster, a laughing stock all over the World!” he declared on social media last week.”
“By many traditional metrics, the America that Mr. Trump will inherit from President Biden when he takes the oath for a second time, two weeks from Monday, is actually in better shape than that bequeathed to any newly elected president since George W. Bush came into office in 2001.”
Wisconsin dairy farms rely heavily on undocumented immigrants, who perform over half the work on dairy farms, according to estimates. I wonder how long it will take for it to sink in that maybe these folks made a mistake in their voting for president.
“Wisconsin is home to about 70,000 undocumented immigrants, mostly from Latin America, according to estimates from the nonprofit Migration Policy Institute. These are the people who hang drywall, clean hotel rooms, wash dishes in restaurant kitchens and package the nation’s cheese.
“Determining how many of Wisconsin’s dairy workers are undocumented is almost impossible. Workers use fake papers to get jobs, farmers accept those papers without question, and the state and federal governments make little effort to get an accurate count. But a conservative estimate from a recent University of Wisconsin at Madison study puts the number of undocumented Hispanic workers on medium-to-large farms at roughly 6,200. That figure excludes the many immigrant workers on smaller farms, those with fewer than 500 cows.”
“Universal healthcare coverage in the U.S. would have saved hundreds of thousands of lives as well as hundreds of billions of dollars through the first two years of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a new analysis.
“Researchers from the Yale School of Public Health and other institutions estimated that in 2020 alone, more than 131,000 COVID deaths and almost 78,000 excess non-COVID deaths would have been averted with broader nationwide coverage and saved the U.S. over $459 billion in 2020.”
In other words, the economy worldwide was already improving, and will continue if the new administration doesn’t ruin it.
“Rising trade tensions and further moves towards protectionism might disrupt supply chains, raise consumer prices, and negatively impact growth,” the OECD said.
He “told Trudeau that if Canada cannot handle his tariffs and secure the northern border, then it should simply become the 51st American state with Trudeau as its governor. A wildly insulting and condescending thing to say to one of our closest allies, Trump appears intent on isolating America and ruining our foreign relationships right from the get-go.”
“The meeting came days after the president-elect threatened a blanket 25 percent tariff on “all products” entering the US from Canada and Mexico – and an additional 10 percent tariff on Chinese goods.”
“President-elect Donald Trump is looking to grant massive tax breaks to America’s wealthiest individuals and corporations, beginning with an extension and expansion of his 2017 tax cuts, which primarily benefited the rich. In order to offset the loss of tax revenue, Trump’s economic advisers are considering a plan that would punish the poorest Americans by making it even harder to access Medicaid, food stamps, and other federal programs, according to a Tuesday report from The Washington Post.”
As has been repeatedly explained before and after the election, Trump’s plans will most likely NOT lower people’s grocery bills!
“The food price inflation that stunned the U.S. — and other parts of the world — in 2021 and 2022 had complicated causes that are difficult to unwind, from the pandemic to the Ukraine war to avian flu. And many economists think Trump’s plans could actually make food prices rise.
“As of October, U.S. prices for food eaten at home were up 28% from 2019, according to government figures released Wednesday. But the growth peaked in 2022; between October 2023 and October 2024, food prices rose 2%, which was lower than the overall inflation rate.”
“Asked how he would lower grocery prices during a September town hall in Michigan, Trump said tariffs would help U.S. farmers. But David Ortega, a professor of food economics and policy at Michigan State University, said that food producers rely on imported goods like fertilizer, equipment and packaging materials. If they’re forced to pay more for those items, they will raise prices, Ortega said.
“U.S. farmers also could have trouble selling their goods overseas, since other countries would likely respond with retaliatory tariffs, he said. Around 20% of U.S. agricultural production is exported each year, according to the USDA.”
Looks like consumers have more of an impact on the economy than the government does. When everyone keeps paying for things no matter how much the prices go up, that encourages raising prices further.
“Some of America’s largest companies, from Amazon to Disney to Yum Brands, say their customers are increasingly seeking cheaper alternative products and services, searching for bargains or just avoiding items they deem too expensive. Consumers aren’t cutting back enough to cause an economic downturn. Rather, economists say, they appear to be returning to pre-pandemic norms, when most companies felt they couldn’t raise prices very much without losing business.”
When housing becomes less available in a tourism-driven city, decisions have to be made. Short-term rentals (like Airbnb) are harder to justify when local housing is scarce or increasingly expensive. And hotels are still available.
Barcelona, Spain, is dealing with this situation. “Barcelona City Hall announced last month that it would not renew any tourist apartment licenses after they expire in 2028. Deputy Mayor Laia Bonet said the city wants tourism, which accounts for 15% of the local economy, but must help residents cope with skyrocketing rents and real estate prices.”
