If it works fair play to him. Somehow I doubt it though. It's going to massively reduce export demand for US goods due to reciprocal levies.
But the one thing that is certain is that US consumers will be paying more.
Either, a) the manufacturing does return to the US but due to the US workers requiring higher wages the cost of what is being manufactured goes up (not taking into account any parts/materials only available from abroad that many have tariffs on due to the the US stance) increasing prices.
or, b) it is unsuccessful, jobs don't return to the US but consumers have to pay more for the same goods because of the tariffs on them.
And considering one of the things he was supposedly brought in for was because he would bring prices down, that would be an abject failure either way.
In the short term, yes it will lead to increased prices. For someone who’s argued so passionately for employment rights in previous conversations (which I respect despite disagreements)… it’s a shame that you give the impression that you’re ok with our clothing and electronic goods (etc) to be produced by workers in foreign countries earning less wages, with less employment rights and in poorer working conditions so we get cheaper goods rings hollow.
After all, the highest tariffs have been levied against the likes of China, India, Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia, Taiwan and so on…
In what sense? If you were to make a list of countries “hit hard” by our modern economic system, would you really put the United States near the top?
The same process of deindustrialisation that taken place in our country has taken place in major cities all over the USA, with Detroit being the best (or worst) example. It’s not a competition of who has had it worst and leaders in the EU, Canada and UK should be looking to address the problems globalisation has caused to our communities.
The West and this includes the EU, the UK as well as the US has allowed itself to hollowed out its skilled manufacturing jobs and outsourced this to countries who’s labour costs and employment rights are a fraction of what we have. It’s rather bemusing to see such criticism of what is essentially a ‘Blue Labour’ policy position from people who I’d consider economically left wing.
I don’t think a global economy dominated by China is a good thing and it’s time ‘The West’ took actions to correct this.
If it was done in a collaborative way, and it was allied to putting a proper Living Wage into law, supporting unions, improving workers rights etc. you'd have an argument. Nothing about their policies and approach says they've got any interest in making life better for the majority.
A significant portion of the US trade union movement in the USA has swung behind the Republican Party because they care primarily about getting skilled jobs back that were lost from 1990s.
Skilled manufacturing jobs wages will be much higher paying jobs than minimum wage. Besides, minimum wage and living wages only covers a small % of workers (1-1.3% in the US, 6.5% in the UK). Nonetheless and perhaps quite ironically, JD Vance has supported striking workers and is in favour of increasing the minimum wage - though his record is ‘mixed’.
