The world held its breath the morning of February 3, 2025. Trump’s tariffs on Canadian, Mexican, and Chinese goods were scheduled to go into effect. Stock markets around the globe panicked. Initial losses were in the billions. Only when Mexico’s President Claudia Scheinbaum and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced they were deploying more troops at their borders with the U.S. as an additional deterrent to the smuggling of people and drugs in the U.S. did President Trump delay the 25 percent tariffs.
Already Trump is pounding his chest, congratulating himself for bullying our neighbors. As I write this, China has responded to the 10 percent increase on Chinese goods with retaliatory tariffs and other actions. China also announced a new requirement for export licenses for five metals used for various industrial and defense industries. A trade war with China may have begun.
The markets believe that Trump was bluffing, but Trump will claim that his threats of draconian tariffs are real. And his apparent success at making Canada and Mexico offers they couldn’t refuse will only encourage Trump to threaten—and impose—more tariffs against more countries.
Trump is doing what thugs do—resorting to threats instead of reason or dialogue to get his way. Trump expects to be declared a national hero for what he did, and what he threatens to do.
I am not only not ready to congratulate Trump for a brilliant foreign policy move; I’m ready to see him impeached for it. Trump has told Mexico and Canada that they are not our allies—they are our abusers. And Trump is using threats to end that abuse. If you were Prime Minister of Canada or President of Mexico, how long would it take you to get on the phone to President Xi and initiate talks at how best to respond to the U.S.?
President Trump came into office with peaceful borders with Canada and Mexico. That may come to an end soon. Canada logically might be thinking about allowing the Chinese to open a military base in Manitoba or Alberta. And Mexico, which already perceives itself to be economically exploited by the U.S., might want to embrace China, or even Russia.
Allies do not abuse one another. They do not propose annexing each other or ridicule their allies’ leaders. They work together for their mutual security and prosperity.
I went to graduate school in Toronto. I never once saw Canadians as adversaries or exploiters because they weren’t. Canadians, for the time being, are our friends. Instead of bullying and threatening them, the U.S. should work in tandem with them to address issues that seem to motivate Trump’s rash actions. (With Trump, you can never be sure what drives his actions.)
Trump seems to assume that Americans, or, in his mind, the ones who are not lunatics, support his actions. This will change if he throws the American economy into chaos which is what he appears to be doing.
Trump’s threats of massive tariffs should be seen as the actions of an idiot playing with a stick of dynamite. If Trump’s strategy, based on the aggressive and sometimes illegal practices of The Trump Organization in the real estate business, backfires, it may not be possible to “put the economy back together again” by simply repealing the ill-conceived tariffs. The memory of the tariffs and the recklessness of Trump will remain for many years. Our allies will not forget that America is capable of electing someone like Trump president and letting him recklessly abuse them.
It is too early to suggest that the world will end because of what Trump did on February 3, just as it is also naïve to suggest that his tariff threat worked with Mexico and Canada.
How will China respond to the Trump tariffs if an agreement is not reached to continue talks? More retaliatory tariffs are probable. China will also seek retribution in illegal ways, by increasing industrial spying and intellectual property theft and with additional displays of its military might. In other words, China’s reaction will be different than that of Mexico and China.
It is not too early to start praying that Trump will either realize the mistake of using tariffs as a weapon or somehow be prevented from doing so again.
Trump is making the world a more dangerous place with his reckless tariff policy. American consumers will pay more for goods. American industry dependent on supply chains and markets in Mexico, Canada, and China will suffer. And the risk of a tariff war with China evolving into something worse is increasing. Thank you, Donald Trump.
J.E. Dean writes on politics, government, and, too infrequently, other subjects. A former counsel on Capitol Hill and public affairs consultant, Dean also writes for Dean’s List on Medium and Dean’s Issues & Insights on Substack.
chris kayhoe says
Please, tell us all who Really ran this country for the last for years? Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, Corn Pops, If you say any of the 3 choices, we all know you are lying. Now your going to tell all of the voting Public the same Fake Story line for the last 4 years about Donald Trump. PS, Did you get your degree at The Bidenomic School of Business
John Dean says
Thank you for reading my piece. I did not get my degree(s) at the Bidenomic School of Business. I don’t think there is a Bidenomic School of Business. Also, who is “Corn Pops?” I regularly read the news, but I am unfamiliar with him/her.
Finally, would I be lying if I were to say that Elon Musk is currently running the country?
Sam Wilson says
You would be incorrect that Musk is running the county. He is auditing the country. It is now completely obvious that the democrats were laundering the American taxpayers money through USAID. Trump explicitly said he would bring Musk in during the campaign. Many people voted for him precisely for this reason.
William Keppen says
And Republicans in the Congress and across the country bow and cheer.
Wilson Dean says
President Trump is no doubt viewing his bullying of our two good neighboring countries as evidence of his strength and business prowess. But what do children or for that matter any of us do when we are bullied? We seek out new friends , often themselves bullies, to protect us. China is already making quick inroads at displacing us at global climate talks, the World Health Organization, and even now with Colombia. Trump’s bullying victories will be short-lived, but the damage he is doing to the long-term interests of the United States will be difficult to reverse
Reed Fawell 3 says
“Trump’s threats of massive tariffs should be seen as the actions of an idiot playing with a stick of dynamite.”
Seems to be working extremely well, just like Trump’s first go round in his first time.
“China will also seek retribution in illegal ways, by increasing industrial spying and intellectual property theft and with additional displays of its military might.”
You must be kidding. What does China do every day of the week 24/7?
Deirdre LaMotte says
Trump announces tariffs.
– Allies turn against the U.S., launch boycotts on U.S. products and boo us at events.
– Markets nosedive.
– Trump caves.
The “deals”:
– Mexico agrees to do the same things they always do at the border to help the U.S. (including under Biden)-but ALSO get Trump to agree to work to stop weapons trafficking from the U.S.-Mexico.
– Trudeau agrees to do the same things they always do to help the
U.S., but also says he’ll name a ‘fentanyl czar’ (despite the fact that barely any fentanyl at all comes from Canada to the U.S.)
Yeah, he is a real negotiator s/. And this is old news now. Another total embarrassment has been self inflicted: anyone for a tacky Trump resort in Gaza?!
Reed Fawell 3 says
AS to deals to date generated last week by Trumps Tariff threats.
Mexico to date has agreed to reinstate America’s demanded return illegal migrants to Mexico, and to better enforce its own northern border against crossing of drugs and human trafficking and illegals. In addition, Mexico has surged 10,000 of its troops to Southern Border to halt illegal migrants and contraband headed north through Mexico to US border. Mexico has agreed to house in southern Mexico criminal illegal migrants shipped out of US back into Mexico. And this is only for starters, pending further discussions on a broad front demanded by US.
5 central America counties has agree to take back illegal migrants from US, and work with America to halt drugs and human trafficking and illegals to America. Panama has agreed in principle to unwind its contractual relations with China on operation of Canal and related facilities.
Venezuela has released 6 America Hostages.
Canada has ongoing broad ranging discussion with America in return for halting Tariffs.
As to Trump’s proposal on Gaza, it may well be the jump start for solving forever the Palestinian Gaza agony, death, and suffering that has afflicted the Palestinian people continuously since the second world war. For example see this in today’s WSJ –
Trumpt’s Plan to Free the Palestinians, by Elliot Kauffman
President Trump shocked the world with his proposal to resettle Gazans in nearby countries, but not because the idea is cruel. Few critics dispute his point that it would benefit the displaced to escape the “demolition site” of Gaza and live in peace rather than as cannon fodder. The real disturbance, after decades to the contrary, is to think seriously about what it would mean to put Palestinian lives first rather than sacrificing them to the lost cause of
Palestine as their leaders always do…
Deirdre LaMotte says
Trump has no idea what he is doing. He is nothing but an avatar for Project 2025: Heritage Society.
Meanwhile, he and “little” Rubio, Trump’s name for him, are way over they heads and shooting from the hip. Displacing people is a against International law
and will start a regional war, again.
The spitefulness is so petty on every level, domestically and internationally. Eliminating US AID has to be the dummest so far. Just because Musk didn’t like comments made about Starlink.
Fascism is what y’all wanted, here it is on a silver platter. Sieg Heil.
Reed Fawell 3 says
I can not find any substance in this comment.
John Dean says
Thanks for your comments. As you might guess, I am not persuaded by your arguments. Logically, Trump is doing so well with threats that he should threaten a nuclear attack on countries like Mexico and Canada to get what he and President Musk have determined America wants.
And what if Trump decides to improve the lives of the people on the Eastern Shore by moving everyone to Delaware so he can do a spectacular redevelopment? Translation–the Palestinians do not need Trump to tell them what is good for them. You might also want to read some of the reactions of GOP members to Trump’s bizarre proposal. My guess is that Andy Harris probably doesn’t like it. . .