Will Trump steel and aluminum tariff make US consumers pay more?
President Donald Trump’s tariff on steel and aluminum imports will go into effect in 15 days and critics of the plan suggest the United States would be better off with the world competing to serve their needs.
“An industry that can’t make it, we have to protect a macroscopic number of workers at the expense of 330 million American people,” RealClearMarkets editor John Tamny told FOX Business’ Charles Payne.
On Thursday, the president signed off on steel and aluminum tariffs that exclude Canada and Mexico.
Tamny states the tariff plan is intended to protect a minimal amount of jobs in the U.S. while making consumers pay more.
“The reason I get up for work, the reason you get up for work, the reason anyone does is to get. If the rest of the world wants to give me more for less, that is a good thing,” he said.
FOX Business’ Charles Payne argued that the depletion of the steel and aluminum industry will cut competition and increase pricing on imports. Tamny called Payne’s assessment “absurd” and “laughable.”
“Charles, by your own definition you know that steel prices move around and they tend to move around all the time and they tend to move around based on the value of the dollar,” he said.
Some of the world economies have doubled in growth compared to the U.S. with double digit percentage rate in tariffs.
Tamny said tariffs simply injure industries and prevent world economies from their full growth potential.
“Rich countries by definition are engaged with world. They divide up work with the world. They would be much richer countries,” he said.