The Ultimate Bait and Switch of Trump's Tariffs

[Dulcinea]

(The Atlantic) If you’ve ever watched a game of three-card monte, you’ve noticed that the dealer talks nonstop. The chatter serves two functions. First, it distracts the victims. Second, and maybe more important, the dealer is deceiving his victims about what’s befalling them. The spiel invites them to imagine they’re playing a game in which they stand a fair chance. In reality, they are being swindled.

The Trump White House’s press releases about its so-called trade agreements and negotiations—first with the United Kingdom, now with China—are just so much dealer patter.

The tariff numbers go up. Up and up and up. Ooh, now they come down. Up! Down! And all the while, everybody involved is telling contradictory stories about what’s being done and why.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/ultimate-bait-switch-trump-tariffs-173500431.html?.tsrc=daily_mail&segment_id=DY_VTO_CORE&ncid=crm_19908-1475736-20250513-0--A&bt_user_id=VC9o9x6yiNqLZO2%2BCUwRPJSBwCIldtsce3svoiC86eMPd8PoKdM2efcsMvspO5ZD&bt_ts=1747128319991

[Raven123]

1. Spot on. The examples are worth remembering for future reference

[gab13by13]

2. Krasnov's tariffs had nothing to do with economics or with bringing back manufacturing.

His tariffs were nothing more than a protection racket designed to make him money.

Countries and CEO's would come groveling to Krasnov with bags of money for carve outs to his tariffs.

[Bernardo de La Paz]

3. Great article: crystal clear, easy read.

Learn how to trim your URLs (typically at the question mark) so your personal browsing history is not spread over the internet. Besides it becomes less messy.