Trump is imposing tariffs as part of a global trade war
Donald Trump has sparked a global trade war—and it keeps escalating. He threatened to impose a 200 percent tariff on alcohol imports from the European Union (EU) on Thursday.
It came after EU officials slapped tariffs on £22 billion worth of US goods in response to Trump’s tariffs on aluminium and steel.
And Canada had announced similar retaliatory measures on £20 billion worth of US goods.
Trump’s tariffs have sent shockwaves across the world in an already unstable economic situation.
And, combined with his shift in US policy over Ukraine, Western leaders are scrambling to find their footing again.
Trump had threatened tariffs on Canada, Mexico and other countries last month, but these were paused after hasty negotiations. Canada and Mexico promised to tighten their border controls if they were spared.
This showed how Trump is using tariffs as a bargaining chip to bully enemies and allies alike into getting better terms for the US. He wants to signal that he’ll negotiate, but only on his own terms.
But the turn towards tariffs signals a new trend of increased protectionism and authoritarianism.
It flows from a deeper crisis of the liberal capitalist order that the US built after the Second World War in 1945.
This saw US imperialism integrate other advanced capitalist states, such Canada, Germany and France, into its military and economic bloc. It maintained its position as the leading power through a combination of coercion and consent.
But since the 2000s the US has faced increasing competition, particularly from China, and tensions within its own bloc.
Trump wants to bring US weight to bear on China and bully US allies into paying more in military spending.
His trade war reflects and deepens this growing competition among capitalist states in the world.
Trump is using the tariffs to make it seem like he’s on the side of the “average American” by rejuvenating the US’s manufacturing base.
And appearing to turn his back on “globalism” allows Trump to cultivate his nationalism and racism.
But tariffs will drive up the cost of production and corporations such as Ford will seek to make workers and consumers pay.
Retail giant Walmart has said that it will increase the price of thousands of products. Studies are already showing that tariffs will drive up household costs in the US by thousands of dollars a year on average.
Tariffs falsely tie workers with bosses under the banner of a “national interest”. Politicians push the idea that workers have common interests with the companies that exploit them—and that they’re in competition with workers in other countries.
In reality, workers in the US, Europe and China have more in common with one another than they do with the rulers of those states.
It’s not just Trump who’s trying to rally people behind nationalist rhetoric.
The newly proposed tariffs on Canada come as Mark Carney was voted in as new prime minister earlier this week. He is trying to revive the Liberal Party’s fortunes by standing up for “Canadian interests” against Trump.
Politicians and the media in Canada have pushed a “buy Canadian” agenda—and there has been some popular take up.
Opposition to Trump shouldn’t be pulled behind a defence of liberal politicians, free trade policies or rival nationalism.
Free trade v protectionism is a false choice for the left and working class people. They are different ways for the bosses to compete with one another and maximise profits.
The real alternative is a socialist economy that is democratically-planned and puts people before profit.
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