The costly price of a tariff barrage
Zander's Weekend Facts #147 - Sunday, December 1, 2024
The fascinations of President-elect Donald Trump are extremely comprehensive. On one end of the spectrum, we have the genitals of golfer Arnold Palmer. And on the other, we have tariffs.
During his first term, Trump imposed tariffs on several industries, including a 25% tariff on steel imported into the U.S. and 10% on aluminum, among others. With term number two now on the horizon, Trump is planning much larger action.
On Monday, Trump declared on his Truth Social platform that he will impose a 25% tariff on all goods coming into the U.S. from Canada and Mexico when he is inaugurated on January 20, 2025. “This Tariff will remain in effect until such time as Drugs, in particular Fentanyl, and all Illegal Aliens stop this Invasion of our Country!”
Trump’s threat worked in the sense that he got both Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau talking. However, it’s unlikely his talk on tariffs is simply a negotiating tactic. If so, it’s one he appears trigger-happy on presenting, considering just on Saturday he threatened countries that are members of the BRICS geopolitical coalition with a 100% tariff if they move away from using the U.S. dollar.
Trump’s tariff strategy can actually be traced all the way back to the 1980s, when he first publicly mused about their supposed effectiveness. For a man who can almost never decide which position is best on many issues, tariffs are an outlier where he has a longstanding view.
For an American public that adamantly stated the economy was the top issue in the last election, it sure seems like many might not understand the effect that tariffs can have.
To put it simply, when a country imposes a tariff on imports coming in from another country, that foreign country isn’t the one paying the tariff. The company bringing the product into the domestic country is the one paying the tariff. That can potentially raise costs for consumers of the country imposing the tariff.
However, tariffs are not simple, and the economic situation that allows Trump to claim their worth is incredibly complex. Here’s a video from The Wall Street Journal explaining how tariffs work and why many economists are negatively viewing Trump’s tariff barrage in his second term.
What Zander’s been reading
Many of the most famous soccer clubs around the world are known for their distinct kits and colors, which often have a backstory that goes back decades. ESPN has compiled the stories of how some of the world’s top clubs got their recognizable colors.
Check out this week’s featured article in ESPN - How Clubs Got Their Colors
Rapid-fire Facts
Here’s a recap of the top news headlines from the past week:
Israel-Hezbollah: Israel and the Lebanon-based Hezbollah militant group agreed to a ceasefire last week. The ceasefire, which began on Wednesday, calls for Israeli troops to exit Lebanon and for Hezbollah to end its armed presence in southern Lebanon. The agreement came just after Israel had conducted one of its most active days of the 14-month war, killing at least 42 people on Tuesday after launching airstrikes. The ceasefire does not apply to Israel’s separate fighting with the Gaza-based Hamas militant group.
Trump Federal Cases: Two federal criminal cases against President-elect Donald Trump have been dismissed. Special counsel Jack Smith requested that both the election interference and classified documents cases against Trump be dismissed, requests that federal courts granted last week. Smith cited the long-standing policy at the Department of Justice that prohibits prosecution against a sitting president.
Australia Social Media: Australia passed what appears to be the most restrictive social media law for teenagers in the world last week. The Social Media Minimum Age bill bans all children 16 and under from social media. Australia’s absolute ban is different from other states and countries that have allowed parents to provide permission for their children to use social media. Social media companies could be fined up to $32 million U.S. dollars per year if they do not enforce the law. Enforcement will begin in January.
Trump Administration Picks: President-elect Donald Trump continued to name members of his second administration last week, including a new leader for the National Institute of Health. Trump named Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, a Stanford physician and economist, as the head of the NIH. Bhattacharya has previously critiqued the lockdown policies that were in place during the Covid-19 pandemic. Trump also named retired Army Lieutenant General Keith Kellogg his envoy to Ukraine and Russia.
Zander’s Facts Sporting Club
Here are the latest headlines from the sports world in the Sporting Club:
NFL Week 13: The thirteenth week of the NFL season kicked off with a Thanksgiving tripleheader, headlined by the Lions holding on for a 23-20 win over the Bears, with the Bears firing head coach Matt Eberflus after the game on Friday. The Cowboys got a Thanksgiving win with a 27-20 victory over the Giants, while the Packers beat the Dolphins 30-17 to cap off the day. On Black Friday, the Chiefs held on for a 19-17 win over the Raiders. Switching to Sunday, the 1:00 pm ET window is headlined by Chargers-Falcons, Cardinals-Vikings, and Steelers-Bengals. At 4:00 pm ET, the Saints host the Rams, the Buccaneers take on the Panthers, and the Eagles face the Ravens. At 8:20 pm ET, the 49ers travel east to take on the Bills. Week 13 concludes with Browns-Broncos on Monday night.
College Football Week 14: Chaos consumed the final week of the college football regular season. Starting on Thursday, Memphis upset #17 Tulane 34-24 while #7 Georgia needed eight overtimes to beat Georgia Tech at home on Friday 44-42. On Saturday, Michigan pulled off their fourth straight win over #2 Ohio State 13-10, #8 Tennessee came back to beat Vanderbilt 36-23, #15 South Carolina took down #12 Clemson 17-14, and #13 Alabama took care of Auburn 28-14. Plus, Syracuse upset #6 Miami 42-38, #3 Texas beat #20 Texas A&M 17-7, #18 Iowa State knocked off #24 Kansas State 29-21, and #5 Notre Dame beat USC on the road 49-35.
College Football Conference Championships: Conference championship weekend in college football is set after Saturday’s conclusion of the regular season. Each of the power four conferences will hold their championship games on Saturday, beginning with the Big 12 Championship as #16 Arizona State takes on #18 Iowa State at 12:00 pm ET on ABC. The SEC Championship features #7 Georgia and #3 Texas at 4:00 pm ET on ABC, followed by the ACC Championship at 8:00 pm ET on ABC with #9 SMU taking on #12 Clemson. The Big Ten Championship also takes place at 8:00 pm ET, airing on CBS, and features #1 Oregon playing #4 Penn State.
Formula 1: Formula 1 announced last week that it reached an agreement with General Motors to add an 11th team to the grid starting in 2026. Cadillac will join Formula 1 as the second American-owned team joining Haas. Andretti Global will run the team and 1978 F1 champion Mario Andretti will hold an ambassador role. Red Bull’s Max Verstappen clinched the current season title after last week’s Las Vegas Grand Prix. Verstappen has now won the World Driver’s Championship four consecutive times.
Wrapping up the Facts
That’s a wrap on this week’s edition of Zander’s Weekend Facts. The Facts in print return next Sunday, December 8, 2024.