The National Interest, a US think tank website, published an article titled "Why Trump Backed Down on Tariffs" on April 10. The author is Jacob Heilbrunn. Here is an excerpt of the article:
Trump may soon find that starting a trade war is easier than successfully ending it.
Is this a ceasefire? A truce? Or even a halt?
On Wednesday, just before triggering a global trade war, President Donald Trump made a tactical retreat. First, he told Americans to "chill out," referencing a famous line from the movie Pulp Fiction; then, he paused for at least 90 days the reciprocal tariffs he had promised, while raising tariffs on China to 125% and maintaining the heavy tariffs on Canada and Mexico.
Unfortunately, Trump's actions to upend international trade are not fiction. He inherited a vibrant economy with low unemployment and declining inflation. Now, he is reversing these trends. The "golden age" he promised in his inaugural speech has begun to dim significantly.
According to Fortune magazine, Trump seems indifferent to a stock market crash. It was only the rise in U.S. Treasury yields that prompted him to change course. Although the administration has tried to portray his concessions on reciprocal tariffs as some kind of manipulation behind the scenes, Trump himself admitted that he retreated when faced with the threat of a bond market collapse. His approach is like using a grenade to treat a headache.
Trump likes to boast that morally upright America is being plundered by predatory foreign countries, including the supposed creation of the EU solely to "squeeze" the U.S. This might be called "Navarroism," since his economic advisor, Peter Navarro, seems to believe that any import poses a dire threat to the American way of life. In fact, Americans have consistently spent more than they earn - federal debt stands at $36 trillion and is still rising - and they rely on the dollar, which serves as the global reserve currency. In other words, foreigners have been subsidizing America's consumer frenzy for decades. Now, due to foreign investors demanding higher interest rates because they view dollar investments as less stable, the interest payments on federal debt will inevitably continue to rise. In short, the long-standing economic safe haven no longer looks secure. This is the real consequence of Trump's economic scam.
Trump's main advantage seems to lie in his willingness to use tariff threats to intimidate countries. Trump holds a high opinion of his negotiation skills. On Tuesday, he claimed at a Republican National Committee dinner that Congress should keep its distance from his negotiations because "they negotiate differently than I do." Indeed, he continues to boast that countries are "kissing my behind" to reach tariff agreements. Trump crudely stated: "Sir, please, let's make a deal, I'll do anything. Sir, I'll do anything."
In fact, as tariffs are implemented, Trump is launching an economic war he has coveted since the 1980s, when he issued false warnings about Japan surpassing the U.S. Now, just like then, Trump is a missile without guidance. He may soon discover that starting a war is easier than successfully ending it.
Author Jacob Heilbrunn is editor-in-chief of The National Interest and a non-resident senior fellow at the Atlantic Council’s Eurasia Center.
"Language Learning Research | Compiled"
Original Article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7491926356328743465/
Disclaimer: The article represents the views of the author alone. Please express your attitude by clicking the "thumbs up/thumbs down" button below.