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Trump’s Tariff Strategy: A Calculated Move, Not a Fumble
By Ray Higgins. 12th May 2025
The narrative emerging from some corners of the Left paints President Trump’s tariff policies as either a clumsy retreat or a misguided blunder
from the start. This characterization is not just simplistic—it’s wrong. Critics claim Trump either buckled under pressure or is scrambling to escape a policy misstep. Such assertions miss the mark and ignore the strategic intent behind the tariffs, which was never about permanent trade barriers but about reshaping the U.S.-China economic relationship for the better.
The tariffs were a deliberate tool to bring China to the negotiating table. For years, the U.S. has faced an uneven playing field in trade with China. Many American-made products are either outright barred from Chinese markets or slapped with prohibitive tariffs, limiting access to a consumer base of over 1.4 billion people. Meanwhile, Chinese goods have flooded U.S. markets, often at artificially low prices due to subsidies and lax regulatory standards. This imbalance has eroded American manufacturing and cost jobs. Trump’s tariffs aimed to level that field by applying pressure where it counts: China’s bottom line.
Recent developments prove the strategy’s traction. Both U.S. and Chinese officials have reported progress on new trade deals that promise greater market access for American products. These agreements, still in negotiation, could open China’s markets to U.S. goods in sectors like automotive, technology, and agriculture—industries that employ millions and anchor communities across the country. For example, American automakers, long stifled by China’s protectionist policies, stand to gain significant ground. The broader economic impact could be substantial, boosting exports, creating jobs, and strengthening the U.S. trade balance.
To dismiss this as Trump “fumbling” the tariff policy is to ignore inconvenient facts. Critics must either willfully overlook the progress in trade talks or admit they misunderstood the tariffs’ purpose. The goal was never to wage a perpetual trade war but to use economic leverage to secure better terms. Early results suggest it’s working. China, facing its own economic pressures, has shown willingness to negotiate rather than escalate. This is not the behavior of a nation calling America’s bluff—it’s the response of a pragmatic player feeling the heat.
Of course, tariffs are not without risks. They can raise costs for consumers and disrupt supply chains, and skeptics are right to point this out. But portraying them as a reckless misadventure ignores the broader context. The U.S. economy has weathered the tariffs better than predicted, with unemployment low and manufacturing showing resilience. The alternative—continuing to accept China’s unfair trade practices—would have been far costlier in the long run, hollowing out industries and leaving the U.S. dependent on a strategic rival.
The Left’s rush to label Trump’s tariffs a failure reveals more about political posturing than economic insight. By focusing on short-term optics, they sidestep the long-term gains of a rebalanced trade relationship. If these talks succeed, American workers and businesses will reap the benefits, and the tariffs will be remembered not as a mistake but as a bold gambit that paid off. To claim otherwise is to bet against the evidence—and the interests of the American economy.
Ray Higgins is a contributing author to Omni News Journal.
