The Barnum & Bailey Tariff Circus Continues

President Trump said he will put import taxes of 100% on pharmaceutical drugs, 50% on kitchen cabinets and bathroom vanities, 30% on upholstered furniture and 25% on heavy trucks starting on Oct. 1.Trump did not provide a legal justification for the tariffs, yet stated on Truth Social that the taxes on imported kitchen cabinets and sofas were needed “for National Security and other reasons.” Cue the Twilight Zone Music.

How can kitchen cabinets and sofas even be remotely considered a threat to national security? That’s not a redundant question. I seriously want to know, how? Are arms shipments being smuggled into the US via sofa cushions? Is fentanyl being trafficked in those little mounting hardware bags included with cabinetry? Is our president watching too many Jason Stratham movies?

I support tariffs when they are used intelligently. However, in the latest political version of the Barnum and Bailey Tariff Circus, I can’t help but to think... Trump just spins a wheel to see what products are next month’s winners…. uh, I mean losers.

The only losers are the American people. Tariffs make sense when they are imposed to create fair competition between domestic and foreign manufacturers. They don’t make sense when protectionism or tax revenues are they only excuse for them. Low-income citizens can barely afford the necessities of life to begin with. Now the White House warlock wants to cast an evil spell of inflation horrors on them.

I liked Trump 1.0 to some extent, and I had hopes that a Trump 2.0 would be better than his predecessor, President Alzheimer’s. But no! It just gets crazier.

He believes that tariffs would result in increased domestic manufacturing. We already have full employment (generally defined as anything under 5%). Even if a new furniture plant or kitchen cabinet manufacturer opened up, they would have a hard time filling positions.

According to Federal Reserve Chair, Jerome Powell, “We have [already] begun to see goods prices showing through into higher inflation.” We don’t need to make it worse with even more tariffs on essential home goods.

In 2024, America imported nearly $233 billion in pharmaceutical and medicinal products, according to the Census Bureau. That could probably be reduced immensely if Americans actually practiced healthy lifestyles, but that’s an argument for another day. We certainly don’t need the prospect of skyrocketing prices for those who depend on imported medicines.

While some pharmaceutical companies, including Johnson & Johnson, AstraZeneca, Roche, Bristol Myers Squibb and Eli Lilly, have announced investments in U.S. production, the question remains: do we have the workers to fill those future positions? Deporting immigrants who have worked for here for years, contributing to tax revenues, certainly isn’t going to help.

Trump could still win back my hopes for improvement, but as of now, this independent libertarian says, “Trump 2.0 Has Got To Go!” Oh, damn! I may have just given Democrats a motto for ‘26.

Source used: Associated Press