As Trump's radical and chaotic tariff policy derails the economy and throws businesses into limbo, he and his administration have propagated their version of a familiar argument. A president whose entire life is a tribute to instant gratification and poor impulse control is asking us for patience and sacrifice. To put it mildly, this is not a deal he has prepared Americans — especially Trump voters — to accept.
In an interview on Meet the Press, Trump for some reason chose children's dolls as the prototypical consumer item affected by likely shortages and price hikes. "I'm just saying they don't need to have 30 dolls," he said. "They can have three."
When he was asked Thursday in the Oval Office about the plunging number of cargo ships coming into American ports, Trump responded that this is a positive development, despite the fact that it will likely produce empty shelves and potentially lost jobs for dockworkers and truckers.
Even if Trump and his staff were right that these tariffs will make us all rich one day, the amount of sacrifice has to be put in perspective.
This is a preview of Paul Waldman's latest column. Read the full column here.
