President Donald Trump is describing this Wednesday, April 2 — the day his steep new tariffs are scheduled to go into effect, assuming he doesn't postpone them again — as "Liberation Day." But critics are saying that there is nothing liberating about a policy that is likely to cause severe inflation, harm both businesses and consumers, damage the United States' relations with Canada and Mexico (two longtime allies and trading partners), and lead to a recession.
A combination of Democrats and Never Trump conservatives are openly critical of the tariffs, but according to Politico, some of Trump's allies are worried as well — even if they are only voicing their concerns in private.
In an article published on March 29, Politico reporters Rachael Bade, Daniel Desrochers and Victoria Guida explain, "Just days out from Trump's April 2 announcement of global tariffs, which he has hailed as 'Liberation Day,' even those closest to the president — from Vice President JD Vance to his chief of staff Susie Wiles and his own Cabinet officials — have privately indicated that they're unsure exactly what the boss will do, according to three people who have spoken with them. While some details of the (Trump) Administration's plan for what Trump has dubbed 'reciprocal tariffs' on global trading partners are starting to trickle out, the president has at times upended them or floated contradictory policies that are keeping everyone — even his inner circle — guessing."
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A frustrated Trump ally, interviewed on condition of anonymity, described the president's tariff policy as chaotic.
The ally told Politico, "No one knows what…. is going on. What are they going to tariff? Who are they gonna tariff and at what rates? Like, the very basic questions haven't been answered yet."
Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick is claiming that April 2 "will be a historic day for American workers." But another Trump ally, Sen. John Kennedy (R-Louisiana), fears that tariffs could hurt Republicans in 2026.
Kennedy told Politico, "If tariffs did have an inflationary impact — or an impact on interest rates that caused inflation and the economy moved toward a recession — that would be a very bad thing, in my judgement. It would turn the Trump presidency from a four-year term into a two-year term, because we'd lose in the midterms."
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Read the full Politico article at this link.