Karl W. Smith, Columnist

Biden’s Kinder, Gentler Trumpism

With his supply chain task force, the current president is continuing the policies of the previous president.

June 14, 2021 at 2:00 PM UTC

Karl W. Smith is a Bloomberg Opinion columnist. Previously, he was vice president for federal policy at the Tax Foundation and assistant professor of economics at the University of North Carolina.

Biden and Trump agree America needs more of these.
Photographer: SeongJoon Cho/Bloomberg

Provide news feedback or report an error

Site feedback:

Take our Survey

This article is for subscribers only.

Far from overthrowing Trumpism, President Joe Biden seems intent on continuing it — perfecting it, even. The latest evidence is his administration’s supply chain initiative, which aims to reduce U.S. reliance on China and could result in tariffs.

Since the beginning of the 2020 campaign, the rhetorical gulf between the 45th and 46th presidents has obscured their relative agreement over objectives and even methods. The administration’s 250-page report on the supply chain, released last week, represents a broader and more comprehensive vision for industrial policy than anything Trump did or could have produced.