, Columnist
These Aren’t Trump’s Previous Tariffs — Seriously
In his first term, they amounted to a 2% surcharge on all imports. This time, it’s 17%.
How much does he mean what he says? Enough.
Photographer: Rebecca Noble/AFP/Getty Images
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When Donald Trump is making policy pronouncements, he should be taken seriously, but not literally. That idea has been around for so long that it’s already a cliché. Like most clichés, it became one because it contained a big element of truth. And that’s giving people fits in assessing trade policy.