President Donald Trump's latest round of trade war against Canada is self-defeating, warned the conservative Wall Street Journal editorial board — because he'll take the U.S. auto industry down in the process.
"Mr. Trump is angry that Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney over the weekend vowed to retaliate dollar-for-dollar against his latest tariff barrage," wrote the board. For that reason, he is imposing a 50 percent tariff on “all Cars, Trucks, both large and small, Automotive Parts, and Steel,” according to his Truth Social posting.
Unfortunately, wrote the board, Trump doesn't seem to understand that the U.S. auto industry can't function effectively without these imports, either.
"Canada exports about $50.4 billion in vehicles and parts to the U.S. each year, notably to Michigan ($22.1 billion) and Texas ($14.8 billion)," wrote the board, which has repeatedly come out against the president's tariff agenda. "Mr. Trump’s 50% tariff would amount to a $25 billion tax on U.S. automakers, their suppliers and customers—namely, buyers of large pickups assembled in Canada."
Trump is likely bluffing as a tactic to try to force Canada to cut a deal with him, the board wrote, but even if that's the case, "regardless of whether the President walks back from his tariff cliff, his whipsawing threats add uncertainty that chills investment."
The board finished by quoting Mary Buchzeiger, who heads up Michigan-based auto parts firm Lucerne International, and told a local radio station, “Everybody is paralyzed with fear right now because of these changing regulatory tides, because of the changing tariffs, and it’s impossible to make good plans and solid plans and be able to move forward and make those investments comfortably.”
"As is so often the case, Mr. Trump on trade is his own worst enemy," they wrote.