Internet critics groaned Thursday night as President Donald Trump announced a new slate of tariffs, set to take effect next week.
Trump announced on his Truth Social app that the new tariffs target several categories. He slapped a 100% tariff on imported branded or patented pharmaceuticals unless their makers are building manufacturing plants in the United States, as well as a 50% tariff on kitchen cabinets and bathroom vanities and a 30% tariff on upholstered furniture.
"The reason for this is the large scale 'FLOODING' of these products into the United States by other outside Countries. It is a very unfair practice, but we must protect, for National Security and other reasons, our Manufacturing process," he wrote about the bathroom and furniture tariffs.
Trump also uncorked a 25% tariff on heavy-duty trucks manufactured outside the United States. The tariffs were all to take effect on Wednesday, Oct. 1.
Critics tore into the announcements.
Spencer Hakimian, founder of Tolou Capital Management, wrote on X, "Senior citizens are going to hate this," regarding the tariff on pharmaceuticals.
In a separate post, Hakiman mocked Trump's manufacturing plant exemption using an attacking acronym from critics.
"He’s pre TACO’ing now," wrote Hakiman. The acronym "TACO" stands for Trump Always Chickens Out," and has been used to poke fun at the president for caving on his self-imposed deadlines.
Wall Street writer known as TradingThomas wrote on X, "Tariff man is back tonight."
Scott Lincicome, vice president of economics and trade at the Cato Institute, wrote on X, "These are all supposedly in the name of 'national security,' btw. Because if you don't have cabinets, you don't have a country, I guess."
Joey Politano, author of the Apricitas Economics newsletter, wrote on X, "Three tariff announcements tonight, each one is dumber than the last. I don’t even know how to read this except as a way for the White House to exempt US pharma multinationals (who import a lot but are always building *something*) and push out smaller foreign competitors.
