I’m going to gloss over all the criticism of Trump’s tariffs from the left because, well, so few of the critiques are made in good faith.
There are liberal free traders out there. Establishment economists who have consistent theories of how the economy works and actually believe what they say–yes, such people DO exist, even though they are no longer influential in their party–to whom I would listen and give respect in a one-on-one conversation.
But most liberal critics of Trump’s trade strategy are critics of Trump and would say exactly the opposite of what they are saying now if Trump had been dropping all trade barriers and going tariff-free. So forget them.
Forget also the people who will defend Trump to the death regardless of what he does, assuming that he is infallible or that giving an inch to his critics in any way is a betrayal of all that is…
