Trump’s tariffs won’t make America or Florida more competitive

The president’s new executive order declaring a “national emergency” imposes 10% tariffs on goods from almost every trading partner in the world – until he alone decides the emergency is over. The measure claims to protect American sovereignty and safety, but excludes imports that are most important to these interests: semiconductors, selectable minerals and pharmaceuticals.

It tells you everything you need to know.

Trade is complicated. I studied it and helped negotiate trade agreements while serving in the government. However, some basic principles are still retained. And all Americans need to understand them before cheering on the trade war that hurts our wallets, our work, our place in the world.

First, the US pursued trade agreements to access the products we wanted – and other countries were able to produce cheaper. Think of bananas, coffee and minerals as powering your smartphone. We have developed long-term relationships with countries specializing in these products, but American consumers still benefit from the low prices of the economy as a whole.

Secondly, trade agreements have made most Americans better. They reduced their living expenses and continued to curb inflation. It is no coincidence that trade prevention sentiment has risen in parallel with rising prices. Americans felt pressure and trade became an easy scapegoat.

Third, yes, some American workers were defeated. When Mexico became a more competitive place to assemble cars, it declined jobs in the US factory. That’s a painful truth. But the broader story is that trade encouraged all countries to specialize in doing their best. The US economy has shifted to highly skilled services jobs where we have a global advantage. That’s the trade-off – and it worked.

Donald Trump has never been so concerned about nuance. His revived trade war is designed to stir up resentment rather than solving real problems. And politically, it worked. Both lawmakers are wary of free trade. As a Democrat, I understand the impulse to reassess trade policy when voters demand it. But this is not a thoughtful rethink. It’s bad economics decorated as national defense.

And even Trump seems to know that. Why does he exempt important minerals from tariffs? Because almost everything we rely on – iPhones, electric cars, solar panels – depends on them. Many of these minerals come from countries allied with Africa or China. Without them, it would be a real crisis. He also carved national security goods. But if this is a real emergency, wouldn’t they be the first to protect?

Customs duty will not make us safer. They will not regain lost work. They don’t build a stronger supply chain. What they do is raise prices for American consumers, inject chaos into the global market and alienate allies needed to compete with China.

Costs are particularly steep here in Florida. These tariffs add an additional cost of more than $417 million, via the port of Tampa, which is responsible for more than $4 billion in imports from China, Mexico, Germany, Vietnam and Brazil, according to information from the Economic Complexity Observatory. It is taxes on Florida families and businesses that are pretending to be “economic patriotism.”

If the president really cared about national security, he invested in rebuilding domestic capabilities for essential goods, fake trusted partners and resilient supply chains. Instead, you get a blanket policy that targets everything except the most important ones.

This is not a strategy. It’s politics.

And it’s just ordinary Americans, especially ordinary Americans, Florida, who rely on the trade from agriculture to agriculture to tourism.

Jordan Valdes served as international trade advisor to the Small Business Bureau during the Obama administration and received a Master’s degree in Johns Hopkins, a Master’s degree in Advanced International Studies.