Gavin Bade

It was a surprise in certain ways. He'd always said that he was going to do really intense tariffs on the campaign trail. Then he came in on the first day and he put out a policy memo saying we're going to study all of our trade deals and all of our trade policies. And so for a moment there, we all thought, hey, there's going to be a process here. They're going to do economic studies.

It was a surprise in certain ways. He'd always said that he was going to do really intense tariffs on the campaign trail. Then he came in on the first day and he put out a policy memo saying we're going to study all of our trade deals and all of our trade policies. And so for a moment there, we all thought, hey, there's going to be a process here. They're going to do economic studies.

And then only a few hours after he issued that memo, he came out and made that tariff threat.

And then only a few hours after he issued that memo, he came out and made that tariff threat.

And then only a few hours after he issued that memo, he came out and made that tariff threat.

So there's a few general motivations here. Generally speaking, Trump has said the first and foremost, it's about the illegal fentanyl trade that they say has killed tens of millions of American citizens. That's maybe an inflated measure, but killed a lot of American citizens, right?

So there's a few general motivations here. Generally speaking, Trump has said the first and foremost, it's about the illegal fentanyl trade that they say has killed tens of millions of American citizens. That's maybe an inflated measure, but killed a lot of American citizens, right?

So there's a few general motivations here. Generally speaking, Trump has said the first and foremost, it's about the illegal fentanyl trade that they say has killed tens of millions of American citizens. That's maybe an inflated measure, but killed a lot of American citizens, right?

They say that this fentanyl and the precursor chemicals are produced in China, shipped over to the United States, and then manufactured in factories in Canada and Mexico and smuggled over the border, right? And so he has said his tool for getting them to stop this is to put tariffs on them until they make it stop. But this is sort of a non-trade issue that he is using trade tools against.

They say that this fentanyl and the precursor chemicals are produced in China, shipped over to the United States, and then manufactured in factories in Canada and Mexico and smuggled over the border, right? And so he has said his tool for getting them to stop this is to put tariffs on them until they make it stop. But this is sort of a non-trade issue that he is using trade tools against.

They say that this fentanyl and the precursor chemicals are produced in China, shipped over to the United States, and then manufactured in factories in Canada and Mexico and smuggled over the border, right? And so he has said his tool for getting them to stop this is to put tariffs on them until they make it stop. But this is sort of a non-trade issue that he is using trade tools against.

That's one motivation. The second motivation is what he would call illegal migration through Mexico, mostly from Central and South America, from other nations as well, through Mexico. He has said he wants Mexico to stop that completely. And until they do... He's going to put tariffs on it. So again, a non-trade issue that a trade remedy is being used for.

That's one motivation. The second motivation is what he would call illegal migration through Mexico, mostly from Central and South America, from other nations as well, through Mexico. He has said he wants Mexico to stop that completely. And until they do... He's going to put tariffs on it. So again, a non-trade issue that a trade remedy is being used for.

That's one motivation. The second motivation is what he would call illegal migration through Mexico, mostly from Central and South America, from other nations as well, through Mexico. He has said he wants Mexico to stop that completely. And until they do... He's going to put tariffs on it. So again, a non-trade issue that a trade remedy is being used for.

And then there's a number of lingering trade disputes from this U.S.-Mexico-Canada agreement that he signed, right?

And then there's a number of lingering trade disputes from this U.S.-Mexico-Canada agreement that he signed, right?

And then there's a number of lingering trade disputes from this U.S.-Mexico-Canada agreement that he signed, right?

The new NAFTA, yes. So Trump signed this in 2020. He said it was the best deal ever and now is contravening it by putting tariffs into place, right? So he would say, although they made the automotive rules much tougher there, it's still a concern of his that there is still automotive manufacturing in Mexico and Canada. He would rather see that come over the border and be back in the United States.

The new NAFTA, yes. So Trump signed this in 2020. He said it was the best deal ever and now is contravening it by putting tariffs into place, right? So he would say, although they made the automotive rules much tougher there, it's still a concern of his that there is still automotive manufacturing in Mexico and Canada. He would rather see that come over the border and be back in the United States.

The new NAFTA, yes. So Trump signed this in 2020. He said it was the best deal ever and now is contravening it by putting tariffs into place, right? So he would say, although they made the automotive rules much tougher there, it's still a concern of his that there is still automotive manufacturing in Mexico and Canada. He would rather see that come over the border and be back in the United States.