On Trump's 'liberation day' tariffs and the end of globalisation.
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Contributing editor Lee Jones talks to Alex about the tariffs, as they try to reconstruct the Trump admin's thinking, and consider avenues and consequences.
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Why is this a retro-80s moment, and how much does China take the role that Japan used to in Trump's thinking?
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How much strategy is there to this? Is it possible to disentangle the competing logics?
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Is this a return to the 19th century: small state, no income tax, high tariff walls?
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How credible an attempt at reindustrialising the US is this?
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Is Trump trying to weaken the dollar? What store to put in the Mar-a-Lago accord?
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Do Europeans kick the can down the road and hope for the best?
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Is this a global restructuring or just a reset in terms more favourable to the US? The end of neoliberalism or a new iteration on it?
Links:
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Will anybody buy a ‘Mar-a-Lago accord’?, FT
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A User’s Guide to Restructuring the Global Trading System, Stephen Miran, Hudson Bay Capital
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Is Trump 2 the End of ‘Neoliberal Order Breakdown Syndrome’?, Lee Jones, TNS
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Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent Breaks Down Trump's Tariff Plan and Its Impact on the Middle Class, Tucker Carlson, YouTube
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Back to the ’80s?, Andrew Liu, n+1
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MAGA and the Fragmentation of Europe, Tim Pendry, Substack
