Hafta 532: Trump’s tariff blunders, Supreme Court’s remarks on Tamil Nadu Governor

27 snips

Apr 12, 2025

This week, Rohan Goswami, a business reporter from Semaphore, and Tara Krishnaswamy, a political consultant and federalism expert, dive into the chaos of Trump's tariffs and their self-inflicted market turmoil. Rohan emphasizes that the panic unleashed by Trump stands apart from past crises. Meanwhile, Tara tackles the Supreme Court's recent comments on the Tamil Nadu Governor, calling for a clear definition of the Governor's role or its abolition. Together, they explore the intricate balance between state and federal powers in contemporary India.

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INSIGHT

Interpreting Trump's Tariffs

Trump's tariff policy is seen as a masterstroke by some, a disaster by others.
Moving manufacturing to the US is complex and will take a long time.

ANECDOTE

Trump's Tariff Flip-Flop

Trump imposed tariffs, causing market panic and receiving calls from world leaders.
He then reduced tariffs for most countries but increased them on China.

INSIGHT

Emotional Politics

Trump's tariffs, like Modi's demonetization, lack sound economic basis.
Both appeal to an emotional pitch rather than logic.

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This week on Hafta, Newslaundry’s Abhinandan Sekhri, Raman Kirpal, Manisha Pande, and Shardool Katyayan are joined by Semafor’s business reporter Rohan Goswami and political consultant and federalism expert Tara Krishnaswamy.

On Trump’s flip-flop on tariffs and the escalating trade war with China, Rohan says: “Trump created tremendous panic. He got what he wanted. World leaders are calling and begging him... but a 90-day pause is not enough.” He highlights that, unlike the COVID-19 pandemic and the 2008 financial crisis, America’s current market chaos is a “self-inflicted situation”.

Manisha analyses the common threads between Narendra Modi’s demonetisation policy and Trump’s tariffs. Shardool adds, “Trump is famous because he is funny. He should be made the TV-President because he understands TV best.”

The panel also discusses the Supreme Court’s scathing remarks about the Tamil Nadu Governor earlier this week. Tara remarks,“The time has come to either define the Governor’s role – starting from appointment to powers – in a bilateral manner, or abolish the position and assign its duties to the appropriate authorities.”

Raman adds, “The battle between chief ministers and governors has increased tremendously since 2014.”

This and a lot more. Tune in!

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Timecodes

00:00:00 – Introductions and announcements

00:04:48 – Headlines

00:15:34 – Trump’s tariff flip-flops

01:05:29 – Supreme Court on TN Governor

01:32:12 – Letters

01:48:08 – Recommendations

Check out previous Hafta recommendations, references, songs and letters

Produced and recorded by Priyali Dhingra and Ashish Anand.

Production assistance by intern Pragya Chakroborty.

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