The Guardian view on Trump’s trade betrayal: rhetoric hides trickle down economics on steroids | Editorial The US president’s tariffs pose as worker protection, but they’re a smokescreen – his bluster trades US credibility for a $4.6tn tax-cutting giveaway to the rich.
Yet, on his return to the White House, Mr Trump immediately threatened steep levies on goods from Canada and Mexico – the US’s key allies – retreating only after they made token concessions on drugs and illegal immigration.
Skipping this year’s G20 summit – citing host South Africa’s focus on diversity, equality and climate action, alongside Elon Musk’s fixation on white South African farmers – Mr Trump’s team is mulling an exit from the IMF and World Bank.
In 2020, Donald Trump scrapped the North American free trade agreement, replacing it with the “United States Mexico Canada agreement”, which he bragged was “the fairest, most balanced, and beneficial” trade deal ever.
Yet Mr Trump’s administration doesn’t care – it thrives on defying global norms.
