After Trump announced his so-called Liberation Day tariffs on scores of countries last week, global markets tanked to levels previously seen at the onset of major economic recessions. Americans (most of whom don't have pensions) saw their retirement accounts ravaged. And companies laid off thousands of manufacturing workers.
But Wednesday — shortly after posting to his social media site that 'this is a great time to buy!' — Trump abruptly reversed course and announced that those tariffs would be paused for 90 days.
However, he raised tariffs on China even further — to a whopping 125% — and left in place a universal 10% tariff on other countries, as well the 25% tariffs on Canada and Mexico. Still, the announced "pause" was encouraging enough news that the stock market had a historic one-day surge. Even so, since Trump launched his trade war of choice, the market is still down sharply.
Federal judges are acting as the last guardrail against a president embracing a broader view of executive authority than we've ever seen before. Read more.
"Why Is This Happening? The Chris Hayes Podcast" is now on YouTube! In this week's new episode, Chris is joined by journalist and author Ezra Klein to discuss liberalism and scarcity in America, and how we might reimagine abundance in the U.S. Watch now at msnbc.com/withpod.
Vote for MSNBC on TikTok in the 29th Annual Webby Awards! Voting closes April 17th. Click here to vote now.
MSNBC INSIGHTS
Have you ever wanted to provide MSNBC with your opinion about their TV programs, documentaries, and digital products, such as MSNBC.com, newsletters, and podcasts? Now is your chance! Join the MSNBC Insights Community.
