Some Democrats (Used To) Think Tariffs Are a Good Idea

Before Donald Trump was for them, not every Democrat was against them.

(Photo by Rinson Chory on Unsplash)

“The Impossible Plight of the Pro-Tariff Liberals,” Rogé Karma mused for The Atlantic this week.

The “Plight of the Pro-Tariff Liberals” is the plight of agreeing, or even appearing to agree with, Donald Trump.

Trump is for tariffs. Suddenly, Democrats are not only opposed to tariffs, they are vehemently opposed. They are stridently opposed. They are thunderously opposed. The Democratic Party has declared tariffs the worst thing to happen to the U.S. economy since…well, the Biden Administration.

But are tariffs a bad trade policy? Or is the Democratic Party sensing a point of political weakness in the Trump administration?

“In recent weeks, I’ve spoken with about a dozen politicians, former White House officials, activists, and intellectuals who have helped push Democrats to become more skeptical of free trade,” Karma pointed out for The Atlantic. “Like Wallach, they fear that the president’s ill-conceived approach to tariffs will discredit the tool entirely in the eyes of voters. Democratic politicians will respond by reembracing free trade.”

“These pro-tariff liberals are trying to thread an excruciatingly narrow political needle,” lamented Karma. “They…