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Opinion: Trade sanctions against America won’t work. Sanctioning Trump himself might. https://www.macleans.ca/opinion/trade-sanctions-against-america-wont-work

Opinion: Trade sanctions against America won’t work. Sanctioning Trump himself might. https://www.macleans.ca/opinion/trade-sanctions-against-america-wont-work-sanctioning-trump-himself-might/ https://www.macleans.ca/opinion/trade-sanctions-against-amer...

ttul 8y ago
What a fantastic idea.
stevenwoo 8y ago
Retaliatory trade sanctions have worked against America but it took almost a year for the reprecussions to bubble up and make the President change his mind after the 2002 steel tariffs were enacted by the Bush administration. The Trump specific sanctions do seem like a ripe target for a more immediate response this time.
- deleted 8y ago
  [deleted]
deleted 8y ago
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s2g 8y ago
That sounds a whole lot more like a national security issue than the tariffs. Could also use tariffs to try and hit the states that voted for Trump the hardest.
- jcranmer 8y ago
  Well, not so much states that voted for Trump, but small-population states that rack up lots of Senate votes. Put punitive tariffs on corn, soybean, and pork exports, and you'll have a dozen senators imploring Trump to back off.
  - toomanybeersies 8y ago
    That's exactly what they do already. That's why the EU is putting tariffs on things like Bourbon Whiskey.
  - craftyguy 8y ago
    Interesting that it's perfectly legal for foreign nations to pressure folks into voting one way or another by punishing them for voting in a particular president (and possibly hurting his/his party's chances of re-election), but it's not if they run ads to try and pursuade voters. It's almost like indirect election influencing vs direct election influencing (Russia in 2016). Somehow one is bad, but the other isn't.
    - hangonhn 8y ago
      I think it's a question of enforcement. You can enforce direct influence in the US because it usually happens on US soil or via US companies but indirect influence via tariffs is nearly impossible since foreign countries largely get to impose rules about what happens in their own country and this is what tariffs are.
    - john00088876 8y ago
      It’s completely fair to target them since they’re responsible for choosing the administration who initiated this, and it’s totally clear what’s going on. Very different than dishonest manipulation of people’s ideas through fabrications. Targeted consequences to actions as a retaliation are very different to secret manipulation ahead of an election.
    - chillwaves 8y ago
      The difference is when a US candidate works with a foreign power to win. You really don't see the distinction? Foreign governments do lobby our government, and register for the privilege. This is not the same as Trump Jr conspiring with Russians in Trump tower.
    - jcranmer 8y ago
      It's not about targeting people because they voted for Trump. It's about targeting a small, export-focused segment of the economy that has outsized political power. Agricultural sectors of the economy tend to fit this billet in pretty much every country, which is why agricultural tariffs are the thorniest parts of trade agreements.
- JumpCrisscross 8y ago
  > Could also use tariffs to try and hit the states that voted for Trump the hardest "The European Union will hit back at the heart of the United States, slapping tariffs on products like Harley-Davidsons, Kentucky bourbon and bluejeans, if President Trump goes ahead with a plan to place tariffs on steel and aluminum imports, the president of the bloc’s executive arm vowed on Friday." https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/02/business/europe-steel-tariffs-trump.html https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/02/business/europe-steel-tar...
- bryanlarsen 8y ago
  > hit the states that voted for Trump the hardest. These tariffs were targeted at congressional leaders: " "The idea is, you look at a map of the congressional districts of the United States, you look at which members of Congress are in leadership positions and then you look at the big industries in those districts and then you draw up your list accordingly," she said. "And this list was clearly drawn up with this in mind." (http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/steel-tariff-maple-syrup-toilet-paper-1.4686833 http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/steel-tariff-maple-syrup-toi...)
craftyguy 8y ago
That's exactly what the US does to folks (e.g. Putin's friends) when they do stupid, I'm surprised that no nations have considered doing the same with Donald and his friends/family.
- PakG1 8y ago
  http://money.cnn.com/2018/05/15/news/companies/trump-organization-indonesia-china-project/index.html http://money.cnn.com/2018/05/15/news/companies/trump-organiz... Though this is a carrot instead of a stick.
- s2g 8y ago
  because Putin and Co. are ultra-corrupt murderous oligarchs.
- azernik 8y ago
  The article itself explicitly makes the comparison to the US Magnitsky Act.
archgoon 8y ago
Seems easy to do since he's refused to separate himself from his business interests when he assumed the presidency.
state_less 8y ago
If the trade wars continue escalating, I don't see how this is going to end well.
newnewpdro 8y ago
I am finding it difficult to accept this is the reality we live in: "the President can be successfully engaged, and countries like Ukraine, China, and Qatar have demonstrated this. When they want something from the United States, they skip the State Department, and even the White House staff. Instead of approaching their problem state-to-state, they go state-to-man. These countries focus on what Trump wants on a personal level – to enrich his family. So Beijing granted Ivanka trademarks, Qatar invested in one of Jared’s office towers, and Ukraine, with Slavic candor, simply wired half a million dollars to the President’s personal lawyer Michael Cohen."
- krapp 8y ago
  But I thought Trump couldn't be bought because he's a self-made businessman who tells it like it is, no hassle, no haggle, no bullshit, unlike those effete city dwellers and globalist politicians? Is America Great Again yet? A chicken in every pot and a car in every garage? Don't worry about steel, we'll open the steel mills up again. We have to build plenty of new aircraft carriers so we'll need a lot of steel. And they'll have steam catapults, none of this newfangled computer nonsense. And the wall. The wall will be steel, too, of course, so when the Mexicans try to climb up it they'll just slide right back down. In fact, we'll need two walls now, one for the Canadians, too. Sigh. I wonder if this one will fondle Angela Merkel too?
  - toomanybeersies 8y ago
    Don't forget that the wall needs to be see-through, so you can see if any Mexicans are trying to catapult drugs over, which might land on and kill innocent Americans. Oh, and we can put solar panels on the wall, which will help pay for the wall with the power generated, even though the Mexicans are paying for the wall via increased tariffs on Mexican goods, forcing American consumers to pay more.
  - oceanghost 8y ago
    > But I thought Trump couldn't be bought As it turns out, the surface area for attack is much greater.

ttul 8y ago

What a fantastic idea.

stevenwoo 8y ago

Retaliatory trade sanctions have worked against America but it took almost a year for the reprecussions to bubble up and make the President change his mind after the 2002 steel tariffs were enacted by the Bush administration. The Trump specific sanctions do seem like a ripe target for a more immediate response this time.

deleted 8y ago
[deleted]

deleted 8y ago

[deleted]

s2g 8y ago

That sounds a whole lot more like a national security issue than the tariffs. Could also use tariffs to try and hit the states that voted for Trump the hardest.

jcranmer 8y ago
Well, not so much states that voted for Trump, but small-population states that rack up lots of Senate votes. Put punitive tariffs on corn, soybean, and pork exports, and you'll have a dozen senators imploring Trump to back off.
- toomanybeersies 8y ago
  That's exactly what they do already. That's why the EU is putting tariffs on things like Bourbon Whiskey.
- craftyguy 8y ago
  Interesting that it's perfectly legal for foreign nations to pressure folks into voting one way or another by punishing them for voting in a particular president (and possibly hurting his/his party's chances of re-election), but it's not if they run ads to try and pursuade voters. It's almost like indirect election influencing vs direct election influencing (Russia in 2016). Somehow one is bad, but the other isn't.
  - hangonhn 8y ago
    I think it's a question of enforcement. You can enforce direct influence in the US because it usually happens on US soil or via US companies but indirect influence via tariffs is nearly impossible since foreign countries largely get to impose rules about what happens in their own country and this is what tariffs are.
  - john00088876 8y ago
    It’s completely fair to target them since they’re responsible for choosing the administration who initiated this, and it’s totally clear what’s going on. Very different than dishonest manipulation of people’s ideas through fabrications. Targeted consequences to actions as a retaliation are very different to secret manipulation ahead of an election.
  - chillwaves 8y ago
    The difference is when a US candidate works with a foreign power to win. You really don't see the distinction? Foreign governments do lobby our government, and register for the privilege. This is not the same as Trump Jr conspiring with Russians in Trump tower.
  - jcranmer 8y ago
    It's not about targeting people because they voted for Trump. It's about targeting a small, export-focused segment of the economy that has outsized political power. Agricultural sectors of the economy tend to fit this billet in pretty much every country, which is why agricultural tariffs are the thorniest parts of trade agreements.
JumpCrisscross 8y ago
> Could also use tariffs to try and hit the states that voted for Trump the hardest "The European Union will hit back at the heart of the United States, slapping tariffs on products like Harley-Davidsons, Kentucky bourbon and bluejeans, if President Trump goes ahead with a plan to place tariffs on steel and aluminum imports, the president of the bloc’s executive arm vowed on Friday." https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/02/business/europe-steel-tariffs-trump.html https://www.nytimes.com/2018/03/02/business/europe-steel-tar...
bryanlarsen 8y ago
> hit the states that voted for Trump the hardest. These tariffs were targeted at congressional leaders: " "The idea is, you look at a map of the congressional districts of the United States, you look at which members of Congress are in leadership positions and then you look at the big industries in those districts and then you draw up your list accordingly," she said. "And this list was clearly drawn up with this in mind." (http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/steel-tariff-maple-syrup-toilet-paper-1.4686833 http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/steel-tariff-maple-syrup-toi...)

craftyguy 8y ago

That's exactly what the US does to folks (e.g. Putin's friends) when they do stupid, I'm surprised that no nations have considered doing the same with Donald and his friends/family.

PakG1 8y ago
http://money.cnn.com/2018/05/15/news/companies/trump-organization-indonesia-china-project/index.html http://money.cnn.com/2018/05/15/news/companies/trump-organiz... Though this is a carrot instead of a stick.
s2g 8y ago
because Putin and Co. are ultra-corrupt murderous oligarchs.
azernik 8y ago
The article itself explicitly makes the comparison to the US Magnitsky Act.

archgoon 8y ago

Seems easy to do since he's refused to separate himself from his business interests when he assumed the presidency.

state_less 8y ago

If the trade wars continue escalating, I don't see how this is going to end well.

newnewpdro 8y ago

I am finding it difficult to accept this is the reality we live in: "the President can be successfully engaged, and countries like Ukraine, China, and Qatar have demonstrated this. When they want something from the United States, they skip the State Department, and even the White House staff. Instead of approaching their problem state-to-state, they go state-to-man. These countries focus on what Trump wants on a personal level – to enrich his family. So Beijing granted Ivanka trademarks, Qatar invested in one of Jared’s office towers, and Ukraine, with Slavic candor, simply wired half a million dollars to the President’s personal lawyer Michael Cohen."

krapp 8y ago
But I thought Trump couldn't be bought because he's a self-made businessman who tells it like it is, no hassle, no haggle, no bullshit, unlike those effete city dwellers and globalist politicians? Is America Great Again yet? A chicken in every pot and a car in every garage? Don't worry about steel, we'll open the steel mills up again. We have to build plenty of new aircraft carriers so we'll need a lot of steel. And they'll have steam catapults, none of this newfangled computer nonsense. And the wall. The wall will be steel, too, of course, so when the Mexicans try to climb up it they'll just slide right back down. In fact, we'll need two walls now, one for the Canadians, too. Sigh. I wonder if this one will fondle Angela Merkel too?
- toomanybeersies 8y ago
  Don't forget that the wall needs to be see-through, so you can see if any Mexicans are trying to catapult drugs over, which might land on and kill innocent Americans. Oh, and we can put solar panels on the wall, which will help pay for the wall with the power generated, even though the Mexicans are paying for the wall via increased tariffs on Mexican goods, forcing American consumers to pay more.
- oceanghost 8y ago
  > But I thought Trump couldn't be bought As it turns out, the surface area for attack is much greater.