The problems with Trump’s tariffs and executive orders

Tariffs are monies paid on goods coming into or going out of a country, whilst executive orders are directives issued by a head of government, demanding urgent implementation. The first executive order ever to be issued was that by George Washington on June 8, 1769 the most popular being the Emancipation Proclamation by Abraham Lincoln.

With the speed of tinder-dry California fires, U.S. President Donald Trump has issued dozens executive orders and imposed sweeping tariffs within a short period of time in his second term, not only to validate his MAGA mantra but also to fulfil the promises made to the electorate.

Some of the tariffs and the executive orders are controversial and have kept many world leaders on their toes; the tariffs troubled Trudeau; the executive orders have caused conflict amongst the Republicans and the entire process has received angry international backlash. But from whichever way you look at the tariffs and the directives, some of them are harmful and more evil than necessary.

Admittedly, much of Trump’s action is an unprecedented dance to the tune of the people that elected him, hence such action has far-reaching consequences just as his tariffs will likely benefit other countries, e.g. Nigeria.

The executive order, to end birthright citizenship for the children of parents who are in U.S. illegally or immigrants on a temporary visit, conflicts with the U.S. Constitution that ratified birthright citizenship in 1868. Consequently, about 24 states in U.S., led by competent judges, have challenged the order, which many believe is for political benefit.

Interestingly, Trump wants to end birthright citizenship for (illegal) immigrants when actually his own mother, Mary Anne MacLeod Trump, was a Scottish migrant to U.S. and his grandparents were German immigrants from Bavaria. More interesting is the fact that his first wife, Ivana, was a Czech who became a naturalised U.S. citizen in 1988 and his third wife, Melania, a Slovene, became a naturalised U.S citizen in 2006.

Although Trump’s ancestors set foot on U.S. soil legally (let’s assume), and he himself enjoyed birthright citizenship, it’ll be unfair of him to deny (illegal) immigrants the same opportunity. If illegal or criminal immigrants are really Trump’s target, that’s OK; otherwise the 47th President could be daring tradition and has some ulterior motive. For now, the executive order has been paused.

The order to remove U.S. from the World Health Organisation (WHO) and the one that froze the National Institutes of Health (NIH) grants across U.S. states make it problematic to reconcile these executive orders with Trump’s position on mortality rate and the well-being of people within and outside U.S.
For instance, when COVID-19 hit U.S. in 2020, President Trump was honest to tell U.S. people to ‘be ready to die’. Implicit in his statement was the need for caution on the part of the people and the urgency of his administration to ramp up efforts at controlling the pandemic. Thus, this removal is a death sentence for many people who are on retroviral drugs, especially people in Africa.

Pardoning the January 2021 Capitol rioters is a slap to the police and the Department of Justice’s face. It’s an incident that led to the suicide of some officers. Such a pardon will likely embolden more rioters in the future and undermine the status of the U.S. police.

Trump also issued an executive order, which keeps men out of women’s sports. In fact, in today’s sports-stricken world, there are no sports exclusively for men or women. Golfing Trump owns a mighty course at his Mar-a-Lago home, whilst some of the women believed to be his accusers also show up at the golf clubs.
So which sports are meant for men and which for women: abseiling, lacrosse, tennis, wakeboarding, white-water rafting, basketball, decathlon or triathlon? In my opinion, this executive order is discriminatory in the sense that it curtails the right to sports.

Research and a couple of national tasks are currently impacted in U.S., as over 19,000 federal workers, though being eyed by Russia and China, have been furloughed. These job cuts, triggered by Muskian disease, are bringing uncertainty to people’s homes. However, judges have voided this anti-worker order and called for the reinstatement of the sacked workers.

There are also executive orders, such as the withdrawal of U.S from UNO, Paris Climate Accord, the scrapping of the department of education and the suspension of student loan relief programme, which will adversely affect less-developed countries and immigrants on study visa in U.S. Also, there’s an order that restores death penalty, and which worries human rights activists.

Believing that tariffs are measures for controlling trade deficits and protecting U.S. manufacturing, Trump has slammed Canada, China, Mexico, Russia, etc. and the need for Canada and Mexico to keep their borders in order and stop fentanyl from entering U.S. has been a repeated warning from Trump. Surprisingly, Canada and China have retaliated and France seems to be toeing the line.

Because Mexico and Canada have been known to make significant economic impacts on U.S imports, both countries even China are for a trade war with U.S. When countries impose tariffs on one another, a battery of essential commodities tend to be out of reach of many people due to the inflation that follows, because domestic importers have no choice but to pass the burden on to the consumers.

The tariffs on steel and aluminum is a problem for U.S. Thus, to save its citizens from bearing the effect of the rising costs of, say fuel, Maple syrup, tequila, phones, planes, cars, and lumber materials used in making houses, U.S. should engage in massive production of energy and other items being imported into U.S. by Canada, China, Japan, Brazil, Korea, Mexico, etc.

To justify U.S. exiting UNO and WHO, and the suspension of USAID, Trump cites negligence, inefficiency and corruption. Elon Musk, the SpaceX boss and overseer at the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), has apparently sold many ideas to President Trump, who’s only acting out what’s scripted by Musk.

President Trump’s action is one of extraordinary twist marked by commendation and condemnation. The race has been swift and the message loud and clear. Tired of wastage, Trump is sending a strong message to corrupt countries that can’t stand on their own feet and manage their natural resources for the development of their countries and the economic uplift of their citizens.

The president isn’t a racist; he’s just trying to please some racists, yet he should learn to be tolerant and show fairness to immigrants, most especially Nigerians. Nigerians, like some other immigrants, are travellers on a journey to make something out of nothing. Nigerians are hard-working and great people, who have the Midas touch.

I’ll conclude that the politically bulletproof Republican shouldn’t be crucified for his ‘America First’ policy. His tariffs and executive orders are many; some will stay, whilst some will not. Trump should be even-handed and appreciate the positive contributions, to his country, of Nigerian neurosurgeons, engineers, novelists, nurses, sportswo/men, etc. without whom U.S. wouldn’t have attained the greater heights it has attained today.
Sola wrote from Port Harcourt.