On March 4, Donald Trump‘s tariffs against Canada, Mexico, and China came into effect. Global finance instantly got the jitters as we don’t know what the consequences of 25% tariffs against the United States’ neighbors and 20% against China will be.
But, if Trump’s ramblings on Truth Social are anything to go by, he’s following up his attacks on U.S. trade with a nuclear-bomb-level decision to impose strict tariffs on… the United States. And yes, you read that right.
Trump has told farmers to “get ready to start making a lot of agricultural product to be sold INSIDE of the United States” and promised tariffs on “external products” beginning April 2:
What does this even mean?!
In typical Trump fashion it’s difficult to know for sure what he’s promising, which must delight farmers who now have no idea what to expect in a month’s time. At least theoretically, this means that farmers will be penalized for exporting their produce outside of the United States. In 2024, U.S. farm exports totaled $176 billion, with the nation’s most lucrative exports being corn, beef, tree nuts, and pork.
If Trump is talking about tariffs on exports, we are in for a second Great Depression. pic.twitter.com/MNoVRqHeD5
— Project Liberal (@ProjectLiberal) March 3, 2025
We don’t know what level of tariff farmers who rely on exporting their products will face, but if it’s around the 20% mark expect there to be a lot of worried faces in the agricultural community as the crops and meat they’ve been cultivating are suddenly worth a lot less. The prognosis? Grim:
Any farmer who voted Trump must be feeling pretty bad right now:
If I were a farmer getting ready to take out a loan to plant in spring this announcement would stop me dead in my tracks.
— Triode (@Triode_in_situ) March 3, 2025
Trump just made any crop you could plant unprofitable by a large margin. You will never compete with Brazil, China or even Europe with these tariffs in…
We can only agree:
Trump is a Moron, in 2024 US farmers exported $179 billion, 47% which went to 3 countries (Canada, Mexico, China) which are all now being Tariffed by Trump.
— Crazy Canuck (@ChrisCa81850980) March 3, 2025
Bye bye exports ! pic.twitter.com/1LZrSkOfN6
Perhaps the one lifeline farmers can cling to is that the wording of Trump’s post is so fuzzy that he might be talking about a tariff on all agricultural products imported into the United States regardless of country of origin. But, if that were the case, it would remove a key diplomatic tactic from the Trump administration of being able to bully smaller countries by threatening them with tariffs.
So, in this instance, we’re going to have to take Trump at his word and figure that farmers are about to be strongly discouraged from exporting their produce beyond United States borders. If this happens in a month’s time, expect to see multiple farmers quickly going bankrupt, grocery prices skyrocketing, and widespread discontent in traditionally red states.
Sure, rural counties might be on board with Trump’s culture war stuff, but somehow we suspect they might change their tune fast when they can’t pay back the bank or put food on the table. But, as always with Trump, we can only wait and see if his inane ramblings translate into economic reality. Either way, buckle up. I hope you’re prepared to live in interesting times.
Published: Mar 4, 2025 08:50 am