Trump ‘answers’ world leaders’ pleas for a tariff deal by throwing gasoline on the fire

As world markets spiral into chaos following Donald Trump‘s sweeping tariff implementation, the 78-year-old commander-in-chief seems positively giddy about the economic devastation unfolding.

On his Truth Social platform, Trump continues to sing the praises of his tariffs, calling them a “beautiful thing to behold” and claiming they are bringing “tens of billions of dollars into the USA.”  In Trump’s alternate reality — the one where his inauguration crowds were the biggest ever and he actually won the 2020 election — world leaders are apparently “dying to make a deal” with him. At least that’s what he told reporters aboard Air Force One this weekend. It’s a narrative conjured entirely from the fertile grounds of his imagination to paint himself as the ultimate power broker.

Trump’s conditions? Nothing short of total capitulation. No deficits. Only surpluses for America. In Trump’s remarkably simplistic economic worldview, “a deficit is a loss.” If only someone had told the countless economists who have spent decades explaining that international trade is not, in fact, a zero-sum game like one of his failed casino ventures. The president singled out Beijing as “the worst in the group” when it comes to trade deficits, calling the situation “unsustainable.” His solution is to threaten China with even more tariffs, of course. Trump warned that if China didn’t lift its retaliatory tariffs, he would impose an additional 50% tariff increase on their imports. And if that wasn’t enough, he also threatened to terminate all trade talks with Beijing.

Here’s the thing: China has already hit back. In response to Trump’s initial tariffs, Beijing imposed a 34% tariff on all U.S. goods. Now, Trump is threatening to raise the stakes even further, while markets are globally experiencing their worst collapse in history. Australia’s share market plummeted 6.4% early Monday, hemorrhaging $187 billion in value. U.S. stock futures cratered Sunday night, suggesting that Thursday and Friday’s historic $6.6 trillion market wipeout was merely the opening act.

At this point, any shred of international credibility Trump might have salvaged from his first term is being systematically incinerated. World leaders who had cautiously hoped for a more measured approach in his return to power are now confronted with an even more erratic and destructive policy approach than before. The reputation damage extends far beyond Trump himself.

America’s standing as a reliable trading partner and ally is being severely undermined. When agreements can be unilaterally torn up and replaced with punitive measures at the whim of a single individual, the fundamental trust required for international commerce disintegrates. The question now is how much damage he’ll do before the dust finally settles. If his recent actions are any indication, the answer is: a lot.