By Graham Pennicott, Op-Ed
Blaming others won’t change the fact that protectionist policies raised prices and hurt Americans
In two recent speeches, President Trump blamed Democratic President Joe Biden for the economic pressures many Americans are feeling. But economic reality is not shaped by speeches—it is shaped by policy choices. And the evidence shows that tariffs, once again, have failed to deliver the results promised.
Tariffs are not paid by foreign governments. They are paid largely by American businesses and conhsumers. When tariffs raise the cost of imported goods and components, those costs ripple through the economy—showing up as higher prices, reduced competitiveness, and strained supply chains. This is not theory; it is what happened before, and it is what is happening again.
During Trump’s first term, tariffs led to higher prices for everyday goods, retaliatory measures against U.S. exports, and significant harm to American farmers and manufacturers. The federal government had to spend tens of billions of dollars to compensate farmers hurt by lost export markets. Independent studies across the political spectrum concluded that the tariffs reduced overall economic growth and imposed net costs on U.S. households.
None of this was unforeseen. Economists, business leaders, and trade experts warned repeatedly that broad tariffs would function as a tax on Americans. History offered the same lesson: protectionist trade policies may sound tough, but they rarely strengthen an economy in practice. Ignoring these warnings did not make them wrong.
Blaming a predecessor may be politically convenient, but it does not change the facts. Economic policy must be judged by outcomes. If a strategy raises prices, hurts domestic producers, and fails to deliver promised gains, it should be reconsidered—not defended through deflection.
Accountability is not weakness. It is a prerequisite for effective leadership. Americans deserve honesty about what is working, what is not, and why. If tariffs have once again failed to strengthen the economy, the responsible response is to acknowledge it, adjust course, and pursue policies that actually lower costs, support growth, and protect American workers—without asking them to bear the price of failed experiments.