Trump's trade war could cost more than 2.2 million American jobs

More than 2.2 million Americans could lose their jobs if Trump continues to escalate the trade war with China, as he has promised. A new analysis prepared for Tariffs Hurt the Heartland, a pro-trade group, shows every single state losing thousands of jobs, with several losing more than 100,000 in the next few years.

As millions could find themselves unemployed, the cost to the average American family of four could be as much as $2,389 per year. “The trade war is already creating enormous economic loss, and this report shows how much worse it could get,” Dr. Charles Boustany, spokesperson for Tariffs Hurt the Heartland, said in a statement.

Americans across the country are suffering because of Trump’s reckless trade wars. Farmers are losing billions in profits, GM has threatened 14,000 layoffs, and Ford could slash as many as 24,000 jobs.

But the situation could get significantly worse if Trump continues to down the same path. The new report looks at what may happen if Trump follows through on promised tariffs against certain goods from China beginning on March 1. The analysis lays out several scenarios, including those where China does not retaliate (which is unlikely) all the way through a total trade war.

Even in the best-case scenario, the U.S. will lose 937,000 jobs. But if China retaliates, which it has always done, the job losses skyrocket to more than 2 million.

“It’s time for the administration to take tariff increases off the table for good, end the threat of new tariffs and finally bring an end to the crippling tariffs we are facing right now,” Boustany implores.

In 2018, Trump declared that trade wars are “good and easy to win.” His rhetoric once again fails to match the reality faced by farmers, auto workers, and thousands more across the country. Trump already hurt middle-class workers with a tax scam designed to give most of the benefits to Wall Street tycoons and the richest one percent of households.

Now his trade war threatens to hurt hundreds of thousands, if not millions, more.

Published with permission of The American Independent Foundation.