Who Really Started a So-Called ‘Trade War,’ and Other Tariff Questions Never Asked in the Press

Why, say, do most nations — other than America — prefer trade surpluses and protective tariffs?

AP/Noah Berger
Cargo containers line a shipping terminal at the Port of Oakland. AP/Noah Berger

1. President Trump’s so-called “trade war.”

Many call the American effort to obtain either tariff parity or a reduction in the roughly $1 trillion trade deficit and 50 years of consecutive trade deficits a “trade war.” But then what do they call the policies of the past half-century by Europe, Asia, China, and others to ensure asymmetrical tariffs, pseudo-health and security trade restrictions, and large surpluses?

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