Give Relief to American Taxpayers—End the Trade War With China
Faced with rising prices for food and various consumer goods, the Biden administration announced it’s considering dropping its current tariffs on Chinese imports to ease inflationary pressures. This policy change is long overdue, as these tariffs have imposed steep costs on consumers and businesses while failing to revive American manufacturing, and it will encourage China to play by the rules.
Former President Donald Trump imposed tariffs as high as 25% on over $230 billion worth of Chinese goods beginning in summer 2018. This was followed by another round of tariffs on more than $100 billion of Chinese imports in September 2019, with rates initially set as high as 15%. The tariff rates on this last batch of goods were cut in half following China’s signing of the Phase One trade deal, in exchange for China agreeing to purchase more agricultural exports from the US. Although additional tariff exemptions were granted for imports…
