President Trump says the “pain from tariffs” will be “worth the price”

Donald Trump has warned that his new tariffs might hurt, but he’s not losing sleep over it. In a flurry of posts on Truth Social today, the president stood by his decision to impose heavy-duty tariffs on America’s top trading partners.

Trump says it’s high time Canada, Mexico, and China stop ripping off the US “THOSE DAYS ARE OVER!” he declared. He admitted that Americans may feel “some pain” but promised it’ll be “worth the price.”

By price of course he is referring to the fact that economically speaking, Americans are the ones that’ll pay the price for these unnecessary trade wars, especially when they’re happening all at once.

Yesterday, Trump signed off on tariffs of 25% on goods from Canada and Mexico, plus 10% on Chinese imports. These go live Tuesday, according to his executive order. Trump argued that these countries have abused America for too long through lopsided trade and lax drug enforcement.

“MAKE YOUR PRODUCT IN THE USA, AND THERE ARE NO TARIFFS!” he posted. He pointed fingers at the so-called “Tariff Lobby,” which he accused of siding with globalists and foreign competitors. His beef with the Wall Street Journal also boiled over: “They’re working to justify this ripoff,” he fumed.

Per data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the US racks up $1.6 trillion in annual trade with these three countries, but Trump argues that deficits are bleeding America dry. He added that the country’s $36 trillion debt won’t shrink if Americans keep subsidizing other economies. “We’re not going to be the ‘Stupid Country’ any longer,” he said, in true Trump fashion.

Canada hits back at Trump

Canada wasn’t about to play nice after that. Justin Trudeau retaliated quickly, slapping a 25% tariff on $155 billion worth of US goods. I mean, this guy has been expecting this for months, even before Trump won.

Then after he did win, Trump invited Trudeau to Mar-a-Lago in early December and made some pretty demeaning comments about Canada and Trudeau himself, to which the Canadian prime minister brushed off as jokes. He even said that he believes the US president is “just having a bit of fun,” as Cryptopolitan reported.

Now Trudeau is calling the US measures “unacceptable” and has vowed to defend Canadian businesses. His government has already targeted industries that rely heavily on US trade, from agriculture to steel.

But Trump doubled down. He reiterated once again that Canada should just concede and become the 51st state of the US “We pay hundreds of billions of dollars to subsidize Canada. Why? There is no reason,” he posted. He does have a really good point there.

In one of his Truth Social posts, Trump also made it clear he thinks America doesn’t need anything Canada has, saying the US already has unlimited energy, car-making capacity, and plenty of lumber. According to him, without US support, Canada wouldn’t survive economically. His solution? “Much lower taxes and far better military protection” if they agree to join the US. Yeesh!

Mexico holds its ground, China calls WTO lawyers

Across the border, Mexican leaders are also pretty furious. The publicly-beloved president Claudia Sheinbaum slammed the tariffs in a public statement and outlined her country’s plan to fight back. She revealed that Mexico had been working for months on a “Plan B” to counter any economic threats from the US.

The plan includes both tariffs and regulatory measures to protect Mexican industries. Claudia also called for direct talks with Trump’s administration. “To this end, I propose to President Trump that we establish a working table,” she posted, urging a diplomatic solution.

She pointed out that cooperation had already led to progress on migration issues, adding that mutual respect would achieve better results than trade wars.

Mexico’s retaliation hasn’t been fully detailed yet, but economists believe agricultural goods and energy imports from the US would be on the chopping block. But the Mexican government wants to use its position as a critical trade partner to force concessions.

Meanwhile, China isn’t wasting any time, regardless of Trump’s little bromance with president Xi Jinping. Officials in Beijing condemned Trump’s tariffs as illegal under World Trade Organization (WTO) rules.

The Chinese Ministry of Commerce announced that it would file a formal complaint and promised “necessary countermeasures.” According to state media, China views the US move as an attack on global trade norms.

The stakes are high for both sides. Analysts say China has way more economic weapons in its arsenal than America, and could restrict exports of rare earth minerals—essential for US technology and defense sectors—or limit market access for American companies operating in China.

Xi’s government also has new legal tools to block foreign business deals under the banner of national security. During Trump’s first term, China was the main target. This time, he’s going after allies, which may give Beijing an edge.

Chinese officials see an opportunity to build stronger trade ties with Europe and other regions, weakening America’s position in the global economy. This of course ties back to the BRICS where Russia’s president Vlad Putin has been saying for years that they’re gonna dethrone the US and its dollar.

Trump has also made some threats here, where he vowed to hit the BRICS countries with 100% tariffs if they do follow through with their abandonment of the USD. Thing is though, Russia and China already have. So has Saudi Arabia. But 100% isn’t 25%, and we’d like to believe Trump knows better than to pick a fight with both Xi and Putin at the same time. That wouldn’t end well for anyone.

But Trump is also considering tariffs on European goods. The EU has clashed with Trump before over trade policies, and a new round of duties will likely hit their automotive and tech sectors.

This has European leaders on edge. They remember Trump’s previous trade disputes, which disrupted supply chains and sparked retaliatory measures. Diplomats are reportedly working behind the scenes to prevent another showdown, but Trump has shown he isn’t afraid to escalate if he thinks America is being shortchanged.

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