Tariffs and Taxes

EU increasingly resigned to 10% baseline tariff in US trade talks, European sources say

I've said this before but I think a 10%-ish tariff on everything is the plan. 

The government needs revenue so what are their choices?

Raise income taxes on the rich? Not happening in crapitalist America.

Raise income taxes on the rest of us? They would if they could but basically we don't have it and they would face a revolt in the next election if they did. Also, they just love to say "Tax Cuts"

Conservatives have toyed with the "Fair Tax" for years but it's regressive as hell and a hard sell. It ain't happening.

A national sales tax? Regressive as hell and another voter revolt. 

Tariffs, though basically a sales tax, don't really look like one to many voters, especially the MAGA true believers. Trump says the other countries are paying them so MAGA believe him ... but US consumers will be paying them in the end. 

Initially, our trading partners and big US business will claim to, and probably will, eat some of the tariff while passing some portion off to US consumers in the form of higher prices. Over time though, more and more will be passed on to the consumer and eventually we will be paying it all. The voters won't notice an extra half a point of inflation as the tariffs are moved to consumers. It'll just show up in slightly higher inflation numbers.

Eventually the oligarchs get more government income, without income tax increases on anyone, and a new basically invisible tax on US consumers. 

Fuck those guys. Tax the Rich!!