It has never been a secret that Donald Trump is often driven by a sense of grievance and victimhood. The President has said so himself many times — “UNFAIR!” is one of his favorite social media descriptors — and he has offered himself as a martyr to the American people, saying “I am your retribution.”
During his recent presidential campaign, Trump’s “retribution” appeal was primarily understood to be about vengeance against the so-called “radical left” and “deep state” and the alleged “enemies within” America — and it was made to MAGA Republicans who loathed “woke” culture, DEI initiatives and losing elections like the one Trump lost in 2020.
But since winning back the Oval Office, Trump has expanded the list of alleged perpetrators of injustice against whom his vengeance is aimed — and it includes most of the U.S.’s allies as well rivals like China and Iran.
This time the crime is financial globalism, not domestic wokeism, and Trump has levied wide-ranging tariffs against the status quo trade environment — tariffs that he claims, controversially, will level the playing field and create big returns for his vision of America First.
This time Trump’s “retribution” appeal is being made to all Americans — not just MAGA — and the proposed retribution is for what he characterizes as decades of America being “ripped off” by what Trump alleges are unfair trade practices.
Trump says the current trade deals — not just with China, about which many economists agree, but also with allies like the EU and our North American neighbors — have put the U.S. at an economic disadvantage that tariffs will reverse, after a period of consumer “pain.” Nevermind that the U.S. economy, whatever its problems, has been notable for being the envy of the world.
Economist: Trump Ruining U.S. Economy
— The Intellectualist (@highbrow_nobrow) April 4, 2025
8/18: According to The Economist, Trump’s tariffs have pushed America’s effective tariff rate beyond Depression-era levels—back into the 19th century.
In October 2024, that same magazine called the U.S. economy “the envy of the world.”
By… pic.twitter.com/9zN2rLkhWA
After watching the announcement of tariffs savage the stock market, and hearing the pleas of dissenters even from within his own inner circle — Elon Musk, for instance — Trump doubled down on his path yesterday in a speech at the Republican Congressional Committee dinner.
In a telling segment below, Trump admits that his 104% tariff on Chinese imports “sounds ridiculous” before claiming that China charges the U.S. more in some instances, “ripping us off.”
“Many countries have,” Trump says,” they’ve ripped us off left and right. But now it’s our turn to do the rippin’.”
Trump: People are paying tariffs. Countries are paying tariffs. Right now, China is paying a 104% tariff. Think of it. 104%. It sounds ridiculous…
— Republicans against Trump (@RpsAgainstTrump) April 9, 2025
(China doesn’t pay tariffs. We — the consumers who buy goods from China — are the ones who pay the tariffs)pic.twitter.com/EBX2rmkGHV
