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President Trump Bids Farewell to Free Global Trade

by Dr. Hardy Ostry, Jan Bösche

Liberating Tariffs

A tough measure, long announced: President Trump has imposed extensive tariffs on the USA's trading partners. For him, it was a “day of liberation”, freeing the USA from what he sees as unjustified trade barriers. For critics, the tariffs are not a suitable means of changing trade balances, but rather a threat to economic development.
April 4, 2025

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Legal basis

The U.S. Constitution gives Congress the power to decide on tariffs and trade policy since tariffs were an important source of revenue for the state. Until the 1930s, tariffs were set by law by Congress.

 

The full-length publication is only available in German.

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Dr. Hardy Ostry

Dr. Hardy Ostry

Head of the Washington, D.C. office

hardy.ostry@kas.de

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About this series

The Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung is a political foundation. Our offices abroad are in charge of over 200 projects in more than 120 countries. The country reports offer current analyses, exclusive evaluations, background information and forecasts - provided by our international staff.