Trump's Reign of Error

UNITED STATES PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP thrives on chaos and conflict.

- Minhaz Merchant

He has launched a global trade war with steep tariffs on allies and adversaries alike. Among allies, Canada and the European Union (EU) have retaliated with tariffs of their own. Among adversaries, China has issued tariffs on a raft of American imports.

Given Trump’s unpredictability, he might reverse course at any time. For example, angered by Ontario Governor Doug Ford’s threat to cut electric power to three US states, Trump doubled tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminium to 50 per cent. Within hours, however, Trump brought tariffs on Canadian metals back to 25 per cent after a chastened Ford withdrew his electricity blackout threat.

Geopolitics by coercion is playing out at home and abroad. Trump confidant Elon Musk is terrorising the US federal bureaucracy with overnight sackings. Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has been given carte blanche to strip the bureaucracy to the bone. In response, Tesla cars have been set on fire and Tesla showrooms attacked. Rattled, the usually phlegmatic Musk posted a six-minute video on his social media platform X titled: “This is why the Democrats want to destroy me.”

To show his support for Musk as Tesla sales slump, Trump bought a brand-new Tesla car the next day and as NBC News reported acerbically, turned the south lawn of the White House into a Tesla showroom.

While threatening countries with extortionate tariffs and using Musk’s DOGE to salami slice the bureaucracy, Trump is focused on ending the Russia-Ukraine war. Dealing with Russian President Vladimir Putin, however, will be more complicated than bullying Volodymyr Zelenskyy into accepting a 30-day ceasefire.