On April 2 — called “Liberation Day” by Donald Trump — the president made history by announcing transformative tariff measures that permanently reset the global trade environment. Predictably, Wall Street pundits and multinational corporations have begun sounding alarms about market volatility and investor anxiety.Yet, the gap between Wall Street’s reactions and Main Street’s reality has never been clearer: the stock market does not reflect America’s actual economic health or working-class communities’ interests.
For decades, Wall Street has rewarded corporations for offshoring American jobs. Consider General Motors: After laying off 14,000 American workers and shutting five plants — including the iconic Lordstown, Ohio, facility — GM’s stock price soared from $18 in 2020 to $60 in 2021. Did American families benefit through lower car prices? No. Profits surged for shareholders, while devastated communities grappled with economic hardship. This distorted economic logic has dominated American policy for far too long.
Trump’s announcement fundamentally rebalances this dynamic by permanently prioritizing the working class over short-term financial speculation. His implementation of a universal baseline tariff of 10 percent on imports is precisely the stable and predictable measure America’s industries need to reshore production. The Coalition for a Prosperous America has long advocated for universal tariffs as essential tools for reshoring American manufacturing, generating long-term revenue, and securing our economic future.
However, the CPA has consistently warned against reciprocal tariff strategies to negotiate “zero-for-zero” tariff deals with countries such as Vietnam — a well-known transshipment hub for Chinese goods. Such strategies amount to free trade by another name and perpetuate the failed globalist trade framework that has decimated American manufacturing and undermined our economic security for decades.
Tariffs must remain permanent tools within a comprehensive industrial policy strategy to achieve the goals of revitalizing domestic production and creating millions of stable, working-class jobs. Unlike tariffs that fluctuate based on foreign negotiations, universal tariffs provide the stable investment climate required to rebuild factories. Companies can confidently commit to reshoring critical industries such as steel, automotive, electronics, pharmaceuticals and renewable energy — essential for U.S. economic strength and national security.
Exports alone will never deliver lasting prosperity. Despite numerous free-trade agreements and reduced tariffs for American exports, our trade deficits have ballooned to record highs. Today, U.S. exports constitute merely 11 percent of GDP, while domestic consumption remains our economy’s backbone — nearly 70 percent of GDP. A robust domestic market is the foundation for economic strength, particularly for American businesses and workers.
Historical evidence reinforces this truth. From 1816 until 1945, America thrived under high tariffs, rising to global industrial dominance. Only after World War II, as the U.S. embraced free-trade dogma, we witnessed the rapid offshoring of jobs, widening inequality, and the loss of 90,000 factories and 5 million manufacturing jobs.
Trump’s permanent tariff approach acknowledges that American industry needs long-term certainty — not trade deals dependent on unreliable foreign promises. Universal tariffs combined strategically with targeted sector-specific tariffs foster the predictability and permanence required to rebuild vital industries critical to American prosperity and national security.
Short-term stock market fluctuations must not dictate U.S. economic policy. Our focus must be on lasting economic health, industrial revitalization and working-class prosperity — not appeasing speculative market behavior. Trump’s tariffs set the stage for a new Golden Age of American industrial strength and widespread prosperity. It’s a long overdue economic policy shift, and one we must embrace wholeheartedly.
