Scott Bessent, who has previously argued that the Trump tariffs would be transitory, is now saying that the American Dream doesn’t include cheap consumer goods. In other words, at least some of the tariffs are a stab at import substitution, and are here to stay.
Cheap consumer goods may not be the essence of the American dream, but falling living standards for workers, plans to create labor shortages in essential industries through deportations, and big tax cuts for the wealthy certainly aren’t, either.