Kudlow acknowledges U.S. consumers, not China, pay for tariffs on imports

[dalton99a]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/kudlow-acknowledges-us-consumers-not-china-pay-for-tariffs-on-imports/2019/05/12/3cbe100e-74b9-11e9-b3f5-5673edf2d127_story.html

Kudlow acknowledges U.S. consumers, not China, pay for tariffs on imports
By Felicia Sonmez
May 12 at 5:16 PM

National Economic Council Director Larry Kudlow acknowledged Sunday that American consumers end up paying for the administration’s tariffs on Chinese imports, contradicting President Trump’s repeated inaccurate claim that the Chinese foot the bill.

In an appearance on “Fox News Sunday” two days after U.S.-China trade talks ended with no news of a deal, Kudlow was asked by host Chris Wallace about Trump’s claim.

“It’s not China that pays tariffs,” Wallace said. “It’s the American importers, the American companies that pay what, in effect, is a tax increase and oftentimes passes it on to U.S. consumers.”

“Fair enough,” Kudlow replied. “In fact, both sides will pay. Both sides will pay in these things.”

Pressed again by Wallace, Kudlow acknowledged that China does not actually “pay” the tariffs.

[durablend]

1. How big is that Trump bus anyway?

Surely must be running out of room under it by now....

[riversedge]

2. " contradicting President Trump's repeated inaccurate claim that the Chinese foot the bill."

[MichMan]

3. No different than any other types of taxes

[underpants]

4. Actually he didn't. At all. WaPo is covering for this moron.

Video here.

https://www.democraticunderground.com/100212093419

[DFW]

5. Consumers in the importing country pay the tariffs.

The exporting country charges the same price to any and all comers. If Trump puts a 30% tariff on certain Chinese goods, they don't cost a cent more to anyone else buying them from China. They cost 30% more to the American customers importing them, who pay 30% to Mnuchin for the privilege.

Of course, if China sells them to Albania, and the Albanian importers can convincingly re-label them as Albanian products, someone in Albania will get rich selling them to the USA, our trade deficit with Albania will mysteriously explode, and the whole theatrical production becomes a sham. The Chinese are no fools, and neither is the Department of Commerce, so it won't happen with Albania (that was just a simplified example), but rather with a myriad of countries we regularly do a lot of business with, such as Korea, Japan, Britain, France, Germany, Australia, and about 30 etc. It's a sham all the same.

Getting around the tariffs will be time-consuming and require a ton of paperwork, but it will eventually get done. It's the same reason there is still a cocaine trade. If there is demand, and if there is supply, they will get together.

An Iranian-exile friend of mine tells me that Iran does business with every country in the world except Israel. USA? No sweat. Sanctions, schmanktions. It gets done, just under flags of convenience, so that the politicians (on both sides) can show how tough they are.

[Sherman A1]

6. Precisely

There will be work arounds, but everything will cost the consumer more either way.

[riversedge]

7. Smart folks who did not listen to Trump lies already knew this!!