Former treasurer and ambassador to the United States Joe Hockey has lamented the Trump administration’s decision to continue seeking a tariff agenda, saying he has personally argued with the US leader over the topic.
“The president of the United States is absolutely convinced that tariffs are great. I’ve argued personally with him on the issue, and he’s just not moving,” Hockey told ABC radio this morning.
“He just can’t see the inflationary impact and the negative impact on American consumers, and it just goes to show how the world’s on its head when a left-wing Labor prime minister is trying to convince a right-wing Republican president that free trade is actually the right way to go.”
Joe Hockey at the National Press Club of Australia last month. Alex Ellinghausen
Yesterday evening Trump announced a 12.5 per cent tariff on Australia and 53 other nations on the basis that countries had not acted to prevent slavery and introduce import prohibitions on products produced through forced labour.
Hockey said Trump misunderstood the way tariff’s work, saying: “America is running out of money, and they need to get it from somewhere, and the president of the United States is convinced that foreigners pay tariffs imposed by America, whereas in fact it is American consumers that pay higher prices”.
“I just don’t understand where the world is heading here in the United States and elsewhere, where people think it’s a great idea to increase taxes on consumers and think that it’s going to improve the economy and create more jobs.”