Trump's Tariffs & the End of American Dominance | Deep Dive

Have you gotten sick of the economic roller coaster yet? 🎢 In case you’ve had trouble keeping up, here’s a quick summary:

• On April 2, the US announced historic and sweeping tariffs for nearly every country on Earth.
• The US stock market crashed hard, erasing billions from the retirement and savings accounts of working class Americans.
• On April 9 (a week later), Trump announced a pause on all his tariffs for 90 days, with the exception of one country, China. Right before this announcement, Trump posted on Truth Social - his social network - telling his followers “to buy.”
• The stock market instantly rebounded and the wealthiest Americans instantly gained $304 Billion in wealth in 1 day, the largest amount ever recorded according to Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
• The US continues to escalate a trade war with China by applying 125% tariffs. Now a matter of national pride, China has responded with tariffs of their own and restrictions on rare Earth mineral exports.

Many have pointed out the economic impacts, but to us the tariffs will only accelerate much larger changes happening to the global world order; changes which could genuinely alter the course of history for the next century. If that all sounds a bit lofty, let’s back up a bit.

A bit of historical context

There’s no denying that the United States has had a fantastic 20th century, overtaking the British Empire and beginning an age of Pax Americana (a time when the US is the dominant global economic and military superpower). During this time, the world has been rapidly going through a process called globalization in which the different economies, cultures, and politics of various nations around the world become more and more integrated. This is a process that has been happening for centuries, since merchants were crossing oceans to trade in faraway places, and in many ways it’s the natural result as technology advances and communication and travel become easier. It’s a process that’s neither inherently good or bad, but for the last ~80 years globalization has been led by the US and other Western “First world” nations which does have some very real consequences.