Elon Musk USAID Shutdown Scandal Is Getting Crazier, Trump's Mexico & Canada Tariffs Now Paused
PDS Published 02/03/2025
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PART 1: TREASURY DEPARTMENT
We gotta talk about the havoc Elon Musk is wreaking across the federal government, from the Treasury Department, to the Office of Personnel Management, to the United States Agency for International Development.
Right, because Elon? As we know, he’s the head of the newly formed Department of Government Efficiency.
Although, to be clear, DOGE isn’t actually a government department.
Right, it’s just a team within the administration.
Congress is supposed to be the one with the power to establish or shut down federal departments and agencies.
And with that, Musk? He hasn’t been elected, he hasn’t been confirmed, and he sure as hell isn’t a career civil servant.
And in fact, as the world’s richest man, and one who has consistently railed against what he sees as the injustice of federal regulation of his companies?
He has possibly the most substantial conflicts of interest of anyone in this government.
But despite all that, he is creating chaos, shattering precedent, and gaining almost unheard of access and influence across almost every ACTUAL department, agency, and office in the government.
And with that, let’s start with the Department of the Treasury, where the news starts with a standoff between DOGE and a man by the name of David Lebryk (Lee-brick).
Right, he’s a guy who’s dedicated his life to civil service, when his former colleagues say he could have been making millions on Wall Street. []
And with that, he started his career in the Treasury as an intern way back in 1989.
And he’d been the Fiscal Assistant Treasury Secretary since 2014, which is the highest position a civil service employee can reach — meaning everyone above him would be a political appointee.
With him being described as the one who “runs the nation’s checkbook” and being widely credited with steering the nation’s finances through the debt ceiling crises of the past 15 years.[]
And with that, Trump named Lebryk acting secretary of the Treasury Department upon taking office last month.
With Musk and his allies then pushing him for access to the department’s payment systems.
Notably, reportedly including Tom Krause, the chief executive of a tech company Cloud Software Group who’s now working with DOGE. []
But Lee-brick? He resisted.
He was placed on administrative leave, the Senate confirmed Trump's pick as the new Treasury head, and on Friday, Lee-brick resigned.
And very quickly, with Trump’s guy now in charge, Musk’s team was given access to the payments systems.
Which is a big deal because these systems?
They control the flow of more than $6 trillion every year.
And tens, if not hundreds, of millions of people across the country rely on them for the distribution of Social Security and Medicare benefits, salaries, payments to government contractors and grant recipients, and tax refunds, among tens of thousands of other functions. []
You had Musk, however, claiming on X:
“The @DOGE team discovered, among other things, that payment approval officers at Treasury were instructed always to approve payments, even to known fraudulent or terrorist groups.
They literally never denied a payment in their entire career. Not even once.” []
But with that…
One – as is the case with many of Musk’s claims – he provided no evidence to back it up.
And two, to be very clear, the Treasury does in fact have a Do-Not-Pay system to prevent payments to terrorists, fraudsters, and other bad actors.[]
But in any case, with that, Musk is now reportedly using his new power to shut down some payments to some federal contractors.
Including, for example, shutting down payments by the US Department of Health and Human Services to Lutheran Family Services, a faith-based charity that has been providing social services to refugees. []
And that’s a whole ‘nother can of worms, because as explained by Bloomberg, for example, Treasury officials have long maintained that its role is to serve as the federal government’s checkbook —
And that the decision about whether to approve or deny payment belongs to individual agencies based on funds appropriated by Congress.[]
So this is all wrapped up in this debate about whether or not the president can withhold funds Congress has already approved.
Right, notably, according to a 1974 federal law known as the Impoundment Control Act, he generally can’t.
But some Trump aides argue that the law is unconstitutional, paving the way for a court battle.
But in the meantime, Democrats are of course coming down hard on everything that happened with the Treasury.
Senator Ron Wyden, for example, the top Democrat on the Senate Finance Committee, writing a letter to the new secretary, saying:
“To put it bluntly, these payment systems simply cannot fail, and any politically motivated meddling in them risks severe damage to our country and the economy.”
“I can think of no good reason why political operators who have demonstrated a blatant disregard for the law would need access to these sensitive, mission-critical systems.” []
And then, Peter Welch, another Democratic member of the Senate finance committee, saying in a statement:
“It’s a gross abuse of power by an unelected bureaucrat and it shows money can buy power in the Trump White House.” []
And of course, with all that, the usual cliche applies…
This is just the tip of the iceberg.
Right, because similar DOGE teams have begun demanding access to data and systems at other federal agencies as well.
On Friday, for example, Musk’s team reportedly locked career civil servants at the OPM out of computer systems that contain the personal data of millions of federal employees.
With this data reportedly including dates of birth, Social Security numbers, appraisals, home addresses, pay grades and length of service of government workers[]
And with one official telling Reuters:
"We have no visibility into what they are doing with the computer and data systems.”
“That is creating great concern. There is no oversight. It creates real cybersecurity and hacking implications."[]
But with that, the agency getting the biggest shakeup?
At least for now, it’s probably U.S. Aid.
Because in fact, it’s not just a shake-up, Musk is now saying Trump agrees.
PART 2: USAID
And with that, U.S. Aid getting hit is something we’ve talked about ever since Trump issued a sweeping executive order suspending foreign aid for 90 days –
Leading to mass confusion, layoffs, and program shutdowns.
Right, for example, more than 1,000 USAID employees and contractors have already been fired or furloughed. []
And then, on top of that, around 60 senior U.S.-Aid staff were put on leave last week after being accused of attempting to circumvent the foreign aid freeze.
With then another senior official being put on leave for trying to reverse that move after finding no evidence of wrongdoing. []
But now, Musk’s involvement is taking the chaos to a whole new level.
Right, starting with this weekend, when DOGE personnel reportedly tried to access classified U.S.-Aid security systems and personnel files at the agency’s headquarters in DC.
However, they, or at least some of them, reportedly lacked high enough security clearance to access that information..
So the two U.S.-Aid security officials believed themselves legally obligated to deny access.[]
The DOGE personnel, however, reportedly demanded to be let in and threatened to call U.S. Marshals to be allowed access. []
And eventually, they got in, again accessing classified information, which reportedly included intelligence reports.[]
Also on Saturday, U.S. Aid’s website went dark and a new page for the agency appeared on the State Department website.
With U.S.-Aid’s X account also going offline.
And finally, those two officials who kept DOGE out? They were put on administrative leave.
With Musk saying in response that “U.S.-Aid is a criminal organization. Time for it to die.” []
And then, Katie Miller, another DOGE official, claiming “No classified material was accessed without proper security clearances.” []
However, with that, one thing to keep in mind is that in addition to canceling 50 security clearances in what was described as an unprecedented and partisan move?
Trump also granted temporary security clearances to officials who have not been fully vetted – something critics say makes the US vulnerable.
And with that, you had Democratic members of the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee writing a letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio, saying:
“The potential access of sensitive, even classified, files…raises deep concerns about the protection and safeguarding of matters related to U.S. national security.” []
You also had people like AOC writing on X:
“Having an unelected billionaire, with his own foreign debts and motives, raiding US classified information is a grave threat to national security.
This should not be a partisan issue.”[]
Though, then, some people hitting back predicting that DOGE will uncover “waste, fraud and corruption”[]
WIth AOC responding:
“If you want to start with waste, start with Elon’s defense contracts at the Pentagon.
In fact, we should start with transparency around defense contracts in general, which take up an enormous sum of public funds.
But they won’t do that, will they?”[]
But with all that, when it comes to U.S. Aid, this is about way more than just accessing data.
Right, Musk, for example, calling the agency “a criminal organization” and saying it’s “time for it to die.” []
As well as describing it as “evil” and “a viper’s nest of radical-left marxists who hate America”
With Trump piling on yesterday as well, telling reporters: “It’s been run by a bunch of radical lunatics, and we’re getting them out, and then we’ll make a decision.” []
And that decision? It’s reportedly now been made, with Musk saying Trump is on-board: U.S.-Aid should be shut down.
A claim made by Musk in a conversation on X Spaces early this morning with Republican senators Joni Ernst, and former DOGE co-lead Vivek Ramaswamy.
“It’s also “incredibly politically partisan and has been supporting “radically left causes throughout the world including things that are anti-American which is insane.” (AUDIO: 9:50-9:58)
And Musk is right…That is insane.
And it clearly shows we do need to have a conversation about what U.S. Aid actually does.
Because it’s not that…
Right, the agency was established in 1961 under JFK.
And it is the world’s single largest donor.
Providing 42% of all humanitarian aid tracked by the United Nations in 2024.[]
But with that, foreign aid overall, of which USAID is only one part, accounts for less than 1% of the federal budget.[]
But that’s still billions of dollars that, among other things, goes to projects aimed at alleviating poverty, treating diseases, and responding to famines and natural disasters.
As well as promoting independent media, social initiatives, and anti-corruption work.
For example, we talked about the agency’s work combatting HIV & AIDs.
With the New York Times reporting on other affected programs like ones working against forced labor and trafficking of Chinese workers. []
And as usual, all that’s not to say the agency is beyond criticism, or that there’s not money going places people with various political leanings might take issue with.
Right, that’s a conversation to be had, but it’s not the one we’re having.
Right, we’re talking about basically pulling the rug out from the entire world, and people will die.
Now, with that, some of the U.S. Aid functions are meant to survive.
Right, Trump administration officials are reportedly discussing placing the agency under the authority of, or merging it with, the State Department
A move, notably, that Democratic lawmakers and legal experts have argued would break a law adopted by Congress establishing the agency. []
PART 3:
With critics also saying it’s a threat to national security, arguing U.S. aid has been essential to building goodwill and developing alliances to counter the country’s adversaries.
But despite that, moves are still being made.
Right, today, U.S. Aid staffers reportedly being physically blocked from the agency’s DC headquarters by yellow police tape and law enforcement.
And then, more than 600 additional employees reported getting locked out of the agency’s computer systems overnight. []
And then, Marco Rubio, right, the head of the state department, announcing himself that he’s now the acting director of U.S. Aid.
With him accusing the agency’s employees for “deciding that they’re somehow a global charity separate from the national interest or taxpayer dollars.”
And adding: “That sort of level of insubordination makes it impossible to conduct a sort of mature and serious review.”[]
But on the flip side, you have Senator Brian Schatz of Hawaii saying he would do his best to stop Trump’s State Department nominees until the administration’s attack on U.S. Aid ends.
With, outside of government, people like a professor of public policy at the University of Michigan telling Wired:
“What we're seeing is unprecedented in that you have these actors who are not really public officials gaining access to the most sensitive data in government.”
“We really have very little eyes on what's going on. Congress has no ability to really intervene and monitor what's happening because these aren't really accountable public officials. So this feels like a hostile takeover of the machinery of governments by the richest man in the world.” []
And of course, this is just the beginning.
Right, going back to that conversation with Musk this morning, he also said this:
“I think we need to go in and do wholesale removal of regulations, like regulations basically should be default gone. Default gone, not default there, default gone. And if it turns out we missed the mark on a regulation, we can always add it back in.” (AUDIO: 26:31-26:47)
“This is our shot. This is the best hand of cards we’re ever going to have,” he said. “Now or never.” (AUDIO: 30:29-30:37).
And again, are there too many regulations? We can have a conversation about it.
But what Musk is talking about there? It’s pretty extreme.
And the people it’d benefit most are people like him.
And so with that, I gotta pass the question off to you.
There’s so much we talked about here, so what are your thoughts on any or all of it?
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Then we have a few different plane-related stories from over the weekend.
Starting with the tragic news that a small medical plane crashed near a shopping center in Philadelphia Friday evening, killing all 6 people onboard and a 7th on the ground.
Authorities have also confirmed that 19 others were injured by the crash, though they have warned that the number could change.
Officials are also still assessing the damage on the ground, with videos circulating on social media showing fires burning all around the impact site, a massive crater where the jet landed, as well as charred cars and debris from the crash spanning multiple blocks.
It’s also been reported that nearly a dozen properties were damaged, but officials are going door-to-door to determine if there was any more hidden structural damage.
Now, as far as what we know about the crash — it’s really not all that much.
Right, we do know that the plane was a Jet Rescue Air Ambulance, which conducts around 600 to 700 flights a year and specializes in critical care patients.
With a spokesperson saying that in 27 years of operation, the company has only had one other fatal incident in 2023, when five crew members died.
We also know that the medical plane left the Northeast Philadelphia Airport around 6 PM and was planning to stop in Missouri to re-fuel before reaching its final destination at Tijuana International Airport in Mexico.
But officials say the jet was only in the air for about a minute before it crashed, though the cause currently remains unknown, and both the FAA and National Transportation Safety Board — or NTSB — are investigating.
Now, as for the victims, it has been confirmed all 6 of those onboard the plane were Mexican citizens.
Including an 11-year-old girl who had reportedly just finished receiving life-saving treatment at Shriners Children’s Hospital and who was returning home to Mexico alongside her mother.
With a spokesperson for the hospital also confirming that the other people on board were two pilots, a doctor, and a paramedic.
And as for the 7th person who was killed on the ground, they haven’t been publicly identified yet.
And so for now, that’s pretty much all we know about this crash.
But that wasn’t the only plane safety story from the weekend.
Yesterday, a United Airlines flight going from Houston to New York was evacuated after an engine issue.
With a video on social media showing visible smoke and flames coming from the right wing of the plane.
According to United, all 104 passengers safely exited the plane to the runway, and no injuries were reported.
With the FAA saying in a statement that the United flight:
“received an indication about one engine and halted the takeoff while still on the runway.”
Adding that the agency is investigating the matter.
But, as of recording, we don’t have any more clarity on the situation.
Right, but both these incidents are very notable because they come just days after the deadliest crash in nearly two decades when an American Airlines plane and a Black Hawk helicopter collided near Washington, D.C.
With both crafts plunging into the Potomac, killing all 64 people on-board the plane and all three aviators on the helicopter.
Now, with all this, we haven’t really seen a ton of notable updates since we covered the crash on the show last week — many of the key details still remain unknown to the public.
We do know that officials have now said that they have found the bodies of 55 of the 67 victims as recovery operations continue.
And over the weekend, the NTSB revealed that investigators have determined that the airplane was at 325 feet, plus or minus 25 feet, at the time of the collision.
And that’s super notable because it would mean that the Black Hawk was flying above the 200-foot altitude limit for helicopters flying that specific route.
But preliminary data also shows that the control tower’s radar showed the helicopter at 200 feet at the time of impact — though, notably, officials say that information hasn’t been confirmed yet.
But that really just raises more questions than it answers, so for now, we’ll just have to keep our eyes on this situation.
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New York is trying to protect doctors who provide abortion care to residents of other states after a doctor was charged for this over the weekend.
So, this story starts on Friday when New York-based doctor Margaret Carpenter was indicted in Louisiana for providing abortion pills via telehealth to a Louisiana state resident.
This is a historic case, it is believed to be the first criminal charges filed against a medical provider for this reason, and it will put a lot of post-Roe legislation to the test.
The case involves a girl under the age of 18 whose mother ordered the abortion pills in April of last year, and the mother is also reportedly being charged.[]
And prosecutors say the girl experienced a medical emergency after taking the pills and had to go to a hospital for treatment.[]
But right now, we do not know her exact age, how far she was in the pregnancy, or any details like that.
And with this, you have Tony Clayton, the district attorney for the West Baton Rouge area telling the New York Times:
“I just don’t know under what theory could a doctor be thinking that you should ship your pills to Louisiana to abort our citizens’ babies…The pill may be legal in New York. It’s not legal in Louisiana.”
But as the outlet explained, Dr. Carpenter was operating under a shield law that New York previously enacted to protect doctors, saying New York will not cooperate with authorities who try to prosecute or penalize the state’s health care providers for giving abortion care.
And on Friday, New York Governor Kathy Hochul doubled down on this, saying in a video statement:
“I will never, under any circumstances, turn this doctor over to the state of Louisiana under any extradition request, and I also want to say this: This is what we feared. Republicans are fighting to have a national abortion ban that will deny reproductive care not just to women in our state, but women all across America. We must do everything we can to fight this, and I will do everything I can to protect this doctor.” (0:23-0:44)
And she took her stance on this one step further this morning by signing a new protection for abortion care providers.
This law will allow doctors to have their practices listed on abortion pill bottle prescriptions instead of their names.
Per a report from the Associated Press, authorities were able to identify Dr. Carpenter from the medication label, and Governor Hochul said that “after today, that will no longer happen.”
So we will have to see if this law prevents any further similar cases or not, but for now, this current indictment is one to watch.
So far, Dr. Carpenter has not responded to the charges, but the Abortion Coalition for Telemedicine, which she co-founded, said in a statement that it is:
“the latest in a series of threats that jeopardizes women’s access to reproductive healthcare throughout this country.”[]
And this is not the first time a state has tried to penalize Dr. Carpenter, in December she was sued by Texas’ Attorney General for violating the state’s ban of online prescriptions of abortion medication.[]
So we will have to see how all of this plays out, and for now, I would love to know your thoughts on any aspect here.
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It finally happened: President Donald Trump's tariffs are here.
The 25% tariffs on goods from Canada and Mexico were announced on Saturday alongside a 10% increase on goods from China.
One notable exception is energy imports from Canada, which were slapped with a 10% tariff.
Almost instantly we saw stock markets react negatively despite being closed over the weekend. []
For example, futures on Canada’s Toronto Stock Exchange were down 1.3% before trading opened this morning. []
While in the US the DOW plummeted by 600 points… which was in line with the S&P 500 and NASDAQ, all three of which were down by about 1.6% on average.[][]
Even stock markets in countries that weren’t directly affected by the tariffs reacted negatively..
Right, the German DAX fell by nearly 2%, which matched the fall of other European markets. []
Keep in mind: this all happened before the trading floor was even opened.
But there was a surprising twist when the New York Stock Exchange opened: things seemingly calmed down and only slightly dipped. [] []
That’s because shortly after the exchange opened it came out that Mexico and the US made a temporary deal to delay the tariffs for one month.
During that time, Mexico will send 10,000 National Guard to the border to try and stem the flow of illegal drugs and illegal migrants.
And in return, the US will go after guns that illegally cross the border. []
In a post on Truth Social, Trump wrote:
“I just spoke with President Claudia Sheinbaum of Mexico. It was a very friendly conversation wherein she agreed to immediately supply 10,000 Mexican Soldiers on the Border separating Mexico and the United States. These soldiers will be specifically designated to stop the flow of fentanyl, and illegal migrants into our Country. We further agreed to immediately pause the anticipated tariffs for a one month period during which we will have negotiations headed by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, Secretary of Treasury Scott Bessent, and Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick, and high-level Representatives of Mexico. I look forward to participating in those negotiations, with President Sheinbaum, as we attempt to achieve a “deal” between our two Countries.” []
Even if Mexico and the US can’t come to an agreement to permanently end the tariffs, it gives Mexican exporters time to find new markets.
Which they would desperately need to do as 80% of Mexican exports are sent to the US, with experts largely agreeing that the tariffs would lead to a recession there. []
Ever since the news broke, the Trump administration has been taking a victory lap with Vice President JD Vance tweeting:
“For three days a lot of the far left has actively rooted against America and argued we’d get nothing out of President Trump's demands that Mexico secure its country.
Well, how do you like them apples?” []
On the other end people don’t feel like this is proof that Trump’s Tariff-negotiation tactic works.
Instead they feel like Trump keeps “moving the goal post” Since we went from “there’ll be no tariffs. Fake news.” to it won’t cost Americans more until we’re finally at “it’s worth it to pay more if it gets illegals out of my country.” []
And Trump’s own statements over the weekend had a similar tone as they quickly switched from one justification to the next.
[SHEINBAUM STATEMENT]
But while a crisis seems to have been averted on the southern border -- at least temporarily -- things are still tense over in Canada where Prime Minister Justin Trudeau vowed to implement retaliatory tariffs, saying:
“Tonight, I am announcing Canada will be responding to the US trade action with 25% tariffs against $155 billion worth of American goods. This will include immediate tariffs on $30 billion worth of goods as of Tuesday, followed by further tariffs on $125 billion worth of American products to allow Canadian companies and supply chains to seek to find alternatives.” @0:00-0:35
He also highlighted how much Canada has helped the US over the years: including when America was the only country ever to invoke the mutual defense clause of NATO when it was attacked on 9/11.
“Together, we’ve built the most successful military and security partnership the world has ever seen. A relationship that has been the envy of the world.” @3:35-3:42
A lot of outlets took the angle that Canada was specifically targeting items from Republican states, such as oranges from Florida. [][]
But the list doesn’t mention individual states… and in the case of oranges, Florida isn’t even the largest producer of them. California completely eclipses them.[][]
Regardless, it’s possible that many items on the list are part of industries that Republican states more heavily rely on.
Canada is also looking at ways to retaliate that don’t involve tariffs, such as an export tax on Canadian energy.
I know that might sound like a tariff for a lot of people so here’s the difference.
Tariffs tax importers -- so Americans trying to get stuff from Canada have to pay the US government.
This tax would be the Canadian government taxing Canadians trying to send energy out.
(It’s meant to make sure that Canadian energy is expensive for Americans even though the Trump administration tried to soften that blow by putting just a 10% tariff on energy instead of 25%).
It also wasn’t just Trudeau that was critical of the tariffs.
Many Americans were also angered, and the Wall Street Journal specifically called out how damaging they could be.
To all this Trump had a lot to say and yesterday morning he wrote on Truth Social:
The “Tariff Lobby,” headed by the Globalist, and always wrong, Wall Street Journal, is working hard to justify Countries like Canada, Mexico, China, and too many others to name, continue the decades long RIPOFF OF AMERICA, both with regard to TRADE, CRIME, AND POISONOUS DRUGS that are allowed to so freely flow into AMERICA. THOSE DAYS ARE OVER! The USA has major deficits with Canada, Mexico, and China (and almost all countries!), owes 36 Trillion Dollars, and we’re not going to be the “Stupid Country” any longer. MAKE YOUR PRODUCT IN THE USA AND THERE ARE NO TARIFFS! Why should the United States lose TRILLIONS OF DOLLARS IN SUBSIDIZING OTHER COUNTRIES, and why should these other countries pay a small fraction of the cost of what USA citizens pay for Drugs and Pharmaceuticals, as an example? THIS WILL BE THE GOLDEN AGE OF AMERICA! WILL THERE BE SOME PAIN? YES, MAYBE (AND MAYBE NOT!). BUT WE WILL MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN, AND IT WILL ALL BE WORTH THE PRICE THAT MUST BE PAID. WE ARE A COUNTRY THAT IS NOW BEING RUN WITH COMMON SENSE — AND THE RESULTS WILL BE SPECTACULAR!!!” []
And then he followed that up with:
“We pay hundreds of Billions of Dollars to SUBSIDIZE Canada. Why? There is no reason. We don’t need anything they have. We have unlimited Energy, should make our own Cars, and have more Lumber than we can ever use. Without this massive subsidy, Canada ceases to exist as a viable Country. Harsh but true! Therefore, Canada should become our Cherished 51st State. Much lower taxes, and far better military protection for the people of Canada — AND NO TARIFFS!” []
There’s a lot to unpack here.
Trade deficits are common across every country: especially one as big and rich as the US.
Right, it’s easy to build a deficit when you’re a country of 40 million selling products to over 300 million.
(The fact it’s just a $50 billion deficit is actually a testament to how much Canada actually buys from the US to even be remotely that close with such a small population.
The next two biggest partners are Mexico and Canada and their deficits are more than double that despite the populations being much closer in size).[]
And the currency difference is another factor.
The US dollar is consistently stronger than the Canadian one.
And the tariffs have actually fueled that, with the price of the American dollar rising and the Canadian lowering.
While a strong dollar has many benefits it just fuels the deficit by making American goods even more expensive for Canadians to buy… and that’s without their own tariffs to deal with.
As for the drug trade: very little fentanyl and other drugs come from Canada.
Like in 2024 just about 43 pounds of fentanyl was seized at the Canadian border… which is an order of magnitude less than the 21,100 pounds seized down south.[]
This all has also led to actions by local governments and even businesses.
Like the Ontario government is reportedly looking at ripping up its $100 million deal with Starlink.
At the same time, local stores like liquor stores have quickly moved to remove American booze from the shelves to encourage people to buy Canadian goods.
(This is actually notable because it’s the largest single foreign market for American booze).[]
One of the big concerns is whether or not Canada will move to cut off access to certain key commodities like Potash.
The quick version is that it’s a group of minerals that is SUPER IMPORTANT for fertilizer and Canada has one of the target deposits in the world.[]
The other key thing is that the other big sources of Potash aren’t super friendly to the US… so having this cut off could be a big blow to American farming.
It’s so important that American farming groups are trying to get the Trump administration to carve out tariff exceptions for Potash -- although that doesn’t mean Canada still can’t put its own export taxes on it as we discussed earlier.
And finally there’s China.
The new 10% increase on existing tariffs have ruffled their feathers and led their Ministry of Commerce to say that it is strongly dissatisfied and firmly opposes" the tariffs.
It also threatened to file a lawsuit with the World Trade Organization and warned that retaliatory tariffs would be implemented.
We are still unsure exactly what that will look like, but one of the big things Trump wants out of China is for them to stem the flow of fentanyl.
Right, a lot of the precursor chemicals that make fentanyl come from China, although China’s foreign ministry has countered that it has "one of the world's toughest countries on counternarcotics, both in terms of policy and its implementation."
From here we’ll have to wait and see.
This is likely just the start of tariffs, with Trump warning that Europe was next.
But as for the actual economic impacts it will likely take weeks or even months to get a real idea of how much it will hurt the economies involved.
And as we’ve seen with this administration things move lightning fast, so who knows if we’ll have a complete reversal in a week or a month.
