Dispatches From The Banana Republic Formerly Known As The United States Of America

In a series of early-morning tweets, the Tweeter-In-Chief said:

The U.S. is going to substantialy [sic] reduce taxes and regulations on businesses, but any business that leaves our country for another country, fires its employees, builds a new factory or plant in the other country, and then thinks it will sell its products back into the U.S. without retribution or consequences, is WRONG! There will be a tax on our soon to be strong border of 35% for these companies wanting to sell their product, cars, A.C. units, etc., back across the border. This tax will make leaving financially difficult, but these companies are able to move between all 50 states, with no tax or tariff being charged. Please be forewarned prior to making a very expensive mistake! THE UNITED STATES IS OPEN FOR BUSINESS

In response, Justin Wolfers, Professor of Economics and Public Policy at the University of Michigan, published a series of tweets:

Trade policy by Facebook announcement: If he follows through, expect WTO-sanctioned retaliatory tariffs in 3, 2, 1...

Read this carefully. Trump is threatening that any US business that builds a plant overseas will face a 35% tariff.

Notice that US firms that build overseas plants face tariffs. Foreign firms that build overseas plants do not. This is bananas.

I don't want to wake you from your peaceful Sunday morning slumber: But Trump's announced trade/offshoring policy is NUTS. A big big deal.

Is he really making trade policy in his PJ's at 6:41am on a Sunday morning, with no trade, legal or foreign policy advisers in the room? [Forget Trump's nonsensical words; this, I think, is the important takeaway from his ignorant screed]

To which the esteemed Prof. Paul Krugman replied:

In the banana republic we've just become, what do you expect?

Sad.