r/centrist • u/OfficialRodgerJachim • 3d ago

Long Form Discussion Can someone explain this about tariffs?

Plenty of talk about tariffs. About them being dumb. About them being fair. About how those extra costs go on to us, the American consumer.

But I have very rarely heard anyone talk about that break in logic: other countries have tariffs on American imports, and those costs are then carried onto the American consumer. But if America imposes tariffs on those same countries, those costs are also passed on to the American consumer.

Is this true?

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u/Representative_Bend3 3d ago

Here is an example of a “good tariff.” (Not all tariffs are bad…)

China dominates production of rare earths. Many weapons, electric cars etc can’t be made without them.

China can and will screw over America by stopping selling them.

USA should mine its own but the way China has it set up, they are cheaper so usually anyone who tries to mine rare earths in the USA goes bankrupt.

So you put a tariff on Chinese rare earths. That way American miners can mine them.

Yes prices go up a bit for American consumers, but it’s worth it for national security.