Trump’s approach has created a high-stakes showdown without recent political precedent: A Republican president betting that his populist approach to trade will thrill his working-class base and blow away any short-term economic fallout or reduced political support from the nation’s largest business organizations. His message to corporate America so far: I don’t care what you say, my base is with me. [...]
Trump and some of his senior advisers are banking on the idea that while corporate America may hate his trade policies, rank-and-file workers who make up the president’s base will embrace them. And they believe new domestic manufacturing jobs will eventually pay political dividends that will swamp any market dislocations. [...]
“To the extent that more and more companies come out with these kinds of negative announcements, particularly at the local level, that will start to create political pressure on the White House,” said Scott Lincicome, a trade lawyer and adjunct scholar at the libertarian Cato Institute. “One of the things I’ve noticed is how many small companies that rely on steel or aluminum or count on the Canadian export market have come out with stories about getting hurt. That could actually penetrate.” [...]
Most of those groups steadfastly opposed to Trump’s tariffs are careful to note that they support many of the administration’s goals on trade, if not their tactics. On the autos probe, the United Automobile Workers union and United Steelworkers both offered general support for the investigation, but not for blanket tariffs. UAW, for example, called for “targeted measures” to help the auto sectors but warned that any “rash actions” could lead to unintended consequences like mass layoffs.
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