Punishing America First

Trump to Iowa: You’ll have to suffer while I force Xi Jinping to give in.

Donald Trump and his advisers spent much of Friday telling everyone that the U.S. is not in a trade war with China, but investors weren’t buying it. Equity markets took a major header, falling by more than 2% across the board. Maybe investors are starting to look at the damage Mr. Trump may do to the Farm Belt states and to the GOP’s chances of holding Congress.

Mr. Trump raised the stakes late Thursday in his tariff showdown with Beijing, vowing to impose another $100 billion in tariffs on Chinese goods in light of its “unfair retaliation” after his initial $50 billion in tariffs. The latest target list still hasn’t been drawn up, and the silver-lining crowd is hoping that Mr. Trump was merely popping off as part of his negotiating strategy. Maybe that’s right. But then China popped off in return, saying it is ready to “forcefully” strike back if the new tariffs are imposed.

That’s the problem with protectionism. The other side can strike back, and businesses and markets don’t know when the politicians will decide to stop pounding their chests.

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