Letters: Examples of tariffs gone wrong

Kudos to Cecil Bohanon and John Horowitz for rightly calling out the folly of the Biden administration’s tariffs on Chinese goods [“Fallout from tariffs is seen in unexpected places,” June 14]. Note the same policy is touted by candidate Trump.

Our economic history is full of tariff failure examples, several of which continue impacting U.S. manufacturers, workers and consumers. A long history of steel trade protectionism—today in the form of tariffs implemented by President Trump and continued by President Biden—means U.S. steel prices are significantly higher than the global average for the same material. This makes construction, cars, appliances, machinery and everything else more expensive, damaging the manufacturing sector’s domestic and global competitiveness and reducing manufacturing jobs overall.

The application of Biden tariffs to solar panels has brought new investment in solar energy projects to an immediate halt, eliminating construction and installation jobs, manufacturing of control equipment and a viable alternative energy source in many regions.

Tariffs serve narrow economic interests at the cost of a much broader community. They rob from those most in need of opportunities. Legitimate defense concerns aside (they exist but are narrow and targeted), tariffs are more akin to Robin Hood in reverse.

Thanks for having the wisdom to publish Bohanon and Horowitz.

—R. Gregory Estell