Trade policy and tariffs are complicated. And the way our system of global trade works is also complicated — and imperfect. Democrats don’t always agree with one another, and neither do Republicans. And even within the Trump administration, different advisers have different opinions.
Mr. Trump’s aggressive use — or threats — of tariffs in the first weeks of his second term raises important, complex policy questions. Choose one or more of the following questions to research and then answer and discuss:
Should the United States and the world be moving closer to free trade or away from it? Why?
Should the United States increase tariffs to protect its own industries and to match the tariffs that other countries impose on the United States? Or should it work to try to lower trade barriers?
Should the United States treat longstanding allies, like Canada, Mexico and Europe, with the same approach as adversarial nations, like China and Russia?
Should the United States use the threat of tariffs to pressure other countries on issues unrelated to trade — the way Mr. Trump recently did when he threatened Colombia with a 50 percent tariff because of immigration policy?
The New York Times has been covering the issue of tariffs extensively in its news and Opinion sections. Here are some pieces that address the questions above. You can find more relevant coverage in The Times here.
Opinion | “Trump Isn’t the Only One to Blame for the Tariff Mess”
By Mary E. Lovely, an economist and expert on trade
What Mr. Trump is doing with tariffs is a result of a lost consensus about how the United States should interact with other countries in the global economy. He is stepping into that vacuum, filling it with the unrestrained and autocratic use of import taxes, moves that appear to be based on whim rather than on U.S. trade law. Arbitrary trade policy of this kind reduces American influence abroad; harms working Americans, who often ultimately pay these import taxes; and makes the U.S. manufacturing sector less attractive to investors.
Opinion | “Retaliation Against Canada Won’t Work This Time”
By Chrystia Freeland, a member of the Canadian Parliament
A 25 percent tariff on Canadian aluminum is an act of self-harm — economic self-mutilation — by the United States.
Opinion | “Want Free Trade? May I Introduce You to the Tariff.”
By Robert E. Lighthizer, the U.S. trade representative in the first Trump administration
The international trading system has failed America and many other countries around the world. No one has done more than President Trump to bring attention to this broad failure.
Opinion | “Who Pays Tariffs? And How Do We Know?”
By Paul Krugman, a New York Times Opinion columnist
So who would pay the tariffs that Trump will almost surely impose if he wins? Not China or foreigners in general. Everything says that the burden would fall on Americans, mainly the working class and the poor.
The Daily | “A Conversation With the Architect of Trump’s New Trade War”
A conversation with Peter Navarro, a senior White House adviser
During less than a month in office, President Trump has pursued more trade actions against adversaries and allies than all the trade measures he took in his entire first four-year term. There is one man guiding it all: his trade adviser Peter Navarro.
Ana Swanson, who covers trade and international economics for The Times, explains why Mr. Navarro thinks tariffs will usher in a new age of American prosperity.
News Analysis | “How Trump’s One-for-One Tariff Plan Threatens the Global Economy”
By Peter S. Goodman, New York Times reporter covering the global economy
The world economy was already grappling with a perplexing assortment of variables, from geopolitical conflicts and a slowdown in China to the evolving complexities of climate change. Then, President Trump unleashed a plan to uproot decades of trade policy.
In starting a process to impose so-called reciprocal tariffs on American trading partners, Mr. Trump increased volatility for international businesses. He broadened the scope of his unfolding trade war.
5. This lesson plan was published in late February 2025. What developments have there been with the Trump administration’s tariff policy since then?
Follow the news. You can find the latest Times articles related to tariffs here.
Additional Outside Resources
What a Trade Deficit Means (Council on Foreign Relations)
What Gets in the Way of Free Trade? (Council on Foreign Relations)
