Trump made the obvious point: “If imposing tariffs and protective barriers made nations poor, then every country on earth would be racing to eliminate these policies, and China would be the first in line.”

That inarguable fact is the biggest problem his critics face. If tariffs are so terrible, why do all these other countries stick to theirs like fattened leeches? Why are their economies booming even while they wall off American goods from their markets? The critics have no good answer, only fear.

Unsurprisingly, the parasite class — the dug-in globalists, Wall Street bankers, and trade lawyers who’ve been skimming off this crooked system for decades — has lost its mind. These insects have grown fat feeding off the overcomplicated asymmetry. They don’t want a level playing field; they need the tall grasses of convoluted trade barriers and labyrinthine labor policies in which to hide and keep sucking blood.

For one example, here’s MAGA nemesis and globalist darling Mike Pence, calling Trump’s tariffs a “tax hike” and breathlessly warning that we’ll all pay an extra $3,500 to fund the plan:

The truth is Pence just snatched that number out of thin air to create fear and panic.

The parasites keep harping that tariffs are paid by importers. They mean that Americans will pay the tariffs upon entry, and not foreign countries. That is technically true— but deeply misleading, which is why China is freaking out and not Walmart.

Here’s how it really works, straight from yesterday’s Reuters headline:

“U.S. retailing giant Walmart,” Reuters reported, “is continuing to push Chinese suppliers to cut prices to offset President Donald Trump's tariffs.” In other words, to stay competitive, foreign governments must cut their prices, to stay competitive. They must cut prices to precisely offset the tariffs. That is why foreign suppliers actually pay for tariffs, and not Americans.

To put it differently, it is true the tariff is charged at the port of entry. But if Chinese factories want to keep selling here, they must lower their prices to absorb the hit, because consumers won’t pay. Foreign producers indirectly pay the tariff through lowered prices, or they lose market share.

It’s that simple.

Here’s how it works in real life: If a Chinese plasma TV costs $1,000 and there’s a 10% tariff, the U.S. government collects $100. Walmart tells the Chinese supplier, “We’re not eating that cost. Cut your price to $900 or we’ll stop buying.” So the Chinese factory promptly cuts its price to stay in business.

The result is that the U.S. Treasury gets paid, Chinese exporters take the loss, and American consumers barely notice.

Pence is lying. You won’t pay $3,500 for Trump’s tariff policy. Walmart won’t. China will. And that’s why they’re howling like scalded coyotes...Jeff Childer C&C