Last Updated on June 5, 2025 by ThePublic
“MY POLICIES WILL NEVER CHANGE.” Unless, of course, enough people don’t like me anymore…
It’s worth noting that only an hour or so ago, Scott Bessent, the Treasury secretary, stood in front of the White House and said that the reversal on tariffs was the president’s strategy “all along.” Now Trump himself is saying that he made the decision in response to the market turmoil.
And Mr. Trump himself acknowledged that his decision was made in response to the market turmoil, telling reporters Wednesday afternoon that “you have to be flexible,” and that “over the last few days it looked pretty glum,” Trump said, acknowledging how much markets had fallen since he announced his tariff plan.
This admission raises a critical question, if the strategy was truly set in stone, why does it seem to shift with the wind of public and market reactions? The reality is, there’s no evidence of a detailed, consistent plan, just a series of reactions dressed up as policy.
Asked why he decided on a pause, President Trump says, “Well, I thought that people were jumping a little bit out of line. They were getting yippy. They were getting a little bit afraid.” This off-the-cuff explanation doesn’t point to economic data, trade analyses, or consultations with experts.
Instead, it’s a gut reaction to the mood of “people”, a vague group that could mean Wall Street traders, his voter base, or simply the loudest voices on social media.
It’s a stark illustration of how Trump governs, less by grappling with complex variables like supply chains or inflation, and more by gauging the emotional temperature of the moment.
To add to the uncertainty, the president said he might consider exempting some U.S. companies from the tariffs over the 90-day pause period. He said his thinking on this would be made “instinctively.”
Instinct might work for a reality TV cliffhanger, but it’s a shaky foundation for a policy affecting global trade and millions of livelihoods.
Where’s the framework? The data driven rationale? The absence of any clear criteria for these exemptions only deepens the impression that Trump’s approach is less about strategy and more about improvisation, tweaking the script based on how the audience reacts.
Yet days ago, Trump struck a defiant note on his tariffs, proclaiming at one point on Truth Social: “MY POLICIES WILL NEVER CHANGE.” Today, after pausing those tariffs, his message is very different. “You have to be flexible,” he told reporters at the White House.
The contradiction isn’t just jarring, it’s revealing. A policy that “never changes” shouldn’t bend at the first sign of market jitters or public unease.
This flip flop suggests that Trump’s bold pronouncements are more about projecting strength than sticking to a plan, and when the applause fades, flexibility becomes the fallback.
“This is something, certainly, we’ve been talking about for a period of time,” President Trump said of his decision to pause his tariffs. Trump and his aides had maintained for days that he would institute no such delay to his tariffs. “We don’t want to hurt countries that don’t need to be hurt,” he told reporters.
But if this was always the plan, why the mixed signals? Why the sudden pivot after days of defiance? The more likely explanation is that there was no plan, just a loud promise that crumbled under pressure, hastily reframed as deliberate strategy.
Before the pause was announced, European Union member states had already voted to approve counter-tariffs against the United States that would take effect on Tuesday, its first response to Mr. Trump’s levies. Documents showed that duties of 25 percent would be applied to a wide range of goods imported from the United States, including products as varied as corn and plate glass. This swift retaliation underscores the real-world stakes of Trump’s tariff talk, yet there’s no indication he anticipated or prepared for it.
Instead of a chess game with calculated moves, it’s a game of whack-a-mole, reacting to each new consequence as it pops up.
The White House sent out some clarifications on the tariffs. It said tariffs on Canada and Mexico remain unchanged, including the exemption for goods trading under the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement. The baseline tariff of 10 percent did not go into effect on Canada and Mexico on April 5, and neither country is getting the 10 percent baseline now.
Officials indicated earlier today that the 10 percent universal tariff included Canada and Mexico. This back and forth isn’t just confusing, it’s emblematic of a process driven by optics rather than analysis. One day it’s a universal tariff, the next, it’s not. The shifting storylines suggest a team scrambling to keep up with Trump’s impulses, not a government executing a well thought out agenda.
So what exactly is the plan for tariffs? Your guess is as good as mine. Obviously no one knows, including the White House, the President, and the Treasury Secretary, as everyone is saying something different. This lack of cohesion when speaking to the public should really be seen as the problem it really is, a government that reacts to emotion rather than logic. Trump’s tariff saga isn’t guided by economic models, trade forecasts, or even a consistent ideology, it’s a barometer of public sentiment, adjusted on the fly to appease the crowd.
When markets tank or voters grumble, the “unchanging” policy morphs overnight. Facts and variables take a backseat to feelings and headlines, leaving the country, and the world, guessing what comes next. But if the first weeks of the presidency have shown us anything, whatever it is will most likely create even more chaos and all just on a whim.