Trump’s latest trick could make tariffs more palatable

President Donald Trump’s tariff ambitions have been a tough sell. They’ve put investors in a tizzy, sending financial markets spiraling; cost him the support of many members of his own voter base; and angered CEOs.

President Donald Trump’s tariff ambitions have been a tough sell. They’ve put investors in a tizzy, sending financial markets spiraling; cost him the support of many members of his own voter base; and angered CEOs. Rather than back down and reverse course entirely just a week before Trump’s promised “Liberation Day” on April 2, he’s employing a familiar marketing strategy: Prepare Americans for the worst and deliver something that’s not quite as tough to swallow. On Monday, Trump did exactly that. “For the most part, April 2 will be a big day,” Trump said, referring to the day he has promised sweeping tariffs against all of America’s trading partners. It’s a subtle change from insisting that it will be the big day involving not just dollar-for-dollar reciprocal tariffs but also sector-wide tariffs. To investors’ glee, Trump even managed to mention doling out carve-outs. “There definitely has to be a marketing component to this, as the logic behind increased tariffs is not obvious,” Colin Grabow, associate director at the Cato Institute’s Herbert A. Stiefel Center for Trade Policy Studies, told CNN. “My suspicion is that the Trump administration is trying to balance its goals of higher tariffs while not spooking markets too badly.” On Monday, Trump changed the conversation from fears about the economic effects of tariffs to relief that he appeared to be delaying some of those levies. Auto tariffs, he said, will be announced “very shortly.” Pharmaceutical tariffs: “At some point.” Semiconductor and lumber tariffs: “Down the road.” And on the big, bold reciprocal tariffs, Trump conceded, “I may give a lot of countries breaks.”