Trump's Tariffs Are Flawed and Contradictory—and the 'Mar-a-Lago Accord' Is Suited for the Trash Bin
Author: Steve H. Hanke and John A. Tatom
Outlet: Fortune
Date: April 1, 2025
Hanke and co-author John A. Tatom argue that Trump's tariffs and the proposed 'Mar-a-Lago accord' are internally contradictory, since a policy of tariffs and a policy of engineering dollar devaluation work against each other. Drawing a parallel to the 1985 Plaza Accord, in which major economies met at New York's Plaza Hotel to coordinate a dollar depreciation, the authors note that while the dollar did weaken afterward, it failed to meaningfully correct the U.S. trade deficit, undercutting the premise that a coordinated currency deal today would succeed where tariffs alone cannot.
Full Citation:
"Trump's tariffs are flawed and contradictory—and the 'Mar-a-Lago accord' is suited for the trash bin," Fortune, April 1, 2025. (with John A. Tatom)