European leaders are sick and tired of Trump, who has been an exasperating, unpredictable and unfriendly negotiating partner to them, fitting no definition of an ally. But the Europeans are reluctant to abandon the existing trade rules and allow them to be replaced by an unpredictable might-based system. This isn’t merely about commercial interests; its about principles and rules.

President Trump’s recent  imposition of tariffs on the imports of steel and aluminum is but the latest evidence of a wrongheaded and dangerous U.S. trade policy. Wrongheaded because it is based on incorrect economic analysis. Dangerous because it will inevitably result in a trade war in which there are no winners.

Germany’s CSU fears that without a tougher migration policy, the far-right anti-immigrant Alternative for Germany (AfD) party will become stronger in Bavaria at its expense. By taking a hard line on migration, CSU hopes to position itself as a strong alternative to the AfD in Bavarian elections.

If EU Tariffs and Barriers are not soon broken down and removed, Trump threatens to place a 20% Tariff on all of cars coming into the U.S. The U.S. currently charges a 2.5 % tariff for car imports vs. a 10% duty imposed by Europe. But the U.S. imposes a 25% tariff on imports of light trucks vs. Europe’s 10% for those vehicles.

The U.S. imported nearly 1.3 million vehicles last year from the European Union, representing about 7% of all light vehicles sold in the U.S. in 2017.

25% Additional Duty

President Trump caved to enormous political pressure and signed an executive order meant to end the separation of families at the border by detaining parents and children together for an indefinite period.

Executive Order

By the authority vested in me as President by the Constitution and the laws of the United States of America, including the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), 8 U.S.C. 1101 et seq., it is hereby ordered as follows:

History

1903: The Anarchist Exclusion Act was passed. The legislation regulated immigration, banning not only perceived anarchists but also “people with epilepsy, beggars and importers of prostitutes.

1906: President Theodore Roosevelt signed the 1906 Naturalization Act, which required that immigrants learn English in order to become eligible to be a naturalized U.S. citizen.

Source: EuroStat

U.S. President Donald Trump has approved tariffs worth USD 50 billion on import of goods from China. China will respond with retaliatory tariffs on USD 50 billion of U.S. products such as cars, planes and soybeans.

The U.S. Trade Representative has found that

Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962 authorizes the U.S. President to impose import restrictions to protect U.S. national security.

1. Under Section 232, the Commerce Department initially conducts an investigation to determine the effects of imports on U.S. 'national security'.

2.  The term 'national security' is not defined, although Commerce has indicated in past Section 232 investigations that a threat to U.S. national security can arise either:

(i) by fostering U.S. dependence on unreliable or unsafe imports;