'We're All Dead': GOP Senator Reacts To Trump Tariffs

[BumRushDaShow]

Source: Huff Post

Apr 3, 2025, 02:55 PM EDT


Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) wasn’t concerned enough about President Donald Trump’s steep international tariffs to vote against them Wednesday — like some of his GOP colleagues — but did scold staunch supporters of the policy with a dire warning to multiple outlets. “In the long run, we’re all dead,” he told CNN’s Manu Raju on Capitol Hill for “The Lead with Jake Tapper” on Wednesday. “Short run matters, too. Nobody knows what the impact of these tariffs is going to be on the economy.”

Trump dubbed April 2 “Liberation Day” and announced a sweeping 10% baseline tariff on all imports to the U.S., with levies on dozens of countries set even higher. He repeated his false claim Wednesday that foreign nations, rather than Americans, will shoulder the costs.

Only four Republican senators Wednesday — Rand Paul (Ky.), Lisa Murkowski (Alaska), Mitch McConnell (Ky.) and Susan Collins (Maine) — joined Democrats in voting against the emergency powers Trump is using to impose a 25% tariff against Canada. Kennedy did not, but reiterated his concerns in a Newsmax interview later that day.

“What the president is saying is, if you want to sell stuff to Americans, move your business to America and hire Americans and contribute to our economy, don’t just sell stuff,” he told anchor Rob Schmitt. “In the long run, he’s right. But in the long run, we’re all dead.”

Read more: https://www.huffpost.com/entry/john-kennedy-reacts-to-donald-trump-tariffs_n_67eea442e4b092af721e0beb

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These dumbasses think that a manufacturing plant can "instantly" appear in a few months or a year. It may take them a year or two just to plan/design something like that, then start costing it out and getting the contracts together. So you are looking maybe 3 - 5 years if you are lucky.

And this -

“What the president is saying is, if you want to sell stuff to Americans, move your business to America and hire Americans and contribute to our economy, don’t just sell stuff,”

That's NOT in any part of the GOP business mantra that emphasizes "free trade". You people brainwashed everyone into demanding and implementing "free trade", and people warned you about all the "outsourcing" and "offshoring", but you people ignored that because "cheap labor" enhanced the "bottom line" (and profits).

[Autumn]

1. This is all on you and your fucking republican party. You will be fine

you wothless piece of shit. The people and this piece of shit country won't be

Fuck off and die.

[Phoenix61]

2. Manufacturers don't pay the tariffs. Why would they

spend money on a factory for no reason?

[LudwigPastorius]

22. Yep, they're going to play the wait-until-he's-gone card.

That way, they won't have to eat an enormous capital outlay in four years.

[no_hypocrisy]

3. Also these variables:

1. Banks may not want to take on the risk of loaning money for a proposition of building a new factory in the U.S. when tariffs are likely to be gone in four years.

2. The shareholders may want to sell their holdings because they would not necessarily approve of the corporation(s) taking on such an endeavor, especially a risky venture.

[DaBronx]

28. Excellent points

[ananda]

4. That Kennedy is a true malignant idiot!

Nobody knows... really?

Anyone with half a brain knows tariffs are economy killers,
which ultimately of course also kills people.

[DaBronx]

29. I had the same reaction

He’s a bleating sheep.

🐑

[Basso8vb]

5. I'm hoping for a massive asteroid impact more than ever now.

[DaBronx]

31. Here you go

☄️

[Kablooie]

6. Yeah! They need to grow their coffee and bananas right here in good ol' Amurika!

[Norrrm]

9. Yeah! Plenty of good farmland up in N Dakota.

Won't need Trump's socialist payments, either.

[BidenRocks]

10. Tariffs on Madagascar

There goes the cost of vanilla.

[Beachnutt]

7. Cornpone Kennedy

running his corn hole again.

[BidenRocks]

8. We used to have a selection of products to buy.

Now it will be single source Made in America expensive.
Fuck you. I will do without!
Fuck you Lee Greenwood!
I an NOT proud to be an American.

[mahina]

11. I wish he meant what I thought he meant when I read the headline, but no

[travelingthrulife]

12. You own it Kennedy.

[republianmushroom]

13. Just being dead is to damn easy on them.

[turbinetree]

14. Hey Jonnie can you recall what happened in the impeachment hearings...............

maybe you should start there..............dumb 💩........and look around at the votes or better yet go look them up in the records......

[EndlessWire]

15. I wonder how they felt

about being scolded for supporting the tariffs by a guy who voted to support the tariffs?

[dchill]

16. Foghorn Leghorn has more credibility.

More intellectual heft.

[Cheezoholic]

17. This is "Pandemic" economics all over again. It's the same schtick without killing a million people... yet n/t

[retread]

18. "Nobody knows what the impact of these tariffs is going to be on the economy." He is either 1. extremely stupid or 2. a

baldfaced liar or 3. both. Empirical evidence points to number 3.

[paulkienitz]

19. alarming thought: if he gets his way, the dollar may no longer be the world reserve currency

I'm no expert, but it's my understanding that the dollar can only hold its position of privilege as the world reserve currency in circumstances where we run a substantial trade deficit -- that is, we import goods and export dollars. That deal is an amazing privilege to be offered -- we literally get manufactured goods for nothing, just by printing extra currency for the purpose... but the whole point of tariffs is, as Senator Kennedy points out, to force manufacturing to move back here so we don't import stuff anymore. If they succeed, I suspect that the reserve currency role of the dollar will not be sustainable, and eventually it will come down to a contest between the Euro and the Yuan (CNY) to take over that role. That means that America will be poorer unless it can start competing as an exporter, in a world where every developing country is trying to compete as an exporter.

[zorbasd]

51. Yup, Agent Krasnov's very dangerous gamble

Is to hope many nations will come grovel for a tariff cutout deal, exactly like Vietnam did. He views this as a win, win, even though nothing will be gained for the US, nothing, just the perception that Krasnov is an all tough, genious negotiator. But if nations stick together in unison, just tired of Trump insanity, demand that the dollar be decoupled as the world's currency reserve, and succed, then the US will be cooked for good.

[Dr. T]

20. No one seems to remember why

nearly all U.S. manufacturing moved off-shore in the first place.

It started in the 80's. Large companies called them LCC's, low cost countries. They were able to cut manufacturing costs by moving to these LCC's, but the price of their products remained the same. The companies pocketed the difference, making their shareholders very happy.

The Orange Idiot cannot put the genie back in the bottle with his tariffs. None of them will be moving their manufacturing operations back to the U.S.

[thought crime]

26. But some companies will say they are moving manufacturing back

with no real intention to do so. But that's all trump needs.

[FakeNoose]

40. General Electric was one of the first multi-national corporations to do it

When the American manufacturers all saw how GE was cleaning up profits on CHEAP-O foreign labor, they all followed suit.
Plus Uncle Sam gave them big tax breaks for off-shoring.

[Dr. T]

41. GE was the inspiration for my post.

I worked at GE Medical Systems from the early 80's until the mid-2000's. I saw it unfold from a ringside seat.

After they laid me off, I went to work at a local healthcare system, servicing the equipment I once helped produce. I ended up costing GE more in service contracts than what they were paying me when I worked on the manufacturing floor.

[FakeNoose]

50. GE shut down their lightbulb plant and laid everyone off, early 1970s

I think it was in Syracuse NY. Built a new lightbulb plant in Mexico with cheap non-union labor. Their manufacturing costs went from $.25 per lightbulb to $.05 apiece. Do you think GE ever lowered their retail price for lightbulbs? Oh hell no! They just pocketed all the extra profit and paid it out to the shareholders. (My ex-husband was a financial manager for GE during those years, that's how I knew this stuff.)

Then it was small appliances, then televisions and other electronics, etc. etc. Plants were closed all over upstate New York and New England, moved to Asia, Central America and elsewhere. So many American jobs were lost! You actually landed on your feet and retained your career, but it didn't work that way for most of their former employees.

[Dr. T]

59. I'm drawing a nice GE pension

so I shouldn't say this, but fuck GE. I like to believe I was instrumental in getting the healthcare company execs to start buying imaging equipment from other companies.

The high-level managers at GE were brilliant at conning their way to the top, but tone def at managing stuff. Just like the Orange Vomit.

Sorry for the crudeness, the IPA's are kicking in. I'm sure you're in a better place without the ex. I know I am without my ex. Lesson learned.

[Mblaze]

21. Ronald Reagan was a total free trader

The Heritage Foundation labeled NAFTA "Ronald Reagan's Dream" and Republicans were behind him and pushed it hard. Now they run away from it and blame the Dems. Today, they allow Trump to lie about and renege upon the trade agreement that was negotiated by him and signed in his own ECG scrawl. They parrot Trump's lies and still blame the Dems.

Do Republicans even know their history or are they all hopelessly sucked up into the Trump bizzaro-world vortex?

[Justice matters.]

23. There are actually 8.6 million jobs openings that remain open due to...

a big shortage of qualified workers to occupy these positions.

There are only 6.8 million unemployed and approximately 10,000 Boomers leave their job to transition into retirement each and every new day.

Among the actual 6.8 million unemployed, a sh*t ton of them are literally illiterate and are very bad at counting numbers (a LOT of them are stupid magats who keep whining about everything but still watch faux noise and newsmin). There are next to zero chance they will ever be successfully trained on the job to occupy any of these high-education levels required to occupy these jobs, new or existing).

For factories to spruce up in 5 to 10 years, where are they going to find the workforce they'll need when the dump maladministration clamps down on immigration from non-white dominant countries??

[BurnDoubt]

24. Not to worry...

Edolph is going to chip all the workforce and their brains will default to Edolph's code and everything will be just Peachy! Good thing we killed the Dept of Education... massive savings!!! Even children will be able to make their contribution to the Greatification when we don't have to teach them anything, and controlling their thoughts will lead to a much more docile and productive population. Not to worry. It's been taken care of. You're Welcome!!!

[mathematic]

25. This is an egregiously bad headline since he's quoting Keynes' criticism of overusing long term models in policymaking

Also, it wasn't Republicans that "brainwashed" anybody about free trade. If anyone, it was David Ricardo when he described comparative advantage over 200 years ago. Unfortunately, this was a few decades after the American Revolution and so Americans, who learn American colonial history every year for a decade when they're children, end up thinking that what the British did in the 1700s is how you're supposed to organize a national economy.

[Hassler]

27. I wish. Include Don Old McKinley and it

It's a red letter day.

[Inkey]

30. Remember Foxconn ?

It was going to use its factory to turn
Wisconsin's economy around.

[Dr. T]

60. I've often wondered what

ex governor Scott Walker got out of the Foxcon deal. New mansion? His kids college education paid for? Undying gratitude of Foxcon management?

[Orrex]

32. It's always a shame when they speak metaphorically

[Layzeebeaver]

33. if globalisation is the "Cat", and de-globalization is the "Bag"...

Then the cat has already gotten out of and eaten the bag. There is no going back.

Free movement of capital and restricted movement of people if the ultimate goal.

Keep low cost labour in it's place of birth. Let the capital roam free in the hand of the ultra-rich.

[sakabatou]

34. Oh, so NOW they notice the face eating leopards

[Paladin]

35. In both the long and short terms, Sen. John Kennedy remains a clueless shithead. (nt)

[twodogsbarking]

36. He is a real MF. Not stupid but plays the part. MF

[AllyCat]

37. From John's lips to god's ears.

I hope they all croak.

[azureblue]

38. 'We're All Dead':

Good. Couldn't happen to a more deserving bunch of crooks and liars.

[Grins]

39. "Nobody knows...". Shouldn't you have to know that before acting?

Imagine a CEO saying that to shareholders over a major investment.

[Bengus81]

42. I'm all for that asshat Kennedy dying.....make it soon please

[Crowman2009]

43. Which one?

As in which one first?

[Bluetus]

44. Well, it is possible to set up manufacturing plants quickly in some cases

These dumbasses think that a manufacturing plant can "instantly" appear in a few months or a year.

That's not the big problem. The big problem is that if a company is investing literally billions of dollars, they want to be damn sure they will have a market for their product and that the rules won't change for at least 10-20 years.

Here are a couple of examples:

Hyundai/Kia made a huge investment in Georgia. They already had ICE manufacturing there, but when the Inflation Reduction Act suddenly cut them off from importing EVs (which previously received $7500 tax credit), they bit the bullet and committed to large-scale EV production in GA. And that meant they basically ate the lost $7500 credit for about a year. They are continuing with some of their EV plans, but the new rules make it unclear if these vehicles will get hit with a tariff on the foreign content. Previously they had a very aggressive EV introduction plan involving many new models over the next 24 months. It looks like they are stopping most of that to see what happens. They will sell those vehicles in Europe instead. That means we will probably see substantial layoffs in GA.

Stellantis organized its production of Chrysler, Jeeps and Ram around the USMCA, which Trump negotiated. That meant some of their production was in Canada and Mexico. But those Canadian and Mexican plants use transmissions, engines, and other components made in the USA. Now with the tariffs, they are completely screwed, so they just laid off 900 workers in Indiana who made transmissions that will now probably be subject to Canadian tariffs when they are sent to Windsor, and then the finished product will be hit with Trump's tariffs when the Windsor product is shipped to the US for retail. They played by the rules and got screwed.

THIS is why it will take a long time to see any real change in manufacturing. Nobody can possibly trust Trump. PM Macron yesterday said the French will make no more investments in the US and he encouraged the other EU countries to do the same.

[BumRushDaShow]

46. We have what happened during his first term as an example

where they often gave up. I.e., Foxconn in Wisconsin.

From last year -

The car companies have had a better time at it as they have been at it for a longer time.

Alternately, TMSC has a plant planned almost 5 years ago ahead of the CHIPS & Science Act, that is due to open this year in AZ - The U.S. Will Start Manufacturing Advanced Chips

And even with that, there have been plenty of issues and other hiccups.

[Bluetus]

52. All the CHIPS Act investments are at risk for the same reason

Capitalism runs on private investment. Private investment runs on risk-reward. When you have a madman capriciously changing the rules every day, completely unconstitutionally with no basis in legislation and no involvement at all from Congress, the risks are increased exponentially.

Intel has pushed off their famous new plant under the CHIPS act to beyond 2030, and I seriously doubt that they will make any significant moves as long as Trump is calling the shots.

Of course, Trump wants these companies to come to him and give his a few million bucks of tribute to free up the money and not put any other barriers in their way. But this may be a case where companies like Intel may see no reason to do anything at this stage.

[BumRushDaShow]

53. "Of course, Trump wants these companies to come to him and give his a few million bucks"

And THAT is the bottom line that will be in effect for this entire administration for ANYTHING.

[Bluetus]

57. If we can retake the House at the midterms

we will be able to run serious oversight. Dems should be collecting and organizing evidence of these shakedowns now. Of course, without subpoena power they can't compel any evidence, but they can certainly be interviewing whistle blowers.

And if we can get Schumer out of the way, even as a minority in the Senate, we can be much more aggressive there.

In other words, activities like tomorrow's protests put us on the path to restore some checks and balances in 21 months. And if we can really get the public engaged THIS YEAR, then lots of Republicans may get cold feet about carrying water for a lame duck Trump. Just today, Ron Johnson was twisting himself in to a pretzel trying to distance himself from Trump's crashed markets.

[ProfessorGAC]

45. Five Years Is Optimistic

It could take a year to find the land. A year to design. A year or 2 to build.
A year or 2 to populate the workforce.
5 years seems like a good, but best case, scenario.

[BumRushDaShow]

47. And that might be with skipping "enviornmental impact" studies

(since this administration doesn't care about the "environment" )

[ProfessorGAC]

48. Good Point

Oh, and congrats on 150k posts!

[BumRushDaShow]

49. I hadn't seen any mention of impact studies

and I know that is probably one of the hardest things to do with something like this (e.g., how they would handle any waste disposal and if anything can get into nearby rivers/creeks and/or underground water basins, etc).

And thanks! I knew I was getting close but then blew past it.

[ProfessorGAC]

55. Those Sorts Of Things...

...are why, over my career, my company expanded by over 20 sites, but 80% of those were acquiring plants from smaller companies looking to sell.
All the studies were long done, and the infrastructure was already in place. Plus, they paid the depreciated value (plus goodwill) of long term assets like reactors and buildings.
Good thing us, our company followed Responsible Care assiduously and ran companies in foreign sites as if they were in the US.
The regulatory regimes of those countries, though more relaxed, didn't matter. We ran all EHS functions like the site was here in Illinois or in California. They may have been in some "shithole countries" but my company didn't run them that way. Highly responsible & enlightened management.
I've been in some awful chemical plants. Our 40 something were not among them.

[regnaD kciN]

54. "Nobody knows what the impact of these tariffs is going to be on the economy."

Bullshit, Senator Dumbass. Everybody knew what the impact was going to be. We were practically shouting it from the rooftops last fall. The only people who “didn’t know” were those who chose to not know. And, as we all understand, you can lead a MAGAt to facts, but you can’t make them think.

[Bristlecone]

56. Right! "Life sucks and then you die. Get over it." - John "Fake Home-spun Yokel" Kennedy (R-LA)

[jmowreader]

58. Something else we need to consider here

We have here an Acme Bat-Man Outfit. They are made in China. Let's say that during the Biden Administration these cost $80 at the seaport all-inclusive and $100 in stores - twenty bucks to haul them to the Distribution Center, from the DC to the stores, and to provide a reasonable profit to the shopkeeper. Now that Trump is wreaking havoc and charging a 34 percent tariff on Chinese goods it's $80 at the seaport, $27.20 to Trump and $20 for all the in-country stuff so we have a $127.20 shelf price.

Acme realizes its customers don't want to pay Trump $27.20 for the privilege of owning a Bat-Man Outfit - unsuccessfully chasing road runners not being the most profitable enterprise ever created, but I assume he's making money on residuals - so they decide to set up a factory in the US to make them...but after paying American workers what they deserve, taxes, meeting American environmental and workplace safety regulations and paying off the loan they took out to build the factory the outfits will now be $140.

The calculus here is going to be, "will it be less expensive to continue importing and add the tariff to the Cost of Goods Sold, or to make the product in the US so there's no tariff?" And I kinda expect that even with the tariffs in place imported merchandise will remain less expensive than domestic production.

So...if it's cheaper for the customer to pay the tariff than to pay the cost of domestic manufacture, why would anyone actually build a factory in the US?