A majority of Americans disapprove of President Donald Trump‘s new tariffs and worry prices will increase on every day goods as a result of his trade war – including a shocking number of his MAGA supporters.
The new numbers from a Reuters/Ipsos poll came as Trump is doubling down on the tariffs he imposed on countries around the world, which sent the global stock markets into a nose dive and ratcheted up fears of a recession.
The poll found that 57% oppose the new tariffs, including a quarter of Trump’s own Republican Party, while only 39% support the new import tax.
Trump, however, is standing firmly behind his plan, arguing foreign nations will capulate and drop their tariffs on American goods.
‘I am telling you, these countries are calling us up, kissing my ass,’ the president said Tuesday night during a speech at the National Republican Congressional Committee Dinner in Washington.
‘They are dying to make a deal. ‘Please, please sir, make a deal. I’ll do anything sir.”
Trump’s reciprocal tariffs on nearly 100 nations took effect overnight.
President Donald Trump is doubling down on his trade war
But Americans are starting to brace for higher prices and even Republicans are casting doubt on the president’s trade plan.
In the poll, 73% said they thought prices in the next six months would increase for the items they buy every day after the new taxes on almost all imports takes effect.
In a good sign for Trump a majority of Americans – 52% – agree with him that the country’s trading partners take advantage of the United States.
Trump has used this argument as the basis for his tariff planning, saying he wants equilibrium.
‘They ripped us off left and right. But now it’s our turn to do the ripping,’ he said Tuesday night.
Americans are split mostly along partisan lines on whether higher tariffs are a good idea.
Half of respondents – including almost all Republicans – said they agreed with a statement that ‘any short-term economic pain is worth it to make the U.S. stronger in the long term.’ The other half – including almost all Democrats – disagreed.
The Reuters/Ipsos poll, which was conducted online and nationwide, surveyed 1,027 U.S. adults and had a margin of error of about 3 percentage points.
A cargo ship at the port of Los Angeles – Americans are bracing for higher prices on goods brought into the country
Last Wednesday Trump announced that every country – even uninhabited islands – would be hit with a 10 percent tariff on imports, with ‘reciprocal’ tariffs doled out to countries the White House considered to be the worst offenders.
Since then markets have cratered.
On Tuesday, after a brief rally attributed to a tariff pause possibly being on the table, the Dow ended more than 300 points down. Overall the tariff-related market drop amounted to more than 4,500 points.
As 12:01 a.m. Wednesday approached – when the tariffs would kick in – U.S. stock futures and Asian equity markets dropped.
And there may be more to come.
Trump teased more tariffs were coming.
‘We’re going to be announcing very shortly a major tariff on pharmaceuticals,’ he said.
This article was originally published by a www.dailymail.co.uk . Read the Original article here. .