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It's been two weeks since President Donald Trump announced tariffs on more than 180 countries and territories that have been ripping us off for decades. A full-blown meltdown followed that day. But those of us who have been following President Trump for a long time knew better than to panic. The president is a master negotiator—and if there's one thing he understands, it's how to create leverage.
That leverage is clearly working, as more than 75 countries have come crawling to the United States begging to negotiate better trade deals in exchange for the president lowering tariffs. Only Democrats and their friends in the media would find a reason to be upset about that. Sadly, I'm convinced that many Democrats and woke media would rather see America fail than watch us succeed with President Trump. It's clear that the president is using tariffs as a bargaining chip to level the playing field with our trade partners. Trump is a skilled dealmaker, and his strategy is already delivering results for the American people.
President Trump understands that America boasts the strongest economy in the world—and other countries would fall apart without trade deals with the United States. But President Trump also, like me, believes that America has been taken advantage of by unfair trade deals for decades.
The truth is, the international trade system has been stacked against the United States for years. Since 1976, $20 trillion of American wealth has been transferred into foreign hands. That's more than 60 percent of the U.S. GDP in 2024. Can you believe that? This country is getting robbed in broad daylight.
Countries like Vietnam and India are prime examples of "trade partners" who have been ripping us off. In Alabama, we have seen some of the effects firsthand. For years, Vietnamese and Indian exporters have been adulterating honey with cane, rice, and corn sweeteners before dumping it on the U.S. domestic market. Additionally, Vietnam has been dumping billions of dollars' worth of catfish from sewage-polluted water into U.S. markets, while India is doing the same with shrimp—flooding the markets and driving down prices for our high-quality domestic products. Alabama's honey, catfish, and shrimp producers have had a hard time competing as a result.
With simply the threat of President Trump imposing various tariff rates, Vietnam and India are crawling to the negotiating table. The end result will hopefully give Alabama producers a fair shot to compete. Vietnam and India aren't the only countries caving to President Trump, however. More than 75 have announced their intention to negotiate with the U.S., leading President Trump to announce a 90-day pause on most tariffs, with a 10 percent blanket duty on almost all U.S. imports. The president's plan is unfolding just as he expected.
China is a different beast. When President Trump levied heavy tariffs on China, he made it clear that if Beijing retaliated, the tariffs will escalate. Predictably, China didn't back down—it imposed steep retaliatory tariffs on the U.S. But if China thinks it can intimidate President Trump, it should think again. China has a choice here—it can either renegotiate a fair trade deal, or it can pay the piper. My money is on President Trump to win in the end.
Now, I'm not saying the road ahead will be a cake walk. Americans will inevitably experience some short-term pain. We are nearly $37 trillion in debt—there's no magic formula to fix all of our country's problems overnight, especially after four disastrous years under Joe Biden. While President Trump has already accomplished more than any other president before reaching 100 days in office, it will take time to get America back on track. Trump is righting the ship, and we need to stay the course.
The short-term pain will ultimately lead to more American jobs, lower prices, and a manufacturing renaissance in this country. Leaders from every industry are praising President Trump's efforts to level the playing field for U.S. workers and manufacturers. Farmers and ranchers are optimistic that American beef exports will receive better treatment abroad.
The days of America getting ripped off by bad trade deals are over. President Trump is fully committed to doing whatever it takes to usher in the golden age of the American economy. It doesn't matter if you are a Republican or Democrat, we should all be united in supporting economic policies that prioritize American farmers, producers, businesses, and manufacturers first.
Tommy Tuberville is the senior United States senator from Alabama, a seat he has held since 2021. Before entering politics, Tuberville worked in college football as a coach. He led Ole Miss (1995-98), Auburn (1999-2008), Texas Tech (2010-12) and Cincinnati (2013-16).
The views expressed in this article are the writer's own.
