Trump’s Tariff Diplomacy Is Crushing His Democratic Critics

People from all over the world are coming to invest in America.

AP/Alex Brandon
President Trump and the Saudi crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, at Riyadh, May 13, 2025. AP/Alex Brandon

President Trump in Saudi Arabia picked up another $600 billion in investments to onshore new American factories and jobs in order to make America great again.

Mr. Trump says he now has $10 trillion of investment commitments from domestic and foreign sources.

Well, having worked with him in the first term, I’m accustomed to a wee bit of exaggeration.

Though, actually, his numbers are often aspirational. And, by the way, oftentimes his numbers in many areas turn out to be accurate, when all is said and done.

I don’t really care about the specific investment number right now, though.

The fact is: People from all over the world are coming to invest in America.

Recall that when Mr. Trump unveiled his shock-and-awe reciprocal fair trade policy on “Liberation Day” in early April, most of the mainstream press and the establishment elites told us that America was in decline, the dollar was in decline, the stock market was in decline, and countries around the world will flock to China.

What a load of bunk that was. Totally wrong.

Within days, somewhere between 75 and 100 countries flocked to America to make deals on fair trade.

So many of them were talking about zero-zero tariffs.

Within days, most of our major trading partners had put concrete plans on the table for the president and Secretaries Bessent and Lutnick and others to review. 

Negotiations started in earnest.

Nobody went to Communist China. They came here to the United States, governed by Mr. Trump. 

They did not go to Xi Jinping in China, a country that has become famous for breaking promises and bullying countries and businesses everywhere.

To accommodate all of these international trade offers, Mr. Trump announced a 90-day tariff pause on all but the 10 percent universal baseline tariff.

Now, a market-opening deal has been done with Great Britain, along with good conversations with the new Canadian prime minister, Mark Carney, and then even a tariff reset with China.

The stock market has roared back. The dollar has gone up. Inflation has come down to only 1.6 percent annually in the past three months.

Groceries are down. Peanut butter is down. Bacon is down. Eggs are way down. New and used cars are flat. And oil prices are down.

Business capital goods are booming. Consumers are spending. Tariff revenues are pouring in — on track perhaps for a record-setting $200 billion in revenue this year.

Even the Fed chairman, mocked by Mr. Trump as “Too Late” Jay Powell, acknowledged that Mr. Trump’s reciprocal trade policy has not damaged the economy.

Up on Capitol Hill, Mr. Trump’s tax cuts have made it through the House Ways and Means Committee.

And, here’s a key point: For those individuals, companies, and countries pouring new investment money into America, Mr. Trump is rewarding them with enormous incentives to invest.

One-hundred percent immediate expensing for business equipment, including for building new factories, and a 15 percent Made in America corporate tax.

You see the linkage here? 

You invest in America, and we’ll give you the cheapest tax and interest rate costs of any major country.

And that’s going to be the heart of the Trump blue-collar boom.

In other words, Mr. Trump is a disruptor, but he is also a master strategist.

Six weeks ago, it looked like he was sinking.

Right now, after some clever moves, he is back in the saddle.

From Mr. Kudlow’s broadcast on Fox Business Network.


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