Trade & Tariffs
Free and fair trade that lowers costs for American families and strengthens American competitiveness.
Advancing American Freedom on Trade & Tariffs: 34 policy memos, 18 op-eds, 3 press releases, 10 legal filings.
AAF experts on Trade & Tariffs
Policy memos on Trade & Tariffs
- Tariffs Cut Canada Trade, U.S. Manufacturing Saw No Boost (October 6, 2026). U.S. goods trade with Canada has fallen $50 billion since the March 2025 tariffs, and U.S. manufacturing saw no boost.
- Canadian Trade War May be Factor in Apprehensive Jobs Report (October 2, 2026). Payroll employment increased by 29,000 jobs in September, while the unemployment rate ticked up to 4.2 percent.
- Data Doesn’t Lie: Tariffs Increased Prices (October 1, 2026). Despite what some pundits may be saying, the “Liberation Day” tariffs increased prices for durable consumer goods, raised costs for U.S. manufacturers and reduced job opportunities for American workers.
- State Exposure in Canadian Trade War (September 28, 2026). U.S. consumers and industries depend heavily on trade with Canada and are highly vulnerable to a trade war with Canada.
- A Diesel Export Ban Won’t Cut Fuel Prices (September 23, 2026). Facing surging diesel prices, Congressional leaders are considering replicating the failed energy policies of the 1970s by banning diesel exports.
- Reduce Tariffs on Business Inputs (September 17, 2026). Tariffs and other trade barriers on business inputs imported from friendly nations should be removed, including those imposed on steel, aluminum, copper, lumber, machine tools, auto parts, semiconductors, energy, fertilizer, and chemicals.
- Reduce Tariffs on Final Consumer Products (September 17, 2026). Tariffs and other trade barriers on final consumer products imported from friendly nations should be reduced.
- Reassert Congressional Power Over Tariffs (September 17, 2026). Congress should reclaim its exclusive constitutional authority over tariffs from the executive branch.
- Expand Apprenticeship Opportunities (September 17, 2026). Apprenticeships should be freed from red tape and union protectionism so that they can expand into new occupations, providing more opportunities and higher incomes.
- Reject Carbon Taxes and Cap-and-Trade (September 17, 2026). Lawmakers should reject all carbon taxes and cap-and-trade schemes.
- Basic Balance: A Desperate Attempt to Use an Old Statistic to Impose New Tariffs (August 21, 2026). The Trump Administration is attempting to use “basic balance” in court to retroactively defend the unlawful imposition of Sec. 122 tariffs. Their use of this figure has six major issues that are highlighted below.
- Tariff Lobbying Report Q2 2026 (July 22, 2026). President Trump’s still-evolving tariff policies fuel K Street profits while American families pay the price.
- Tariffs Tank Employment: Assessing One Year of Liberation Day Evidence (June 15, 2026). One year after Liberation Day, tariff data shows significant employment declines across key American industries.
- Who Pays the Aluminum Tariff – A Data Driven Assessment of Section 232 (May 28, 2026). The Section 232 aluminum tariff produced no domestic supply response.
- Protectionism Fuels Privilege, Not Prosperity (May 7, 2026). Tariffs are a mess for Main Street and a kicker for K Street.
- Free Market Policies for Farm Relief (April 24, 2026). American farmers are being squeezed by regulatory red-tape, trade wars, and kinetic conflict in the Middle East.
- OB3-60 FAQs (April 11, 2026). Frequently Asked Questions Why was it important for Congress to pass the One Big Beautiful Bill?
- Untangling the Tariff Refund Mess (April 9, 2026). On February 20, 2026, the Supreme Court held in Learning Resources, Inc. v. Trump that the tariffs imposed by the administration under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act of 1977 (IEEPA) were unlawful.
- One Year From Liberation Day (April 2, 2026). One year ago, President Trump unilaterally enacted the largest tax increase on the American people since World War II through his unprecedented Liberation Day tariffs.
- Is the White House Preparing $438 Billion in New Tariffs? (March 24, 2026). The Trump administration recently announced new tariff investigations on 16 countries and the European Union. If these investigations replicate the tariffs struck down by the Supreme Court, it will result in a $438 billion annual tax hike.
- Small Business Owners Survey (March 23, 2026). Small business owners strongly support the extension of the 2017 tax cuts with 60% saying that the “One Big Beautiful Bill” will help their business.
- Farmers Are Reaping Trump’s Tariff Whirlwind (September 30, 2025). American farmers are being hammered by Trump’s tariff tax. From higher input costs (think fertilizer and equipment) to decreased access to markets amidst trade wars, American farmers are taking it on the chin.
- Lessons From 45: How 47 Can Stand Up to China (August 26, 2025). The first Trump Administration reset the world’s narrative on China, but President Trump is walking away from that important legacy in his second term.
- From Boston to Beijing: How Trump 2 Might Forfeit America’s Pharmaceutical Advantage (August 25, 2025). While President Trump’s first term reset the generational narrative on China, his second term is pushing America’s highly successful pharmaceutical industry into the arms of the Chinese Communist Party.
- AAF: Why The Swamp Loves Tariffs (July 18, 2025). An arbitrary tariff exclusion process allows lobbyists to petition Washington bureaucrats for tariff exemptions for certain products.
- AAF Major Tariff Relief Memo (May 29, 2025)
- AAFF Liberation Day Report Card (May 2, 2025). President Trump announced America’s “Liberation Day” one month ago as he unilaterally enacted unprecedented reciprocal tariffs on China and American allies alike.
- Spoiling America’s Golden Age: Tariffs Could End America’s Golden Age Before It Begins (April 3, 2025). President Trump was elected to restore America’s economy after four years of Bidenflation.
- Frequently Asked Questions on Tariffs (March 31, 2025). Frequently Asked Questions on Tariffs What is a tariff? • A tariff (also called an impost or a duty) is a tax on an imported good. Who pays tariffs? • Americans. American importers—not foreign exporters—pay them to U.S. Customs.
- Charting A Course for American Tariff Strategy (January 14, 2025). Charting A Course for American Tariff Strategy Political debates about tariffs have become all the rage in the Trump era. Some view them as anathema; others as panacea.
- AAF: Trump Is Right On China Tariffs (December 4, 2024). Yesterday, former Vice President Mike Pence delivered a speech to the China General Chamber of Commerce, laying out a blueprint for the United States’ engagement with the Chinese Communist Party in a second Trump administration.
