Anyone with a shred of honesty and a hint of economic understanding knows that tariffs are a tax on consumers. As President Donald Trump tries to impose taxes on anything with a pulse, prices are starting to rise, with a wave of online platforms adding tariff costs to receipts. First came the Chinese e-commerce retailers Shein and Temu, who both face tariff rates of well over 100%. But then came the American giant, Amazon, which will reportedly soon display “import charges” on its website.

“This is a hostile and political act by Amazon,” White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt responded. “Why didn’t Amazon do this when the Biden administration takes inflation to the highest level in 40 years?”

“And I would also add that it’s not a surprise, because as Reuters recently wrote, Amazon has partnered with a Chinese propaganda arm. So this is another reason why Americans should buy American,” she added.

There are three major problems with this latest defense routine.

First, if it’s bad that Amazon has reportedly partnered with a Chinese propaganda arm, then perhaps Leavitt should explain why it’s not bad that Trump has ignored Congress by refusing to enforce the ban of TikTok, perhaps the biggest Chinese propaganda tool in human history.

Second, just a few weeks ago, Karoline Leavitt boasted that the Trump administration is “the most transparent, competent, and collaborative administration in history!” What could be more transparent than displaying tariff-related price increases on Amazon purchases? We already display sales taxes and delivery fees, so why should tariffs be any different if we truly care about transparency?

Third, we were promised that tariffs wouldn’t impact consumers, and yet they are impacting consumers.

Yes, the Biden administration was an economic disaster, with inflation causing what may be generational damage. But Biden is no longer in office, and Leavitt can’t simply talk about Biden’s inflation every single time she’s forced to confront the not-so-secret reality of tariffs. Also, by comparing tariffs to inflation, Leavitt is agreeing that tariffs raise prices!

To condemn Amazon’s plan to display tariff costs on product listings as a “hostile and political act” is simply laughable, and is nothing but another chapter in the administration’s chaotic and contradictory messaging strategy.

According to the Trump administration, tariffs are magical acts of wonder that will raise funds that can be used to replace income taxes and pressure our adversaries (in reality, our allies) into agreeing to more advantageous trade deals so that these tariffs can be removed, because tariffs are bad, all while bringing manufacturing back to the United States without raising prices on consumers, because tariffs are good.

If tariffs are indeed a “tax cut,” as Leavitt herself has argued, then why is the administration fuming that Amazon is displaying the cost-related impact of tariffs?

The answer is simple: Tariffs are a tax, not a tax cut.

They know it, we know it, the vast majority of Americans know it. But as long as Donald Trump remains hyper-focused on tariffs, those in his administration are forced to continue playing the “Emperor Has No Clothes” game of lying to the American people.

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