Justin Wolfers: “The specific tariffs that they're put on individual countries bear no relation to reality whatsoever”
Economics professor Justin Wolfers: “The fact that they're putting tariffs on penguins and they manage to figure out the optimal tariff rate to reduce our barriers with penguins, gives you a sense of just what a joke of a policy process this is.”
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From the April 3, 2025, edition of MSNBC's Katy Tur Reports
KATY TUR (ANCHOR): Could that be possible that they're not really sure what the price effects will be?
JUSTIN WOLFERS (UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN ECONOMICS & PUBLIC POLICY PROFESSOR): If you look at the whole thing, it looks shambolic. The rumors coming out of the White House were that they hadn't gotten their homework done by Tuesday afternoon. The specific tariffs that they're put on individual countries bear no relation to reality whatsoever. They make no sense. Whoever thought they were an economist in the White House ought to resign in disgrace. And the fact that they're putting tariffs on penguins and they manage to figure out the optimal tariff rate to reduce our barriers with penguins, gives you a sense of just what a joke of a policy process this is.