Bob Schwartz

Trump wants to take America back to 1913, to the moment before federal income tax, to a time when America raised revenue through tariffs.

Many reasons not to go back. Here is just one.

As we see daily, trade wars are based on competition and power. Trump believes he has the power and will exercise it so we will get at least our fair share—or more. But as we are also seeing, as in the Canadian election and elsewhere, nations also seek sovereignty and the power to chart their own path, apart from what another nation demands.

The desire for sovereignty and the competing demand to give up sovereignty is the definition of war. When tariffs reigned, when interconnectedness was low, when high-handed demands were high, right after 1913 we had a war. Two decades later we had another bigger war. With a global depression in between.

Global interdependence is not perfect and requires regular adjustment. With its imperfections, it has provided modern economic vitality. With its imperfections, it has reduced tensions and promoted comity. Without it, we are back to 1913, which may have gone well for a handful of the very rich and powerful, but not as well for the millions and millions whose lives were damaged by the wars beyond trade.

Maybe the very rich and powerful don’t care, thinking they will only get richer and more powerful no matter what happens. But the people, yes the people, do care whether the next twenty or thirty years are a time of global conflict that involves more than tariffs.

© 2025 by Bob Schwartz