Tariffs and Musk’s metastasizing power an alarming mix

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The Trump 2.0 administration may be aiming for “shock and awe” with rapid-fire executive orders intended to overwhelm opposition. Instead, it’s delivering something more like “shock and huh?”

As in, why is President Donald Trump rolling out policies that defy logic and have nothing to do with driving down the price of eggs or any other essentials?

Case in point: the self-inflicted though now paused trade war with Canada, the nice neighbor to the north that shares a border with Minnesota and happens to be the top market for state exports. Trump has also aimed far heftier tariffs at Canada and another neighbor, Mexico, than those imposed on China, a true adversary.

The same how-does-this-make-any-sense question applies to Elon Musk, the unelected South African-born billionaire who appears to be operating as a fourth branch of government. The troubling ascension of this unelected technocrat has no historical precedent and requires urgent congressional action as Musk’s influence metastasizes.

Our national journey into TrumpMuskistan or MuskTrumpistan has so far been chaotic and disturbing, with everything from stunningly unqualified Cabinet picks to a bewildering attempt at a sweeping freeze on federal funding. Things became even more unsettling over the weekend with two big breaking news stories. The first involved trade and the second, an apparent power grab by Musk at the U.S. Department of the Treasury that must be stopped.

As justification for the tariffs, the White House announcement cited the “extraordinary threat posed by illegal aliens and drugs, including deadly fentanyl.”

It now appears that the Mexican and Canadian tariffs will be delayed for a month, with each country vowing to ramp up efforts to combat drug trafficking in return for the monthlong pause. Some might see that a win, but it just leaves a trade war hanging over the North American economies.

And what Canada and Mexico promised for a one-month delay are relatively easy measures to placate Trump. It won’t be so easy when four weeks pass and they’ll have to calculate the price of another month’s pause.

Immigration and drugs are indeed serious challenges. But for now, let’s set aside the obvious question of whether a trade war is the right remedy for this. Instead, a related and important query bears scrutiny: Why is Canada included in this punitive presidential prerogative?

The number of people illegally crossing into the U.S. from Canada pales in comparison to those coming in from Mexico. Those apprehended at the northern border represent “just 1.5% of nationwide Border Patrol apprehensions,” according to a Forbes analysis of U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) data for 2024.

As for fentanyl, “less than 1% of all fentanyl seizures occurred at the U.S.-Canada border,” according to Forbes.

Neither the data nor the rationale for putting Canada in the trade crosshairs hold up on examination. So why are we doing this to a trusted, proven ally?

The problems cited by Trump are acute at the southern border. But they’re certainly not new. During his first term in office, Trump negotiated a new trade agreement called USMCA, which stands for the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement.

Did Trump miss a chance to address these ills through trade during USMCA talks during his first term? Because the new tariffs suggests that a president who fancies himself a brilliant negotiator made a bad deal back then.

The trouble for those who launch trade wars is that they’re not one-sided. As expected, Canada and Mexico have proposed retaliatory measures on U.S-made goods if the pause is not extended. Reports indicate that Trump may increase duties in response. The potential fallout threatens economic growth for affected countries and includes rising prices for Americans on cars, lumber, refined and crude petroleum and many other goods.

As for whether tariffs are the right remedy to fight drugs and illegal immigration, certainly the new security measures are helpful but the broader economic fallout could potentially tip Mexico into recession, which will make it more unstable and do nothing to halt a surge of criminal activity at the border. It’s no wonder that the Wall Street Journal Editorial Board recently called this “the dumbest trade war in history.”

Then there’s the Musk situation. Reports over the weekend indicate that Musk and a crew of techies has been given access to the federal payment system.

Keep in mind that Musk is not only unelected but serving only in a role considered advisory at best through the new and nebulous “Department of Government Efficiency.” The nation’s new U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent approved this, potentially giving Musk and a team of unknowns unfettered access to Americans' personal data. It’s unclear if that also includes authority for Musk to reject spending that he personally deems unacceptable.

That’s a chilling possibility that would usurp Congress’s “power of the purse” and rob it of an essential restraint on the executive branch of government.

Hopefully, cooler heads on Trump’s economics team will prevail and put an end to the proposed tariffs. Congress also needs to shift into higher gear. Hearings and action on both Trump’s tariffs and Musk’s influence are urgent. Bessent was just confirmed on Jan. 27. Lawmakers need to haul him back right now and demand answers on Musk’s alarming new access.