Been talking to a heck of a lot of my trucking buddies, liberal and conservative,

[Bernardo de La Paz]

47. tRump used tariffs against Canada in 2018, before Muck bought tRump. So yeah, they are his "idea", not Muck's

... or rather his fixation. He thinks he just has to ask the country to endure a wee bit of TrumPain and then it will be all great. "Businessman" tRump is too stupid to realize big industries don't turn on a dime and he is so maniacal that he thinks a propaganda effort will paper over most of the TrumPain anyway.

Elon is operating orthogonally to tRump. Neither is controlling the other, but both are happy with the relationship, for now, because the other person does things they can't do themselves.

Elon's not interested in tariffs, he's busy moving fast and breaking things like what works in commercial markets but doesn't work in government which he is setting against the people, not for the people.

tRump is a bully. Tariffs are made for bullies and that is why tRump keeps dangling them, warning about them, making demands, placing deadlines, making extensions of deadlines, etc. We will later come to the phase where some small concessions are made, and tRump lifts tariffs with a great flourish, proclaiming he has won a great war victory. Or it might turn out that DunceOld Hoover tRump creates a deep recession that endures for some time.

Unfortunately I think it is probable he will have to touch "the hot stove" that way to get the message. As to millions of people damaged and some sent to premature deaths by the hardship? Phht, he doesn't care a fig about little people.