Trump says tariffs are a "beautiful thing," but some Americans aren't buying it
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President Trump holds up a chart while speaking during a "Make America Wealthy Again" trade announcement event in the Rose Garden at the White House on April 2. Photo: Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
A majority of Americans believe President Trump's on-again, off-again sweeping tariffs will raise prices, at least in the short term, according to new polls conducted after the president's "Liberation Day" announcements.
The big picture: Trump has paused many of his steepest levies, but the global economy took a historic blow. And while the White House says Trump's dizzying trade policy has been a masterclass in negotiation, polling suggests many Americans aren't enjoying the lesson.
- Baseline 10% levies remain in place, on top of steep tariffs on Chinese goods.
- The White House did not immediately respond Sunday to Axios' request for comment.
Driving the news: 75% of Americans said in a new CBS News/YouGov poll of 2,410 U.S. adults that Trump's new tariffs would increase prices in the short term.
- In the long term, 48% said prices would be higher, compared to 22% who said there would be no impact or they were unsure and 30% who predicted prices would fall.
- More Americans (49%) in the poll, taken April 8 to 11, said that Trump's policies were making them financially worse off than they did in March (42%).
Zoom out: A recent Reuters/Ipsos poll of 1,027 adults similarly found that most Americans believe prices will increase on electronics and phones (77%), automobiles (73%), everyday items (73%) and other goods over the next six months.
- Republicans, the survey found, were less likely than Democrats or independents to say prices would increase.
- But Republicans are more likely than Democrats and independents to say that short-term economic pain is worth it to make the U.S. stronger in the long term, a sentiment 49% of Americans in the poll shared.
One stunning stat: The poll also revealed a broad misunderstanding of how tariffs, work: Overall, only 32% of Americans correctly answered that the statement "[t]ariffs are taxes paid by the country exporting goods" is false.
And a Quinnipiac University national poll of 1,407 self-identified registered voters found that in the short term, 72% of voters think the tariffs will hurt the U.S. economy, while 22% think the tariffs will help the country's economy.
- In the long term, 53% of voters think the tariffs will hurt the U.S. economy, while 41% say they'll help.
- On Trump's handling of trade, 55% of voters disapproved, according to the poll. That's up from 49% in February, according to Quinnipiac.
Zoom out: Trump's tariffs even received backlash from typically loyal corners of conservative media and some congressional Republicans as the stock market spiraled.
- Wall Street titans, including some of Trump's wealthy allies, split with the president on tariffs ahead of his partial pause, cautioning the risks of self-induced disruption on the global stage.
- Five polls conducted after Liberation Day showed a significant dip in Trump's approval rating, Axios' Zachary Basu reported.
Go deeper: Trump's unknowable tariffs leave investors hanging
