Justin Amash Slams Donald Trump’s All-Caps Tariff Tirade
President Donald Trump took to Twitter Friday to post an all-caps rant about the necessity of federal government payments to farmers funded by tariffs. In response, independent Michigan Rep. Justin Amash, who has been critical of the Trump administration’s purported socialism, slammed the president’s approach.
“Using all caps to announce more corporate welfare doesn’t make it any better. Tariff money doesn’t come from other countries; it comes from other Americans,” Amash tweeted.
In Trump’s tweet, he suggested that his funding mechanism is intended to tide farmers over until the trade deals with other countries kick in.
“IF OUR FORMALLY TARGETED FARMERS NEED ADDITIONAL AID UNTIL SUCH TIME AS THE TRADE DEALS WITH CHINA, MEXICO, CANADA AND OTHERS FULLY KICK IN, THAT AID WILL BE PROVIDED BY THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT, PAID FOR OUT OF THE MASSIVE TARIFF MONEY COMING INTO THE USA!”
Amash previously took aim at U.S. Attorney General William Barr — a close Trump ally — and his suggestion that the U.S. and its allies seek a “controlling stake” in Finland’s Nokia and Sweden’s Ericsson. The proposal was a response to Huwaei’s purported dominance in the realm of 5G telecoms technology.
“This is called socialism. One of the Trump administration’s greatest tricks has been to advance socialist policies while decrying socialism,” Amash tweeted.
After Trump’s State of the Union Address, the Michigan representative noted that — despite his alleged opposition to socialism — the president spent a significant amount of time touting federal intervention in nonfederal matters, central planning, and big-government spending. According to Amash, such policies “threaten” the rights of Americans and “undermine” their “long-term prosperity.”
Former presidential candidate Ralph Nader recently spoke to The Intercept and appeared to agree with the notion that Trump’s government employs socialism. According to Nader, the current election is a battle between the president’s “corporate socialism” and Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders‘ democratic socialism. The difference, Nader says, is that Trump’s socialism is more challenging to get rid of because of Wall Street’s control over Washington.
GOP Rep. Justin Amash: "Congress has a duty to keep the president in check … And I think we owe it to the American people to represent them, to ensure that the people we have in office are doing the right thing, are of good character, aren't violating the public trust."
Via CNN pic.twitter.com/MVC8zKHHXY— Kyle Griffin (@kylegriffin1) May 28, 2019
Amash has been critical of the Republican Party under Trump for some time. He claims that the GOP, in its current form, cares more about pleasing Trump than promoting the traditional principles of the party, including limited government, fiscal conservatism, and congressional authority.
The 39-year-old Michigan congressman left the Republican Party to become an independent back in July. The move came after Amash took backlash for calling for the president’s impeachment in the wake of Robert Mueller’s report on alleged Russian interference in the 2016 election, Vox reported.
