Trump Is About To Destroy The Auto Industry

With Donald Trump’s tariffs set to go into effect, barring any sort of miracle that either cancels or delays them, the auto industry in the United States is bracing for a severe impact that could cripple American auto manufacturers. Even vehicles that are built on US soil rely on parts from the countries that Trump is imposing tariffs on, so no matter what kind of car you want to buy, the prices are about to go sky high, and automakers know that this is a disaster in waiting. Ring of Fire’s Farron Cousins explains what’s happening.

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*This transcript was generated by a third-party transcription software company, so please excuse any typos.

Today is the day that Donald Trump's tariffs against Canada, Mexico, and another 10% against China. Just for good measure are slated to go into effect. And at least as of this recording, there has not been a miracle that has happened yet that has prevented those tariffs. So again, best we can assume is that the tariffs are coming today. We would all love it if they didn't, especially the automotive industry. Over the weekend, according to a new report from Bloomberg, the automotive industry began panicking that Donald Trump is essentially going to kill them with these tariffs. And here's how that's gonna work. Obviously we have plenty of automobiles on the roads here in the United States and available for purchase at dealerships that are made in either Canada or Mexico. Those vehicles will automatically have an additional 25% tacked onto them thanks to Trump's tariffs. But let's say you wanna buy American, right?

I don't need no foreign car. I want something made right here in good old US of a. Well, unfortunately for you, those cars are also going to be hit with the tariffs because each and every one of those new automobiles being assembled here in the United States assembled the key word, relies on parts from other countries, maybe not all of them, maybe not even most of them, but steel, aluminum, computer chips, all of that. Most of it does not come from here in the United States, it's coming from other places. So the vehicle as a whole may not have the 25% tariff tacked onto it, but pieces of it, very expensive pieces already will. And that, of course, is going to drive up the price. And according to the Bloomberg report, the average cost of an automobile here in the United States, assuming Trump's tariffs go, uh, go into effect, the average price will increase by $12,000 over the last 10 years alone.

The cost of automobiles, a new automobile here in the United States have risen by as much as 75% in 10 years. So we're already paying astronomical markups for vehicles here in this country to the point where a brand new car, you know, especially if it's an SUV or truck or an electric vehicle, or out of the range, out of the price range for about 80% of the country right off the top tack another 12,000 onto that. Suddenly we're looking at a situation where only the top 5% of income earners are going to be able to afford a new car. And you may think, okay, well we'll just buy used cars, right? They're not subjected to the tariffs, supply and demand. Folks.

If the demand for new cars falls, the demand for used cars goes up as the demand goes up. So too, do the prices. So even on those used vehicle lots where those cars were not subjected to the tariffs, none of it, those prices will also go up because the demand is going to skyrocket because nobody can afford a new car. So once again, we're looking at the same scenario, and this is 100% because of Donald Trump's decision. He is unilaterally putting these tariffs in place. This isn't the house, this isn't the Senate, this isn't the judicial branch. This isn't the voters. This is Donald Trump who was put there by these very same voters who said they were concerned about prices, but it is what it is. He is doing this on his own. So when you can no longer afford to buy a new or used car here in the United States, just like you can't afford or to be able to buy eggs, you can't afford computers because the tariffs are hitting those. Can't afford a new phone, can't afford healthcare when you can't afford any of these things. I want everyone to remember Donald Trump did this to you, not for you to, you.