[pjc50]

> Oddly enough the EU imposed counter Tariffs on some weird stuff like Alcohol and Motorcycles...

Red state tariffs.

NB the US tariffs apply to EU steel and steel products, not just Chinese ones, which is why this whole thing is happening.

[LordHeini]

I am sure most people in the European parliament don't know or care what a red state is. It's one of those American things that is opaque to Europeans.

I guess they tried to find stuff to tax which does not hurt the bigger European populace.

The US biggest export is oil and they certainly want that to be cheap so no tariffs there.

And they are incapable of putting tarifst on online services and digital products.

[toomuchtodo]

EU is specifically targeting red states, in concert with Canada.

https://www.euronews.com/my-europe/2025/03/12/tariffs-eu-hit...

https://www.politico.com/news/2025/02/03/canada-tariff-targe...

[ggus]

> And they are incapable of putting tariffs on online services and digital products.

This would be interesting. And worrying. Laws are easy to write, regardless of applicability.

[LordHeini]

I guess the politicians don't want their Netflix to be more expensive.

Sadly its the EU and for every law there are untold numbers of lethargic and mostly incompetent beaurocrats trying to enforce it.

Those work very every slowly, but they are many and usually unstoppable when it comes to collecting money.

[9dev]

The thing about tariff wars is that you never want to shoot your full quiver in the first encounter, but keep some arrows for the next one. And the one after that.

I wouldn’t be so disappointed just yet; even the most lethargic beaurocrats in the EU know what’s going on. This ship is slow to steer, but if she gets moving, she’s hard to stop. Just wait!

[FirmwareBurner]

>Red state tariffs.

How does that help? That will only make red states hate the EU more, not Trump. The EU already had tariffs against red state as retaliation back in his first term and it didn't affect him.

I don't know if you know but MAGA crowd already doesn't like the EU because they see them as ungrateful freeloaders in term of trade deficit and receiving free defense and would very much like to see the US pull out of NATO and leave them to the Russians.

EU targeting them specifically will only prove their point not turn them against Trump.

IMHO, if you wann get to trump target Elon Musk's businesses and the likes of Big Tech who kissed his ring, Meta, etc.

[bitshiftfaced]

I don't know if this is about targeting red states so much as it is about just finding anything to tariff. In 2023, the EU had a trade surplus on goods with the US of about $150 billion. It's much easier for the US to find things to tariff than for the EU, since they're importing more.

[FirmwareBurner]

Sure but these "trade surplus" memes Trump keeps parroting conveniently don't include the SW products and services that makes the US so rich.

[seec]

Yes but that's a big problem, the EU doesn't really have any alternative for most of them. So, if it were to tarif them a lot, it would end up hurting the EU population more than the other way around.

If you tariff most tech stuff there is no EU native replacement available.

[ttepasse]

In 2018 the idea behind the red state tariffs was targeting republican senators and representatives. It seem to have worked.

I don't know now how that will work in the era of an authoritarian White House.

[sillyfluke]

>EU targeting them specifically will only prove their point not turn them against Trump.

This would be fun bet, where I'd be willing to take the opposite end of it just cause I'd be curious about the outcome either way. I have no doubt they would turn on Trump if the economy was depressed for a year or more as a result, enough at least to have an impact on the midterms. On the other hand, if Trump turns the economy around significantly in six months using whatever means then yes, the base would be emboldened.

[StayTrue]

You could be right. There are stories about Trump voters being hurt by his cuts and still feel it’s for the greater good.

On the other hand some of these elections are won by narrow margins. Most Trump voters didn’t sign up for pain (not personally, they only voted to harm others). Pain may influence their votes in the future or motivate their legislators to contain the executive branch.

[FirmwareBurner]

Pain also brings the desire for revenge. So when you use a weapon against someone, don't be surprised when it will be used against you.

[pjc50]

Well, yes, that's why the EU is engaging in retaliatory tariffs in the first place. As is Canada.