CA Gov. Newsom Tries End-Run Around Trump Tariffs by Seeking Special Foreign Trade Deals for State
Elections have consequences, and equity-in-tariffs is something Trump robustly campaigned for.
The juggernaut that is Trump 2.0 continues, and leftists, wokeists, and globalists are desperately seeing end-runs around the new presidential vision of America First.
One of the most desperate players is California Governor Gavin Newsom, who is attempting to rebrand himself as a centrist as he tries his hand at podcasting.
He recently took a break from attempting to become the left’s Joe Rogan and announced efforts to shield the state from the economic fallout of President Donald Trump’s newly imposed tariffs, which have triggered retaliatory measures from several countries.
Newsom is behaving as if California is its own country and is pursuing agreements with foreign nations to exempt California-made products from these retaliatory tariffs, arguing that the state’s economy should not suffer due to federal trade policies that do not reflect the interests of all Americans.
“Donald Trump’s tariffs do not represent all Americans, particularly those I represent here in the fifth largest economy in the world, the state of California,” Mr. Newsom said in a video announcement. “California is a stable trading partner and we hope you remember that as you consider California-made products.”
California is the nation’s largest agricultural producer and home to the most Fortune 500 companies in the country. It exported $23.6 billion in agricultural products in 2022, with almonds, dairy products, pistachios, wine and walnuts making up the top exports.
The Newsom administration also fears that retaliatory tariffs from countries that provide construction supplies, including timber, steel and aluminum, could hamper rebuilding in Los Angeles after January’s devastating wildfires.
I have questions, as do many others versed in US constitutional law.
Did California secede and nobody informed me??? I guess I am truly a foreign correspondent for @LegInsurrection.
— Leslie Eastman ☥ (@Mutnodjmet) April 4, 2025
As a reminder, Newsom struck clean car deals with major auto manufacturers after the Trump 1.0 White House revoked California’s authority to set more stringent emissions rules. He means to continue with the eye-poking and flame-throwing.
Newsom said Friday that California has more to lose because it leads the nation in so many areas, including venture capital and new business starts. It boasts more Fortune 500 companies than any other state, including Republican havens Texas and Florida. And its manufacturers have built everything from aircraft to electronics to electric vehicles — while its farms feed the world with crops like almonds.
“We’re not scared to use our market power to fight back against the largest tax hike of our lifetime,” he said in a post on X on Friday.
Newsom also cited how California is home to 32 of the world’s top 50 AI companies, powerhouse research institutions, and a quarter of global AI patents and papers. Cementing U.S. leadership in AI has been a stated priority of the Trump administration.
TO OUR TRADING PARTNERS AROUND THE GLOBE — California is here and ready to talk.
We will not sit idly by during Trump’s tariff war.
We make up 14% of the US GDP. We're the 5th largest economy in the world.
We’re not scared to use our market power to fight back against the… pic.twitter.com/yTfbcWW1sO
— Gavin Newsom (@GavinNewsom) April 4, 2025
However, this is Trump 2.0, and this administration is responding robustly to remind Newsom of where his priorities actually lie.
Kush Desai, a White House spokesman, responded by saying, “Gavin Newsom should focus on out-of-control homelessness, crime, regulations, and unaffordability in California, instead of trying his hand at international dealmaking.”
Newsom has no ability to dissuade Trump from his tariffs, which would likely mean fewer imports and higher prices for California, said Jonathan D. Aronson, a professor at USC Annenberg who specializes in international trade and communications. But he might be able to persuade some nations not to retaliate against the state’s industries.
“California exports a lot of almonds and avocados, a lot of tech and electronics,” Aronson said. “It might well be something that says, ’Hey, can you not target almonds? Can you not target big tech? Can you not target these things that we specialize in?’”
Finally, as Hot Air’s Beege Welborne notes, it’s not as if Trump neglected to mention his tariff platform during the campaign.
Now, I’m no stock market or financial genius – I don’t even play one here at HotAir – so ever since Trump began implementing his tariff campaign of terror, I have just sort of settled back in to watch what happens as it all shakes out.
The one thing I do keep in mind is that this tariff tussle is something the man campaigned on.
Elections have consequences, and Newsom shouldn’t be making his own international deals that undermine the potential success of America’s economic reform.
I VOTED FOR THIS. LET'S SEE HOW IT PLAYS OUT. Watching the Tariff Freakouts Has Been Interesting https://t.co/FtLTzVIPUc via @WelbornBeege of @hotairblog
— Leslie Eastman ☥ (@Mutnodjmet) April 4, 2025
Let the dice fly high. I am sick of supporting everyone else’s socialist utopia… especially California’s.
🚨 Stephen Miller just PERFECTLY outlined why tariffs are necessary
“Why should America protect the world, send foreign aid to the world, defend the world, provide for the world, and in exchange, get ripped off by every other country in the world?” 🔥 pic.twitter.com/lgqPFnLVSZ
— Nick Sortor (@nicksortor) April 4, 2025
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Comments
As usual, the leftist scumbag totally disreguards the Constitution.
Go ahead and try Newscum and watch Trump slap you down like the media whore you are.
Just like with AOC, a prescription for failure.
In this regard, highly suggest the following from Daniel Greenfield:
“The Fake Left: ‘Progressives’ are searching for an authenticity that they can never have.”
https://www.frontpagemag.com/the-fake-left/
No longer a captive audience to media, people can see the light of who these people actually are, and why they deserve to fail.
did California secede?
Stop raising our hopes.
Californians are not Southerners. So if they did it will be over as soon as the avocado toast ration is reduced.
I distinctly recall from not that long ago (weeks, maybe?) where a prominent Democrat went on TV telling us that Trump’s trade policies would deny us beer and avocados, that they came from Mexico, etc. And here we read that California EXPORTS avocados, If that is true, then there is no need to import them and have the guacamole subject to tariffs.
We are constantly lied to by these people.
At least he knows awe inspiring art when he sees it.
Hey! That’s a genuine Kamala!
“Venn Ha Ha Ha Ha.”
I know I’m in wonder.
How would a “special deal” even work?
On imports, tariffs are at the Federal level- Newsome cannot just ignore them. So, the “Chinese” et all are going to have to lower their prices and/or California must pay more than fair market value. Either way the tariff will be paid.
On exports, the counter-veiling tariffs are set by the foreign government, and why would they choose not charge Californian goods as much as other U.S. goods? What would be the benefit? If California had something the other nation really really needed perhaps I could see it, but what are those products? Wouldn’t it weaken the pressure on the U.S. from counter-veiling tariffs if any part of them were waived?
Regardless of the merits of Trump’s tariff policies, major manufacturing shifts do not happen overnight. Furthermore, manufacturing overseas was because costs were lower. Either because of tariffs or onshore manufacturing, inflation will now be higher than otherwise. Meanwhile there will be a lot of turmoil, as stated loud and clear by the stock market plunge. In 6 weeks the S&P 500 has dropped 18% and a major company like Citigroup was down a third at yesterday’s low. Many little company stocks are down a lot more. This is a big deal economically and for Republicans mid-term chances.
If these tariffs are not seriously revised or abandoned, they will kill the Republicans in the midterms, and also in 2028. They are a disaster. Leslie Eastman either voted for disaster or does not understand how these tariff rates were set.
Thank heaven you can predict the future so perfectly; why won’t everyone listen to you? I just can’t imagine. Because there has never been a stock market drop before and its bound to be the worst bear EVAH!!
Explain to me, though, why tariffs we impose are a disaster, but tariffs imposed by other countries are not?
The first part of the problem is that Trump imposed tariffs on countries that don’t even impose tariffs on the US. The tariffs are not reciprocal. The second part of the problem is that Trump used a bizarre formula to come up with his tariff rates. In essence, Trump requires each country to import the same amount of goods from the US as it exports to the US. Thus, each provider must consume the same amount. Exactly even trade. Madagascar exports vanilla beans to the US. Average wages are about $500 a year. Exactly what can Madagascar afford to import from the US to even up the trade balance? Yet it was hit with very high tariffs. The third part of the problem is that you’re an idiot who doesn’t know what he’s talking about, but keeps talking in any case.
You conflate the issues. Madagascar need not actually import ANYTHING from the United States. However what they cannot do is place tariffs on U.S. goods that COULD be imported into the country.
A Tariff isn’t the only protectionist barrier imposed to impede free trade. There’s import restrictions and subsidies both direct and indirect to support domestic producers at the expense of US workers.
Then there’s the issue of paperwork. I’m sure you’re aware that there’s all sorts of corporations who HQ in Ireland and other tax havens? The same sort of thing occurs with exports. Lets say Nation A with low/no tariff produces X but Nation B with high tariffs also produces X. What keeps a shifty exporter from shipping X from Nation B to Nation A and THEN shipping to the USA to take.advantage of the lower tariff on Nation A? Nothing, it is effectively an arbitrage based on transportation and tariff rates. That’s one reason there’s a universal 10% tariff to counteract some of that potential arbitrage. The other reason is non tariff protectionist policies.
Who said they’re not? Of course they are — primarily for those countries.
The Wealth of Nations should be mandatory reading.
I have no problem if other countries want to exempt CA products from their tariffs. Good luck with that. However CA has NO say over tariffs the fed government poses. None. Zero. Zilch.
Gruesome is, was, and will always be an ahole.
Leaving aside all sorts of legal issues, the only way I could such a deal being structured would be that the foreign country exempts California products from tariffs, and California pays the federal tariffs (or reimburses the foreign country for them) for foreign goods coming into California.
That would, of course, jack up California’s debt / taxes massively, and would lead to all sorts of gamesmanship that would aggravate the problems (e.g., foreign goods would disproportionally be routed through California before being sold into other states, thereby making California pay the tariffs on them).
This is probably just Newsome grandstanding, but were they actually to try this it would be an unmitigated disaster.
In al fairness that’s true of most of the clever things California tries.
Suppose Joe Biden through out a huge tax change that was likely to cause inflation and reduce trade, and the markets crashed. Would you all be cheering?
The Only-Trumpers are back in full force. If Trump did it, it must be right.
You have to look past the temporary slump to the future goal.
I know what Biden’s future goals were. They all involved immediate pain, but they also all led to future pain that was permanent. No rational person would ever make that trade.
Memo for Newsom: Several Democrat-run states decided to act like their own country back in 1861. Didn’t work out so well for them
On the question of whether this would be constitutional, see this article from the Congress’s web site.