Trump’s Growing Focus on Tariffs Raises Odds of Trade War

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President Donald Trump and his economic team are increasingly focusing on the revenue his tariffs would generate as he seeks to get tax cuts through Congress, pointing to an ominous path ahead for countries trying to avoid a trade war.

Trump needs as much revenue as he can get as Republicans in Congress are working to iron out a plan to extend the 2017 tax cuts that are due to expire later this year, along with additional cuts, at an overall cost of $4.5 trillion over the next 10 years.

The White House has touted using tariffs for everything from reducing trade imbalances to increasing leverage over countries to hammer out deals. Economists question Trump’s logic, warning that tariffs will lead to slower growth and thus declining government revenues while also prompting retaliation from other nations.

But comments by Trump and his top economic advisers on Feb. 20 showcased their growing emphasis on using tariffs as an income generator for the government.

In a social media post, Trump pointed to “lots of money coming in from tariffs” as way to help balance the federal budget, which is projected to have a roughly $2 trillion deficit this fiscal year. That followed the president’s declaration Feb. 19 that the government would be taking in “tremendous tariff money.”

Another …