Charles Payne on Trump's Trade Stance and Reagan's Tariff History

Trump Halts Trade Talks with Canada

• ⚡ President Trump announced a halt to trade negotiations with Canada following the viral use of a video featuring Ronald Reagan's views on tariffs.
• 🎯 This tactic, using a Reagan video, was previously employed by corporate America to influence Trump's stance among older GOP voters.

Reagan's Use of Tariffs

• 💡 While Reagan expressed reluctance towards tariffs, his office stated he used them when US industries were jeopardized by unfair trading practices, such as the dumping of semiconductors.
• 📈 Reagan's administration implemented protectionist measures multiple times, including quotas on autos, steel, sugar, and textiles, and increased tariffs on items like Canadian lumber and Japanese semiconductors.
• 📊 A 100% tariff on Japanese semiconductor exports, a $300 million market at the time, eventually led to US chip makers doubling their market share in Japan within five years.

The Semiconductor Industry's Fight Back

• 📉 In the 1970s, America held a dominant 70% share of the DRAM market, which was largely lost to Japan due to predatory practices and dumping.
• ⚠️ The CEO of Advanced Micro acknowledged Japan's dominance in the dynamic RAM market by 1983, with many US companies seemingly giving up.
• 💡 J.R. Simplot, an Idaho entrepreneur, invested in a DRAM company started by the Parkinson brothers, playing a crucial role in reviving the US semiconductor industry against Japanese dominance.
• 🤝 Micron filed an anti-dumping complaint in 1985, followed by Intel and National Semi, with Simplot actively lobbying Ronald Reagan.
• 🚀 The video suggests that without the courage to fight back, as exemplified by Simplot, America risks losing its dominance, particularly in the emerging AI sector.