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Ford Hikes Car Prices Thanks to Trump’s Reckless Tariffs

3 22
thursday

Ford is jacking up the cost of its foreign-made cars, including what’s known as America’s most affordable pickup, amid Donald Trump’s disastrous auto tariffs.

Just days after the company said it didn’t expect auto prices to increase this year, a memo sent to Ford’s dealerships revealed it would hike prices on three of its Mexican-made models, Reuters first reported. The suggested retail price is expected to increase anywhere between $600 to $2,000 per car beginning May 2 and would hit the Maverick, known as the most affordable pickup truck in the country.

“This is our usual mid-year pricing actions combined with some tariffs we are facing,” Ford spokesman Said Deep told CNN. “We have not passed on the full cost of tariffs to our customers. Our approach throughout this evolving situation continues to be doing what’s right for our customers—and our business.”

Last month, the Trump administration imposed a 25 percent tariff on imported vehicles and auto parts, a devastating blow to car manufacturers who have long freely imported cars and parts without fee.

Economists estimate this will lead to imported vehicles facing tariffs ranging from $2,000 to $15,000 per vehicle, which will ultimately raise car prices for consumers. Auto dealers are already seeing a dwindling supply of available cars to sell.

On Monday, Ford said Trump’s tariffs were likely to drop the company’s profits for the year by about $1.5 billion, but that it is “well positioned to adapt to the changes tariffs are driving” in the industry. The majority of Ford’s cars are manufactured in the U.S., so it likely won’t be hit as hard by Trump’s tariffs as other manufacturers. Still, the three models it makes in Mexico—the Ford Mustang Mach-E, the Maverick, and the Bronco Sport—are already going up in price.

The auto industry has been relatively supportive of Trump’s tariff scheme, and manufacturers have been slow to peg price increases to the president’s economic policies. But now not even Ford, the pride and joy of the American auto industry, can keep up the facade.

Donald Trump is planning to pay $45 million to roll tanks down the streets of Washington, D.C., on his birthday.

It was only a few months ago that the president signed an executive order creating a program to “beautify Washington D.C.” Now he’s plotting to transform his expensive birthday parade into a demolition derby that will cause serious damage to the roads that line the nation’s capital.

Jennifer Griffin, Fox News’s chief national security correspondent, wrote on X Wednesday that the newest batch of plans for a military parade to mark the Army’s 250th anniversary—which also happens to fall on Flag Day, Trump’s birthday—will feature 90 heavy vehicles.

This would include tanks, infantry fighting vehicles, and heavy artillery weaponry. Griffin reported there would be 10 tanks and 10 Howitzers.

The first time Trump pitched the idea of throwing a massive military parade in his honor was in 2018. At the time, plans to include tanks were ultimately scrapped over concerns they would damage the roads. A Pentagon planning memo said that the procession would “include wheeled vehicles only, no tanks” because “consideration must be given to minimize damage to local infrastructure.”

This time around, it seems similar considerations to preserve local infrastructure have been skipped.

During an interview on NBC News’s Meet the Press Sunday, Trump said the hefty $45 million price tag was “peanuts compared to the value of doing it.” U.S. defense planners said that the price would fall somewhere between $25 million and $45 million, according to Griffin.

Those numbers should be questionable, however. In 2018, the estimated price tag of Trump’s parade was roughly $92 million. Imagining that these plans include many of the same features as the ones from seven years ago, inflation would put the price tag closer to $117 million.

Whatever the price may be, it will fall squarely on the Army, with the cost being divided between units. Meanwhile, the Trump administration has ordered major cost-cutting measures in the military. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth called Monday for a 20 percent reduction in the number of four-star generals and general officers in the National Guard and a 10 percent reduction in general and flag officers.

“Through these measures, we will uphold our position as the most lethal fighting force in the world, achieving peace through strength and ensuring greater efficiency, innovation, and preparedness for any challenge that lies ahead,” Hegseth stated in a memo.

It’s no secret that Trump has hated Washington for years—but that doesn’t mean he should be allowed to destroy it for a vanity project. A “No Kings Day” protest is already being planned to combat the parade.

The numbers are in, and they don’t look good for the president.

The Cook Political Report observed Wednesday that Donald Trump’s  poll numbers are in a slump with key groups that helped him win in November, including young voters, Latinos, and independents.

Cook’s newly launched poll tracker found that Trump’s net job-approval rating had plummeted just since April 15, dropping by seven points from -3.9 percent to -10.7 percent. The most dramatic shifts were witnessed in the aforementioned groups: For 18- to 29-year-old voters, Trump’s approval dropped by -11.8 points. The president lost Latinos by 10.4 points, and independents soured on Trump by 7.9 points.

“It’s worth noting that even significant slumps in the president’s popularity don’t directly translate into shifts in downballot vote choice, particularly in a deeply polarized climate,” the report read. “It’s no guarantee that most—or even many—Americans who ultimately sour on the current occupant of the White House will be driven into the arms of the Democratic Party come next November.”

Instead, those voters may be more likely to stay home—though that wouldn’t bode well for Republicans jockeying for other political positions downballot.

It’s........

© New Republic