Donald Trump once promised to “drain the swamp,” tapping into populist frustration with the Washington, D.C. establishment. However, according to Wall Street Journal columnist Merrill Matthews, if Trump follows through on his plans for broad tariffs, the outcome could be the opposite: the swamp could become “bigger and slimier than ever.”
Trump has proposed significant tariff increases on imports from several countries, including a 25% tariff on all goods imported from Mexico and Canada, and a 10% tariff on all imports from China. Additionally, he has suggested universal tariffs ranging from 10 to 20 percent on all imported goods.
These proposals are part of his ongoing push to protect American industries from foreign competition. On Thursday, Matthews, co-author of On the Edge: America Faces the Entitlements Cliff, warned that Trump’s tariff plan could inadvertently strengthen the very elites he has promised to challenge.
“The problem is that Mr. Trump’s tariff program would energize and empower these elites,” Matthews wrote. “By directing government to impose levies on allies and adversaries alike, he’d be giving more strength to the swamp monsters he’s supposed to be defeating.”
Matthews expressed hope that Trump is merely using tariffs as a bargaining chip to force China, Canada, and Mexico into making concessions. However, he cautioned that only Trump knows how far he plans to push these tariffs. Should he implement them, Matthews argued, the companies most affected would rush to trade groups, public relations firms, and lobbyists for help.
“And the swamp grows,” Matthews noted, emphasizing how these groups would encourage their clients to make sizable donations to elected officials and political action committees. While such donations don’t guarantee favorable outcomes, they often provide access to lawmakers and their staff.
“Lobbyists then set up meetings and expensive meals with congressmen, their staffs, high-ranking bureaucrats or those who know them—especially former congressmen or Hill staffers now working for other lobbying firms. The supplicants plead their cases at these swanky dinners, explaining why they should be exempted from new tariffs or why their competitors shouldn’t be,” Matthews explained.
The higher the stakes, the more intense the lobbying efforts become. And right now, Matthews argues, the stakes have “never been higher.”