For too long, American businesses have been forced to compete with one hand tied behind their backs. Foreign companies, especially those China, rake in profits by stealing our IP, manipulating their currencies, leveraging forced labor, and essentially operating without any enforced environmental standards.
They pollute freely, cut corners, and churn out cheap goods that flood our markets, undercutting our manufacturers and costing us jobs. President Trump is rightly demanding fairness from our trade partners. A pollution tariff, over and above the tariffs announced on April 2, can help achieve that goal. A pollution tariff on foreign polluters isn’t just fair, it’s a commonsense way to hold them accountable and protect American workers.
Why A Pollution Tariff Makes Sense for Trump
U.S. firms achieve the highest environmental performance in the world. They invest in cleaner tech, pay for compliance, and shoulder enormous costs. Meanwhile, factories in Shanghai or Moscow crank out steel and widgets with zero regard for the mess they leave behind, all while enjoying a cost advantage that our companies can’t match. This isn’t competition; it’s a game rigged against America. A pollution tariff levels the playing field by slapping a tariff on imports from these dirty operators, making sure they pay a price for their reckless habits. It’s about ending the free ride for foreign cheaters.
This isn’t just about fairness, it’s about jobs. American manufacturing has been battered for decades by cheap imports that exploit lax standards overseas. Steel plants in Pennsylvania and auto parts shops in Michigan aren’t closing because they can’t compete on quality, they’re getting crushed by price tags propped up by foreign indifference to basic decency. A pollution tariff flips that script. By hiking the cost of dirty imports, we shield our industries from unfair undercutting and keep paychecks flowing to American workers.
President Trump’s trade policies prove that tariffs work when they are comprehensive. His administration took on China’s economic bullying with steel and aluminum tariffs, bringing back jobs and forcing Beijing to the table. The pollution tariff builds on that legacy.
It’s not about hugging trees; it’s about protecting the backbone of our economy from foreign freeloaders. When a factory in Ohio can compete without being drowned by cut-rate imports, that’s not just a win for the balance sheet, it’s a win for the families who depend on those jobs.
Relying on foreign powers that don’t play by the rules isn’t just an economic problem, it’s a national security risk. Every job or manufacturing plant we lose to adversarial economies like China’s strengthens their hand, whether it’s building up their military or tightening their grip on global supply chains. Unchecked pollution from their factories isn’t some distant headache – it’s part of a broader pattern of exploitation that weakens us. A pollution tariff hits back, cutting our dependence on these shaky partners and sending a clear message: we’re not letting any foreign country dictate our economic future or take our jobs.
This step would enable America to reclaim our national sovereignty rather than focus on global climate forums and initiatives that hand over our economic independence to elite bureaucrats. We don’t need permission from anyone to protect our interests. By taxing foreign polluters, we take control of our economic future, not theirs. It’s a practical step to keep America strong, not a plea for someone else to clean up their act.
A pollution tariff is also a revenue raiser in a challenging budget environment. Public estimates show that it could generate over $100 billion in revenue to help fund President Trump’s priorities on the border, energy and taxes.
A Common Sense Idea Based on America First Strategy
This proposal isn’t about preaching or pandering to the Greens. It’s a commonsense trade tool to punish foreign nations that exploit weak standards, to protect our workers from unfair competition, and to bolster our economic security. We’ve got the toughest businesses and the best workers in the world.
They deserve an America First trade regime that backs them up, not one that lets foreign polluters run the table.
About the Author: Robert C. O’Brien
Ambassador Robert C. O’Brien (Ret.) is the 27th National Security Advisor of the United States (2019-21) and is the Chairman of American Global Strategies.
