Many Americans might not have felt major effects from Donald Trump’s sweeping tariffs – until now.
That’s because a major shipping loophole expired at one minute past midnight on Friday. The de minimis exemption, as it’s known, allowed shipments of goods worth under $800 to come into the US duty free, often more or less skipping time-consuming inspections and paperwork.
The loophole helped reshape the way countless Americans shop, allowing ultra-low-cost Chinese e-commerce sites like Shein, Temu and AliExpress to pour everything from yarn to patio furniture, clothes to photography equipment and more into US homes.
…
At the heart of the issue: the sheer volume of packages. More than 80% of total US e-commerce shipments in 2022 were de minimis imports, the vast majority of which come from China, according to a congressional research report.
Oh no the thing they wanted happened.
Eh, no mourning the end of de minimus on my end tbh. I’d applaud if Biden did this and I’m fine with giving Trump the credit, too.
There is so much irony floating around. I like to pretend that some big-brained environmentalist bugs-bunnied Trump into doing this: “pwease mr trump, don’t shrink the american carbon footprint! it would be tewible if you ended mass consumerism and geometric economic growth! and pwease, pwease, don’t end american exceptionalism and global hegemony!”
Seriously, though, we have to make sure that the history books emphasize that all this was due to blundering and not calculation, or Trump could forever be admired as the wokest president in history.
What will Americans do without these trash… The horror
