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What's more, the impacts were felt globally. Protectionist policies are believed to have accounted for about half of the 25% decline in world trade and indirectly helped create economic factors that led to the second world war .

The blowback against Capitol Hill was immense as well: the optics of vote trading over the tariff act resulted in Congress delegating control over trade policy to the president just four years later because the behavior was regarded as so reckless.

All of this came against the backdrop of diplomatic American isolationism in the 1930s, which was not unlike many of Trump's current efforts to retreat from – or even attack – multilateral institutions.

Despite President Woodrow Wilson winning the Nobel Peace Prize in 1919 for his work initiating the League of Nations (a forerunner of the United Nations), for example, the US never became a member.

The term“America First” was also used widely in this period to refer to a focus on domestic policy and high tariffs.

Fast forward to present day

Trump has said that his tariffs will cause“some pain” but are“worth the price that must be paid.” Based on recent estimates from the non-partisan Peterson Institute for International Economics, Trump's tariffs could drive up costs for the average US household more than US$1,200 per year.

Whether US voters will still stand behind Trump when actual prices begin to rise is still to be determined.

However, many Republicans on Capitol Hill have rushed to Trump's defense. Congresswoman Claudia Tenney of New York told Fox News that she's glad the US is“projecting strength for once on the world stage.”

Senator Eric Schmitt of Missouri insisted that tariffs were“not a surprise,” emphasizing that Trump had relentlessly campaigned on“improving our standing in the world.”

Perhaps the sharpest Republican rebuke came from Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, who labeled the tariffs simply a“bad idea.”

Public opinion data show that tariffs are hotly contested, with partisanship shaping both general views toward tariffs and views on specific national targets.

According to a January 2025 Harvard CAPS/Harris poll , 52% of Americans overall approve of placing new tariffs on China, with 74% of Republicans in favor, but just 34% of Democrats.

Support is more modest for imposing tariffs on America's neighbors. Only 40% of voters think tariffs on Canada and Mexico are a good idea, including 59% of Republicans and 24% of Democrats.

Tariffs rank low on a list of national priorities. A mere 3% of Americans think tariffs on Canada and Mexico should be a top priority for Trump in his first 100 days, while just 11% rank tariffs on China as a top priority.

Prospect of a broader trade war

What seems clear is that Trump's proposed tariffs against Canada, Mexico, and China could be just the opening salvos in a broader tit-for-tat that may extend to Europe, and beyond.

At home, the political challenge for Trump is to keep intact what increasingly looks like a fragile coalition – balancing the interests of hardline Maga supporters who reject free trade and tech titans who see tariffs as disrupting vital supply chains, especially to Asia.