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President Donald Trump's fixation with tariffs is reminiscent of the Democrats' self-destructive crusade to pass the Inflation Reduction Act under former President Joe Biden. The Left treated the partisan spending bill as a moral imperative, even though honest economists across the spectrum warned that dumping hundreds of billions of dollars into a hot economy would come with a heavy cost. And more than any other policy or position, one suspects, it was inflation and the resulting economic uncertainty that hurt Democrats most over the past four years.

It is not an exaggeration to say virtually no economist in the country believes tariffs are good for Americans.

More than even immigration, though, economic disorder turns voters against politicians. And we are starting to see it. Mocking Canada is always a blast until it starts tanking peoples' 401(k)s. Rather than sitting down and forging new trade agreements with our neighbors and striking "fair" deals, the president has relied on his business-era strategy of throwing bombs and creating chaos.

The economy hates uncertainty. There have already been economic warnings that Trump's tariff threats, which he flings around daily, will backfire. There have already been significant market fluctuations driven by investors who are trying to figure out the president's intentions. Good luck! After all, Trump's own justification for implementing tariffs and starting trade wars is muddled, irrational and self-contradictory. One day, Trump is praising former President William McKinley and promising that tariffs will replace the income tax. The next day, he -- and all his defenders -- are pivoting to argue that tariffs are merely tools to force other nations to capitulate.

But corporations can't stop production on a dime every time the mercurial Trump changes course. They plan years ahead. The auto industry, for example, relies on parts that traverse the United States, Canada and Mexico. One study estimated that Trump's tariffs would increase North American production costs on most cars by between $4,000 and $10,000.

Sure, voters like the sound of protectionist policy. But if they liked it in real time, Walmart would already be out of business. A recent CBS News poll asked voters if they favored or opposed new U.S. tariffs on goods from various countries. When it came to China, 56-44 said yes. Other nations, not so much: Mexico: 44-56; Europe: 40-60; and Canada: 38-62. Americans might not like the fact that China is allegedly stealing our manufacturing jobs. This is a populist standby. However, Trump has been tougher on Canada and Mexico than the Chicoms.

It is almost surely the case that many Americans cast their votes for Republicans in 2024 thinking about the pre-COVID-19 economy, not steel tariffs.

This is something Trump might want to remember. In his patriotic and uplifting address to a joint session of Congress this week, the president offered a near-perfect glimpse of the dynamics that helped him take power. It was a speech that normies could embrace.

The Left's demeanor, conversely, was sour and weird. Democrats have become one of the most feckless political parties in modern history.

Congressional Democrats couldn't even stand to honor the memory of Laken Riley, a 22-year-old nursing student who was bludgeoned to death by an illegal alien from Venezuela. You don't need to be a pollster to understand that most Americans find the idea of spending $22 billion for free housing for illegal immigrants unacceptable.

Why? Because Democrats continue to act as if borders are merely suggestions. The fact that illegal crossings instantaneously plunged as soon as the Trump administration took power only signals to voters that Democrats are either preternaturally incompetent or deliberately sowing lawlessness. Every argument they make now leads us to believe the latter. And voters don't like anarchy.

Trump's biggest threat is Trump.

Part of the problem is that every political party does a fantastic job of convincing itself that it has ironclad "mandates." Well, most voters, as Democrats have learned, aren't very ideological. They're fickle and often hold clashing opinions and change them often. Citizens would probably be most happy if the executive branch competently ran the country. Voters crave stability and prosperity.

And Trump's victory, despite all his bragging, was, by historical standards, quite slim. He beat a weak, often incoherent candidate who stepped in for a corrupt and incompetent president who botched virtually everything. Yet, the GOP, like every party, seems to be making the mistake of thinking it can hold power forever. History says differently.

And there is no better way to hasten that reality than by needlessly creating economic chaos.

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David Harsanyi is a senior writer at the Washington Examiner. Harsanyi is a nationally syndicated columnist and author of five books -- the most recent, "The Rise of Blue Anon," available now. His work has appeared in National Review, the Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Reason, New York Post and numerous other publications. Follow him on X @davidharsanyi.

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