At a Rose Garden event dubbed “Liberation Day,” President Trump unveiled a sweeping set of tariffs targeting virtually every U.S. trading partner. With a dramatic reveal of a banner listing the new rates, he followed through on his promise to reassert American economic dominance, declaring the United States free from what he described as decades of one-sided trade relationships.

“From this day on, we’re not going to let anyone tell us American workers and families cannot have the future that they deserve,” said Trump. He told the crowd that everything from cars to chips, minerals, and medicines would soon be produced within U.S. borders again, claiming the tariffs would bring jobs roaring back and force companies to invest domestically or face painful consequences.

Specifically, he said the pharmaceutical companies “are going to come roaring back, they’re coming roaring back, they’re all coming back to our country because if they don’t, they got a big tax to pay.” He insisted that if they comply, “I’ll be very happy, and you’re gonna be very happy, and you’re gonna be very safe.”

The numbers are bold: every country in the world will face at least a 10% tariff increase, with some seeing spikes up to 49%. That’s on top of existing tariffs already reshaped by Trump’s first term. Supporters call it long-overdue retaliation for years of economic abuse. Critics say it’s a ticking time bomb.

Economists at the libertarian-leaning Cato Institute warned the announcement brings the U.S. close to tariff levels not seen since the disastrous Smoot-Hawley Act of 1930, which many historians believe helped trigger a global depression. In a joint statement, Scott Lincicome and Colin Grabow noted that “U.S. tariffs will approach levels not seen since the Smoot-Hawley Tariff Act of 1930, which incited a global trade war and deepened the Great Depression.”

Predictably, markets responded immediately. Futures tumbled, with investors bracing for uncertainty, rising prices, and potential retaliation from major trading partners like the European Union and China. Democrats pounced, and even some Republicans expressed unease behind the scenes.

Democrat Rep. Nancy Pelosi issued a sharp rebuke. She claimed, “Donald Trump’s reckless tariffs will cause chaos in our economy, raise prices for consumers, and hurt hardworking American families.” She labeled the move as “the largest tax hike on the American people in history.”

The president’s response to critics? A reminder that this is exactly what he campaigned on. For Trump, these tariffs are not a risk — they are the strategy. And with full control of the White House and a Republican House majority behind him, it’s unlikely Democrats will be able to stop it.

As the president sees it, Liberation Day is the start of a new economic revolution. For others, it may be the beginning of a costly trade war. Either way, the consequences are coming — fast.