Commerce chief wants you to work in factories 'for the rest of your life'

Another day in Trump’s America, another idiotic comment from an out-of-touch multibillionaire.During an interview on CNBC Tuesday, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said that President Donald Trump's asinine tariffs will lead Americans to work in factories for the rest of their lives—and that they'll love it. He said that a benefit of Trump’s tariffs will be that manufacturing plants will move back onshore."It's time to train people not to do the jobs of the past, but to do the great jobs of the future. This is the new model where you work in these kinds of plants for the rest of your life and your kids work here and your grandkids work here. We let the auto plants go overseas,” he said.xxYouTube Video Of course, no one wants to work a menial factory job for the rest of their days. The American dream is not to subject your kids and grandkids to a life of low-wage, low-skilled work, but rather to have upward mobility, an easier life, and solid wages.The data bears that out.A 2024 CATO Institute survey found that just 25% of Americans said that they'd be "better off" if they "worked in a factory" instead of their current field. The other 75% said that they would be dissatisfied working in a manufacturing plant.What's more, factory work is exactly the kind of life that previous generations worked hard to ensure that their children and grandchildren did not have to endure.But that wasn't the only batshit crazy comment Lutnick made in the CNBC interview.He also said that he would view it as a "hostile act" if companies raised prices because of the tariffs, including a blanket 10% tariff on all imports, auto tariffs, steel and aluminum tariffs, and a punishing 145% tariff on Chinese imports that will decimate businesses of all sizes."I think if you go out of your way to try to make it seem like your price has changed when it's nonsense. A 10% tariff is not going to change virtually any price," Lutnick said.He’s wrong, of course, since a 10% tariff would increase prices by 10%. Many small businesses simply cannot eat a 10% cut into their margins and continue to pay their workers and cover overhead costs.And many businesses face even larger tariffs than that, including the insane 145% tariff on Chinese imports, in addition to the tariffs already in place on certain Chinese goods.While Lutnick claims that the tariffs will bring upon a new age of U.S. manufacturing, the reality is that the tariffs are having terribly negative impacts already.Big Box stores have warned Trump that empty shelves and skyrocketing prices are coming for U.S. consumers, as companies have paused shipments or started to raise prices due to the tariffs. And fewer imported goods means that port workers and truckers will be hit with layoffs, as there is no cargo to remove from ships or merchandise to truck across the country.Ultimately, polling shows that Americans already don't like Trump’s tariffs—even before the worst of their effects are felt. An April Civiqs poll for Daily Kos found that 53% of voters oppose Trump’s tariffs, 49% of whom strongly oppose them.And Lutnick’s bright idea to get U.S. workers into factories for the rest of their days seems unlikely to make people warm to Trump’s insane tariff game.Thank you to the Daily Kos community who continues to fight so hard with Daily Kos. Your reader support means everything. We will continue to have you covered and keep you informed, so please donate just $3 to help support the work we do.

Another day in Trump’s America, another idiotic comment from an out-of-touch multibillionaire. During an interview on CNBC Tuesday, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said that President Donald Trump's asinine tariffs will lead Americans to work in factories for the rest of their lives—and that they'll love it. He said that a benefit of Trump’s tariffs will be that manufacturing plants will move back onshore.

"It's time to train people not to do the jobs of the past, but to do the great jobs of the future. This is the new model where you work in these kinds of plants for the rest of your life and your kids work here and your grandkids work here. We let the auto plants go overseas,” he said.

x x YouTube Video Of course, no one wants to work a menial factory job for the rest of their days. The American dream is not to subject your kids and grandkids to a life of low-wage, low-skilled work, but rather to have upward mobility, an easier life, and solid wages. The data bears that out.

A 2024 CATO Institute survey found that just 25% of Americans said that they'd be "better off" if they "worked in a factory" instead of their current field. The other 75% said that they would be dissatisfied working in a manufacturing plant. What's more, factory work is exactly the kind of life that previous generations worked hard to ensure that their children and grandchildren did not have to endure .

But that wasn't the only batshit crazy comment Lutnick made in the CNBC interview. He also said that he would view it as a "hostile act" if companies raised prices because of the tariffs, including a blanket 10% tariff on all imports, auto tariffs, steel and aluminum tariffs, and a punishing 145% tariff on Chinese imports that will decimate businesses of all sizes . "I think if you go out of your way to try to make it seem like your price has changed when it's nonsense.

A 10% tariff is not going to change virtually any price," Lutnick said . He’s wrong, of course, since a 10% tariff would increase prices by 10%. Many small businesses simply cannot eat a 10% cut into their margins and continue to pay their workers and cover overhead costs.

And many businesses face even larger tariffs than that, including the insane 145% tariff on Chinese imports, in addition to the tariffs already in place on certain Chinese goods. While Lutnick claims that the tariffs will bring upon a new age of U.S.

manufacturing, the reality is that the tariffs are having terribly negative impacts already . Big Box stores have warned Trump that empty shelves and skyrocketing prices are coming for U.S.

consumers, as companies have paused shipments or started to raise prices due to the tariffs. And fewer imported goods means that port workers and truckers will be hit with layoffs , as there is no cargo to remove from ships or merchandise to truck across the country. Ultimately, polling shows that Americans already don't like Trump’s tariffs—even before the worst of their effects are felt.

An April Civiqs poll for Daily Kos found that 53% of voters oppose Trump’s tariffs, 49% of whom strongly oppose them. And Lutnick’s bright idea to get U.S.

workers into factories for the rest of their days seems unlikely to make people warm to Trump’s insane tariff game. Thank you to the Daily Kos community who continues to fight so hard with Daily Kos. Your reader support means everything.

We will continue to have you covered and keep you informed, so please donate just $3 to help support the work we do..