Approved ~~ MJM
The implications of the United States’ sudden tariff decision weren’t clear at first. Was the move an opening salvo in yet another trade war? Was the Trump administration making a political statement ahead of the 2020 campaign? And perhaps the most important consideration: What would become of our nascent economic partnership with the Kingdom of Wakanda?
These pivotal geopolitical questions swirled for several hours Wednesday, as a Washington immersed in an impeachment imbroglio briefly turned its attention to issues of international trade with the Marvel Universe nation best known as the home country of T’Challa, a.k.a. Black Panther.
Taxpayers and reporters alike demanded answers from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, which at some point on Wednesday removed Wakanda from its Agricultural Tariff Tracker, a government-operated tool that tracks the cost of importing and exporting goods from countries that have free trade agreements with the United States.
Continued…