Will the Trump Tarriff Attack on Thailand be met with backlash against American expats here?

[Jingthing]

I think the most pain from the Trump Tariff Disastrously mistaken trade war with the entire world will hit lower and middle class Americans -- but it will also greatly hurt the targets such as Thailand at least for the shorter and medium term. 

 

So when that happens and there is no doubt that it will happen here in Thailand, there is also no doubt that Thai politicians will not blame themselves for the pain. They'll blame the USA. That's normal politics in any country.

 

So the question I have which I don't know the answer yet of course -- will there be a negative impact on American expats in Thailand? As far as government policies targeting Americans specifically and/or a growing wave of anti-Americanism among Thai people? Expat Americans in Thailand -- you may like or not like Trump, but to non-Americans you are walking talking representatives of his incredibly toxic regime. 

[blaze master]

11 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

but to non-Americans you are walking talking representatives of his incredibly toxic regime. 

 

Your opinion.

 

Step away from politics for a bit and maybe see people in a range outside of blue vs red.

 

Seems to be consuming you in an unhealthy way.

[Cameroni]

Thais don't even know where America is. Less still what the economic policies are.

 

I doubt they even noticed what is happening.

[blaze master]

3 minutes ago, Cameroni said:

Thais don't even know where America is. Less still what the economic policies are.

 

I doubt they even noticed what is happening.

 

Thailand is the center of the universe to most thai.  To think that some farmer in isan can even begin to give any f's is laughable. 

 

 

[Felton Jarvis]

Of course, it will. Actions have consequences. Expats will be the ones who suffer.

[mikeymike100]

President Trump is doing what he said he would do, it shouldn't be a big surprise.

What will probably happen is the relevant countries will negotiate some kind of deal that will benefit both parties.

[Jingthing]

4 minutes ago, mikeymike100 said:

President Trump is doing what he said he would do, it shouldn't be a big surprise.

What will probably happen is the relevant countries will negotiate some kind of deal that will benefit both parties.

You're wrong. This isn't about negotiating deals. This is Trump's ideology and he wants it to be permanent. Tariffs to replace taxes. Make the poorer Americans pay more and the rich ones pay less or nothing.

This is a bait and switch. 
If this had been openly explained that he was going to institute massive PAIN of most regular Americans, he would have had zero chance of being elected.

[Jingthing]

17 minutes ago, Felton Jarvis said:

Of course, it will. Actions have consequences. Expats will be the ones who suffer.

Well I don't know yet, but I'm sure when the bad effects hit millions of Thai people that the government will make it crystal clear who is to be blamed -- the USA. So American expats here might become revenge targets. 

Could be similar to the wave of "Asian hate" that hit the USA because of Covid.

[frank83628]

41 minutes ago, blaze master said:

 

Your opinion.

 

Step away from politics for a bit and maybe see people in a range outside of blue vs red.

 

Seems to be consuming you in an unhealthy way.

Totally, the same goes for the top AN thread starters, many of which are not even American.

[FolkGuitar]

Americans have long been seen as the 'Ugly' tourist/expats abroad, running roughshod over more polite, less aggressive cultures who 'say' nothing but notice everything.

Yes, I think we will begin to see less polite behavior towards Americans.

Hell, Americans are seeing less polite behavior towards other Americans BY Americans. Why not by the Thais?

[frank83628]

19 minutes ago, mikeymike100 said:

President Trump is doing what he said he would do, it shouldn't be a big surprise.

What will probably happen is the relevant countries will negotiate some kind of deal that will benefit both parties.

Exactly that, they ran round like headless chickens when he said he'd do It, now they run around like headless chickens again when he does it..... that has to be some sort of mental condition.

No doubt some negotiations will take place from now and more than likely deals will be made, but then they'll all start slagging off him saying he is weak and backed down, etc etc. 

 

 

 

[mikeymike100]

15 minutes ago, Jingthing said:

You're wrong. This isn't about negotiating deals. This is Trump's ideology and he wants it to be permanent. Tariffs to replace taxes. Make the poorer Americans pay more and the rich ones pay less or nothing.

This is a bait and switch. 
If this had been openly explained that he was going to institute massive PAIN of most regular Americans, he would have had zero chance of being elected.

I did see hear Trump mention that about replacing taxes with tariffs, but  Congress holds primary authority over taxation, and while Trump can impose some tariffs unilaterally via laws like the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, a full shift away from income taxes would require legislative approval—something even many Republicans might resist due to deficit concerns.

So to say "You're wrong" is ludicrous, at this stage.

Smaller economies like Vietnam (46%) or India (26%) might have no choice, than to negotiate? The U.S. is a huge market for them—Vietnam sends 30% of its exports there—and they lack the clout to sustain a prolonged fight. They’re more likely to negotiate, especially if Trump’s team targets their surpluses.

Trump may offer real concessions, which he’s hinted at with lines like “I may give a lot of countries breaks.” Japan, with a 24% tariff, is leaning toward negotiation over retaliation, likely due to its U.S. security alliance.

The pattern so far: countries negotiate when the U.S. has leverage (market access, security ties) and the cost of defiance outweighs the pain of compliance.

[save the frogs]

11 hours ago, FolkGuitar said:

Americans have long been seen as the 'Ugly' tourist/expats abroad, running roughshod over more polite, less aggressive cultures who 'say' nothing but notice everything.

Yes, I think we will begin to see less polite behavior towards Americans.

Hell, Americans are seeing less polite behavior towards other Americans BY Americans. Why not by the Thais?

 

Dont be arrogant, condescending to Thais. Act polite. And they would look foolish directing hostility toward you because of trump.

I did bump into 2 foreigners lately and inevitably they start talking about Trump, which is highly annoying. And I will mostly keep to myself and avoid socializing too much as these discussions have the potential to devolve into disputes quickly. 

 

[Jingthing]

1 minute ago, save the frogs said:

 

Dont be arrogant, condescending to Thais. Act polite. And they would look foolish directing hostility toward you because of trump.

I did bump into 2 foreigners lately and inevitably they start talking about Trump, which is highly annoying. And I will mostly keep to myself and avoid socializing too much as these discussions have the potential to devolve into disputes quickly. 

 

This isn't really about expat to expat stuff but it's fair to say the westerners are more hostile to American expats now while Russians will tend to think we are the same as them now. 

[Don Giovanni]

Thailand is nothing compared to America. They are literally nobody's.

 

This place would have been so much better off if it were colonized by the west way back when.

 

The Don.

[BLMFem]

15 minutes ago, frank83628 said:

Totally, the same goes for the top AN thread starters, many of which are not even American.

Is it a requirement to be American in order to start threads on AN? If so then you don't qualify, right?

[connda]

Will the Trump Tarriff Attack on Thailand be met with backlash against American expats here?

 

Absolutely.  No doubt they will start with you.  Probably time to leave.

[BLMFem]

1 minute ago, Don Giovanni said:

Thailand is nothing compared to America. They are literally nobody's.

 

This place would have been so much better off if it were colonized by the west way back when.

 

The Don.

Thank you for that insight.

BTW, did the police confiscate your underwear?

[Don Giovanni]

Just now, BLMFem said:

Thank you for that insight.

BTW, did the police confiscate your underwear?

No.

 

He let me pass, just as he should. Or it would have been HIM who would have been in court once I got my phone out.

 

The Don.

[save the frogs]

11 hours ago, Jingthing said:

This isn't really about expat to expat stuff but it's fair to say the westerners are more hostile to American expats now while Russians will tend to think we are the same as them now. 

I am suggesting you may need to be more cautious of other expats than Thais.

Expats will try to drag you into a conversation about Trump whereas Thais won't.

Maybe if you hate Trump, you will be seen as a hero with most other expats? I don't know. I just get out of there. 

[theshu25]

1 minute ago, Don Giovanni said:

No.

 

He let me pass, just as he should. Or it would have been HIM who would have been in court once I got my phone out.

 

The Don.

Yes,you are the big hero.

[Don Giovanni]

2 minutes ago, theshu25 said:

Yes,you are the big hero.

I was totally road legal, wearing underpants and completely within my rights...

 

License 'n all. Any funny stuff would have resulted in him, name and badge number being reported and posted on social media.

 

Get me??

 

The Don!

[jas007]

1 hour ago, Jingthing said:

I think the most pain from the Trump Tariff Disastrously mistaken trade war with the entire world will hit lower and middle class Americans -- but it will also greatly hurt the targets such as Thailand at least for the shorter and medium term. 

 

So when that happens and there is no doubt that it will happen here in Thailand, there is also no doubt that Thai politicians will not blame themselves for the pain. They'll blame the USA. That's normal politics in any country.

 

So the question I have which I don't know the answer yet of course -- will there be a negative impact on American expats in Thailand? As far as government policies targeting Americans specifically and/or a growing wave of anti-Americanism among Thai people? Expat Americans in Thailand -- you may like or not like Trump, but to non-Americans you are walking talking representatives of his incredibly toxic regime. 

If you ask me, the entire tariff thing is being blown way out of proportion. Why? Because longstanding trade patterns aren't going to reverse overnight.  Trump's changes won't make a big difference overnight, and by the time they do, Trump's term will be over.  If the tariffs were a disaster, it would be easy enough for the next President to reverse course. In the meantime, I think countries will perhaps lower their tariffs on US goods.  Why not? What's made in the USA these days, in any event?  

[rough diamond]

1 hour ago, Cameroni said:

Thais don't even know where America is. Less still what the economic policies are.

 

I doubt they even noticed what is happening.

More Thais will know where the USA is than Yanks will know where Thailand is.

[johng]

7 minutes ago, mikeymike100 said:

What will probably happen is the relevant countries will negotiate some kind of deal that will benefit both parties.

 

Exactly  If Thailand has 200% tariff on American cars for example and now America has a 25 % tariff on Thai cars  perhaps it would be in Thailand’s interest to lower its tariff to say 20%  then it can say to America  hey look at your unfair tariff  and America can say well ok  we'll lower our tariff to 20% percent as well..." it's such a crazy idea it might actually work !!! "

[phetphet]

I can't see the Thai doing a Canadian style boycott. Thy can't live without their KFC, Dunkin Donuts, McD etc.

[jonclark]

I think the backlash will be more subtle and two fold - Firstky I think a greater % of consumers globally will just avoid anything that says 'Made in the USA' hitting US Exports. 

 

Trump is now helping China hugely - as Trump represents, chaos division and protectionism, Xi now has a much easier task of presenting China as a bastion of free trade, stability and openness. How the worm has turned. This benefits China hugely. That will be the biggest backlash. 

[jayboy]

1 hour ago, Jingthing said:

Expat Americans in Thailand -- you may like or not like Trump, but to non-Americans you are walking talking representatives of his incredibly toxic regime. 

 

No, they're not.

[SunnyinBangrak]

2 minutes ago, johng said:

 

Exactly  If Thailand has 200% tariff on American cars for example and now America has a 25 % tariff on Thai cars  perhaps it would be in Thailand’s interest to lower its tariff to say 20%  then it can say to America  hey look at your unfair tariff  and America can say well ok  we'll lower our tariff to 20% percent as well..." it's such a crazy idea it might actually work !!! "

Trump haters just cant comprehend the notion of RECIPROCAL tariffs. Not much point debating against ignorance and uninformedness of such magnitude.

[Don Giovanni]

9 minutes ago, rough diamond said:

More Thais will know where the USA is than Yanks will know where Thailand is.

Should the US deport the 300,000+ Thai grifters that are currently living there??

 

Jury is still out on that one for me..

 

The Don.