European Wine: The New Frontlines of the Trade War (+ COVID-19 Five Years Later)

In this episode, Alex starts by reflecting on the COVID-19 Pandemic, five years after the first lockdowns. He reflects on his contradictory thoughts on what policymakers did right and wrong, and his time in Spain seeing a different policy perspective. For the rest of the episode, Alex talks about Trump’s reciprocal trade war with the European Union. It started with tariffs on European steel and aluminum, then tariffs on American whiskey, which led to Trump threatening tariffs on European alcohol. Trade wars can spiral out of control and this seems to be the case, as now France is threatening retaliation. Alex talks about how the worst part is that tariffs on American whiskey and almonds may damage these industries and hurt the economies of states like Tennessee and California.