Honestly, if you listen to the news these days, you’d think trade wars were invented in 2018. It’s like there was this giant, peaceful vacuum where everyone played nice, and then suddenly—boom—tariffs everywhere.
But that’s just not reality.
Tariffs on China before Trump were very much a thing. They were just... different. Quieter. More "legalistic," if you want to get fancy about it. While the later trade wars felt like a sledgehammer, the stuff happening under Bush and Obama was more like a series of targeted scalpel cuts.
The Myth of the "Free Trade" Golden Age
Before 2017, the vibe in Washington was basically "constructive engagement." The idea was that if we let China into the World Trade Organization (WTO), they’d eventually start acting like a Western market economy. Bill Clinton pushed for this hard in 2000. He famously called it a "one-way street" that would open China’s markets to us without us having to change much.
Spoiler alert: It didn't quite work out that way.
But even while the U.S. was encouraging China’s rise, they weren't exactly leaving the door wide open. People forget that the U.S. government has these "trade remedy" tools they use all the time. Antidumping duties? Countervailing duties? These are just fancy names for tariffs meant to stop countries from "dumping" cheap goods or using illegal subsidies.
And man, did we use them.
George W. Bush: The Steel Struggles
A lot of people remember George W. Bush as a hardcore free trader. For the most part, he was. But in 2002, he slapped tariffs of up to 30% on imported steel. Now, this wasn't just aimed at China, but China was a huge part of the conversation.
It was a total mess.
Economic studies later showed that more Americans lost their jobs because of higher steel prices than there were people working in the actual steel industry. It was a classic "unintended consequences" situation. Bush eventually backed off, but it proved that even the most pro-trade presidents weren't afraid to use the "T-word" when the political heat got too high.
The Obama Era: Tires, Solar, and Chicken Feet
If you really want to understand tariffs on China before Trump, you have to look at 2009. This is where things got specific.
Early in his first term, President Obama used something called "Section 421." It was a special safeguard created specifically for China when they joined the WTO. The United Steelworkers union was screaming about a "surge" of cheap Chinese tires flooding the market.
Obama didn't hesitate. He slapped a 35% tariff on those tires.
The Great Chicken Foot War
China didn't just sit there. They hit back, and they hit where it hurt: chicken feet.
Seriously.
Americans don't eat many chicken feet, but they are a delicacy in China. The U.S. was exporting hundreds of millions of dollars worth of them. China slapped "antidumping" duties on U.S. poultry in retaliation. It was this weird, specific, high-stakes game of poker played with car parts and bird talons.
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The 2009 tire tariffs are a perfect case study for why this stuff is so complicated.
- The Pro: It supposedly saved about 1,200 manufacturing jobs.
- The Con: A study by the Peterson Institute found that U.S. consumers paid an extra $1.1 billion for tires.
- The Math: That works out to about $900,000 per job saved. Not exactly a bargain.
The "Invisible" Tariffs
While everyone was focused on the big headlines, the Department of Commerce was quietly grinding away.
By the time 2016 rolled around, the U.S. had hundreds of "orders" in place. These were targeted tariffs on very specific Chinese products:
- Solar panels
- Stainless steel sinks
- Paper clips
- Lined paper
- Solar cells
Basically, if a U.S. company could prove that a Chinese competitor was being subsidized by their government or selling below cost, the U.S. would slap a tariff on it.
The average tariff rate on Chinese goods in 2017 was only about 2.7%. That sounds tiny, right? But for the specific industries being protected—like steel or solar—those rates could be over 200%. It was a "hidden" trade war that had been simmering for decades.
Why Nobody Talked About It
So, why does everyone think this all started recently?
Because before 2017, we followed the "rules." When the U.S. had a problem with China, we went to the WTO. We’d file a case, wait three years, and then maybe get permission to impose a tiny, targeted tariff. It was slow. It was boring. It didn't make for great TV.
The Obama administration actually brought 11 different cases against China at the WTO. They won almost all of them—on things like rare earth metals and auto parts. But by the time the "win" happened, the industry they were trying to save was often already gone.
What You Should Do With This Info
If you're a business owner or just someone trying to make sense of the world, here’s the reality: trade tension with China isn't a "Trump thing" or a "Biden thing." It's a "U.S. policy thing" that has been building since the 90s.
Next Steps for Navigating Trade Volatility:
- Audit Your Supply Chain: If you're importing anything, don't just look at the current "big" tariffs. Check the Federal Register for "Antidumping and Countervailing Duty" (AD/CVD) orders. These can pop up overnight on very specific items like "aluminum extrusions" or "wooden bedroom furniture."
- Watch the "Safeguards": Keep an eye on Section 201 and 301 investigations. These are the "nuclear options" of trade law. Even if a president says they love free trade, these tools are always sitting in the toolbox.
- Diversify Beyond "China Plus One": The trend of moving some manufacturing to Vietnam or Mexico isn't a fad. It’s a hedge against a 25-year trend of increasing trade friction that shows no signs of stopping.
Basically, the "good old days" of no-strings-attached trade with China never really existed. We've been throwing punches for a long time; we just used to do it in a suit and tie.