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The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Entertainment
Peter Bradshaw

Trump’s talk of film tariffs makes no sense, but it’s already doing damage – to Hollywood

Can’t see the wood for the trees … President Trump announces a new tariff on movies produced outside the US.
Can’t see the wood for the trees … President Trump announces a new tariff on movies produced outside the US. Photograph: David Swanson/Reuters

Another day, another bizarre, mischievous, headline-hogging pronouncement from the US president.

Steve Bannon famously advised him to flood the zone with shit – a Maga-Maoist permanent revolution of provocative, toxic nonsense. Trump is flooding the zone with tariffs, then he pauses, walks back and climbs down on tariffs, and then adds more tariffs. The latest is his bizarre plan to hit movies made in “foreign lands” with 100% tariffs. He has solemnly announced his grave concern that Hollywood was “dying” at the hands of foreigners like the UK, who give tax breaks to multinationals.

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