Investors exhaled last weekend when Donald Trump pulled back from an escalatory tariff war with Mexico. But their relief is bound to be shortlived. Whenever the US president finds fault with another country, he reaches first for tariffs. His grievances need have nothing to do with trade: in Mexico’s case, Mr Trump was furious at the persistence of the migrant crisis on the US border. Nor does he try to link his actions to statutory cause. Mr Trump threatened Mexico under a 1977 act that authorises the president to impose penalties on America’s enemies, terrorist states and other pariahs. Mexico does not resemble any such country.
上週末，當唐納•川普(Donald Trump)從與墨西哥開打一場關稅戰爭的懸崖邊緣後退時，投資者鬆了一口氣。但他們的寬慰註定是短暫的。每當美國總統想找另一個國家的茬時，他首先會祭出關稅手段。他的怨氣並不需要與貿易有任何關係：就墨西哥而言，川普對美國南部邊境持續面臨移民危機感到憤怒。他也沒有試圖把自己的行爲與法定事由聯繫起來。川普根據1977年的一部法律威脅墨西哥，該法授權總統對美國的敵人、恐怖主義國家和其他無賴國家施以懲罰。墨西哥不像任何這樣的國家。