Well, howdy there, Internet people, it's Bell again. So today, we're going to talk about

Trump hitting rare earths with tariffs. So Trump dropped a new executive order, and it's

leading to some confusion because it seems completely counterintuitive from an economic perspective.

But that might not be the way we should be looking

at it. Here's a message that kind of sums everything up. Bell, I've got a seriously sure question for you.

China started the export controls on rare earth minerals, which could jeopardize our supplies.

And apparently, Trump's response was to order a report that could put tariffs on them. So, they're going to be in short supply

and more expensive? This makes absolutely no sense. Am I missing something? This is like kicking

a cinder block because you're mad, you stubbed your toe.

From an economic standpoint, you're missing nothing.

It would make absolutely no sense to add another tariff to something we're having a hard

time getting.

But what if you look at it through a political lens?

If you look at the order, Trump's rhetoric in it is surprisingly saying, for lack of a better word,

even if it is through a weird nationalist filter.

Quote, President Trump recognizes that an over-reliance on foreign critical minerals and their derivative products could jeopardize U.S. defense capabilities,

infrastructure development, and technological innovation.

If he recognizes that an over-reliance on foreign sources could hurt the U.S., certainly he understands that no sources is bad. The order also says, quote,

they are key building blocks of our defense industrial base and integral to applications such as jet engines,

missile guidance systems, advanced computing, radar systems, advanced optics, and secure communications equipment.

The United States manufacturing and defense industrial bases remain dependent on foreign sources

for processed critical mineral products. Many of these foreign sources are at risk of serious,

...