The Michigan–Canada Analogy That Breaks the Trade-War Case

Strong jobs report, stubborn inflation: why your paycheck still doesn't stretch Unemployment sits at 4.1% and employers added 162,000 jobs in August — so why does everything still feel tight? Justin Wolfers walks through the split screen of today's economy: solid job creation on one side, wages growing just 3.1% while prices keep climbing on the other. The good news is real — if you want work, you can probably find it. The catch is that your paycheck isn't going as far as it used to, and Justin explains why that feeling is also the reality. He then unpacks Canada's retaliatory tariffs on U.S. steel, aluminum, dairy, and farm machinery — and how they've been aimed squarely at the purplest, most politically sensitive states. His sharpest point: no one thinks Michigan would get richer by taxing trade with Ohio, so why would tariffs on Canada be any different? Trade, he argues, is cooperation — closer to a marriage than a war — and a war on trade just makes the whole pie smaller. Finally, the Iran war: what was billed as a four-to-six-week operation is now past six months, and Justin explains why the runaway energy costs and eroded trust in America hit your wallet and your future. From Justin's appearance on MS NOW's State of Play | Peter Alexander, aired September 7, 2026. Chapters: 0:00 A record-low approval, a strong jobs report 0:54 The mixed economy explained 1:33 Why wages aren't keeping up 1:50 Canada's tariffs target purple states 2:45 Why not tax trade with Ohio? 3:41 Trade is cooperation, not war 4:37 The Iran war's rising costs Subscribe — it's the one border crossing that always makes you richer: on YouTube 👉    / platypuseconomics   on Substack 👉 https://newsletter.platypuseconomics.com Follow on Social Media @PlatypusEconomics and @JustinWolfers