Exactly. The Conservative Propaganda Machine deliberately muddied the water about taxes, and confused their easily befuddled followers.

But they have been fed a steady diet of tax demonization, where the smallest and most necessary tax is nothing less that outrageous tyranny. They despise any taxes to their core.

So why wouldn't the Dems re-brand the tariff's as "Trump's Taxes," name him as the greatest tax increaser in American history, and make EVERY Democrat say it in every single media appearance? Just repeat it over and over and over, until even we get sick of it.

Politics is 90% marketing, and the Dems messaging has been abysmal for decades. They have basically abdicated all responsibility for directing the political discourse in this country. The Republicans, now MAGA, set all the definitions, direct the entire discourse, and Dems just react to it, usually poorly.