Tariffs take focus in Washington D.C. again this week as President Trump’s taxes on foreign imports went into effect on Tuesday, beginning a trade war against Canada, China, and Mexico. Following the implementation, various actions were taken by all nations involved. The United States announced a number of tariff exemptions and delays. Canada, China, and Mexico announced retaliatory tariffs.

On this week’s episode of Capitol Gains, anchor Madison Mills, Washington Correspondent Ben Werschkul, and Senior Columnist Rick Newman cut through the tariff news bluster and break down what matters most to Americans.

“Trump went forward with these tariffs on Tuesday. In the immediate days, the economic cost of them became very evident,” Werschkul says. "The CEOs and business leaders were getting to anyone they could at the White House, and they're clearly getting through in the sense that there certainly has been a walk-back [on tariff policy]. The question is what this looks like in a month when the big tariffs are in place.”

Werschkul also breaks down why Trump is so hyper-focused on tariffs in this new administration.

“It's a way to raise revenue. It's a way to get what he wants on the negotiating stage. It's a way to, sort of, have America first, and it can't be all those things at once,” Werschkul explains. "What exactly are the goals here of tariffs? Because at different times, even in the same speech from Trump or from Trump's aids, you hear different things.”

American Action Forum president and former Congressional Budget Office Director Douglas Holtz-Eakin also joins the show to provide further insight on the budget resolution bill and the economic outlook based off on President Trump’s handling of the economy thus far.

Watch more episodes of Capitol Gains here.

Capitol Gains is Yahoo Finance’s unique look at how US government policy will impact your bottom line long after the Presidential election polls have closed.

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