But nearly 500 days since President Donald Trump first implemented them, broad global tariffs have failed to live up to the promises of supporters or the warnings of critics. Instead, the lesson from these early days of big tariffs looks to be a political one. He can raise a big but hidden tax on America's middle class. Yet the response to these actions so far has been more muted than predicted. "President Trump effectively put in place a $3 trillion ... middle-class tax increase" spread over 10 years, says Marc Goldwein, senior policy director for the Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget, a nonprofit fiscal watchdog in Washington.