Tariffs against China hamstring the transition to a clean energy future

Citing the need to protect U.S. jobs from what otherwise would be Chinese domination of clean energy manufacturing, President Biden has announced steep new tariffs on Chinese-made steel and aluminum (25 percent), semiconductors (50 percent), solar cells (50 percent), and electric vehicles (100 percent). Though the immediate, tangible, impact of his decision might be modest — it affects just $18 billion of imports, in part because there are very few electric vehicles from China sold in the United States — Mr. Biden intended to send a message. He did; too bad it’s a mixed one.