Even as US businesses lobby President Joe Biden to reduce or eliminate the tariffs his predecessor imposed on Chinese imports, Donald Trump is doubling down — quintupling down, in fact. Trump is considering a 60% tariff on all Chinese imports if he is reelected, according to reports, which would be five times the current average rate of 12%.

Even that understates the harm a higher tariff would do. Back-of-the-envelope calculations suggest that the new tariff would be 25 times more costly than existing trade restrictions. That would not only wreck the US economy and wreak havoc with global supply chains, but it would also devastate the federal budget.