Behind Trump's tariff shock: Who is Stephen Miran

US President Donald Trump’s decision on 2 April 2025 to impose “reciprocal” tariffs on key trading partners has shocked governments and markets around the world. While some view it as a direct economic attack, Trump calls it a way to rebalance what he sees as unfair trade practices.

At the heart of this shift is Stephen Miran, chairing the Council of Economic Advisers (CEA). Miran is one of the key voices shaping America’s new trade stance — and his ideas are now being tested on a global stage

Live at Hudson: @SteveMiran, chair of President Trump's Council of Economic Advisers, joins Senior Fellow Tom Duesterberg to discuss the administration's recent tariffs and economic agenda. https://t.co/nSQh6VRpKo

— Hudson Institute (@HudsonInstitute) April 7, 2025

Who is Stephen Miran?

• Miran holds a PhD in economics from Harvard University, where he studied under Martin Feldstein, a well-known economist who advised former President Ronald Reagan.
• He is also a senior strategist at Hudson Bay Capital Management and is a fellow at the Manhattan Institute.
• Miran echoes Trump’s worldview that the US has taken on too much — from funding global security to propping up a trading system that, in their view, benefits others more than Americans.
• In a 2023 policy paper titled 'A user’s guide to restructuring the global trading system', Miran outlined how the US could impose tariffs with minimal economic disruption. Citing the 2018-2019 trade war with China, he argued that earlier tariffs raised government revenue while the dollar absorbed the shocks.
• In a White House statement on 7 April, Miran said the US can no longer allow other countries to “free-ride on our blood, sweat, and tears”.