The latest casualty in Donald Trump’s global trade wars? Antarctica’s penguin population. The former president’s sweeping new tariffs inexplicably include 10% duties on imports to the Heard and McDonald Islands – uninhabited Australian territories where the only residents wear tuxedos year-round and waddle instead of walk.
This head-scratching policy move has become instant comedy gold online. “Those penguins have been mooching off the US for long enough,” one Twitter user declared. Another imagined Trump’s reasoning: “They’re down there eating all our fish – beautiful fish, tremendous fish – and what are they giving back? Nothing!” The absurdity reached new heights when users began speculating about penguin retaliation, with references to classic cartoon battles.
While Mexico and Canada were spared these particular tariffs due to existing trade disputes, the inclusion of these barren islands (combined area: slightly larger than Philadelphia) suggests either extreme thoroughness or complete absurdity in policy-making. Whether this represents serious economic strategy or just another bizarre chapter in Trump’s unconventional approach to governance, one thing’s certain: the internet will never let him live it down.
