The White House appointed University of Wisconsin-Madison economics professor Kim Ruhl to the Council of Economic Advisers (CEA) Tuesday, appointing a professor skeptical of President Donald Trump’s tariffs policy to the three-person council.
The CEA, housed in the Office of the President, advises Trump on domestic and international economic policy. Ruhl, the co-director of The Center for Research on the Wisconsin Economy, is the first economist from UW-Madison to be appointed to the council.
“I am extremely grateful for this opportunity to apply my training and expertise as an economist to timely public policy issues and I am very much looking forward to serving my country and my president,” Ruhl said.
Ruhl is an expert in international economics and has written on tariffs in the past, according to the press release. In a livestream with UW-Madison economists in October, Ruhl acknowledged that many economists do not believe the American economy will grow under Trump’s economic policy of using tariffs to limit international trade.
Trump's reelection was propelled by voter dissatisfaction with the economy, and in his first month in office, Trump announced a flurry of tariffs against Canada, Mexico and China. While Trump paused the tariffs on Canada and Mexico for 30 days before they took effect, a 10% tariff on Chinese imports went into effect Tuesday.
Trump has repeatedly blamed Canada and Mexico for the crossing of undocumented immigrants and China for the flow of fentanyl in the U.S. But whether these tariffs would achieve Trump’s goals of stopping both flows while stimulating the American economy is debated.
“There’s very little evidence that we can create jobs in any meaningful way by raising tariffs,” Ruhl said during the October livestream. “We’re paying dearly for adding a few more jobs. There’s really not much there.”
Ruhl didn’t respond to questions on why he accepted the CEA position given his past stance on tariffs.
Former UW-Madison Chancellor Rebecca Blank served on the CEA while a professor at Northwestern University under the Clinton administration, according to the press release.
Walker Family Distinguished Chair and chair of the Department of Economics Christopher Taber praised the appointment in the release, calling Ruhl an “outstanding choice for the CEA.”
“[Ruhl] is gifted with the ability to navigate the gap between academic research and actual implementation of economic ideas, which will lead him to be effective at informing policy, based on evidence,” Taber said. “This is truly the Wisconsin Idea in action.”
