President Donald Trump was saddled with the nickname “TACO Trump” last summer amid the height of the tariff and trade wars, but the acronym made another comeback following the president’s threats to Iran on Tuesday. Here’s what to know and what it means.
Easter Sunday, Trump blasted Iran in a expletive-laden threat to reopen the Strait of Hormuz or “you’ll be living in Hell” by Tuesday 8 p.m., via his Truth Social account, and then further escalated the threat on Tuesday morning when he wrote another incendiary post:
“A whole civilization will die tonight, never to be brought back again. I don’t want that to happen, but it probably will. However, now that we have Complete and Total Regime Change, where different, smarter, and less radicalized minds prevail, maybe something revolutionarily wonderful can happen, WHO KNOWS? We will find out tonight, one of the most important moments in the long and complex history of the World. 47 years of extortion, corruption, and death, will finally end. God Bless the Great People of Iran!” Trump wrote at 8 a.m.
At 6:32 p.m., approximately one and a half hours prior to the deadline of destruction, Trump backtracked in another post, “Based on conversations with Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Field Marshal Asim Munir, of Pakistan, and wherein they requested that I hold off the destructive force being sent tonight to Iran” that he’d agreed to suspend the bombing and attack of Iran for a period of two weeks calling it a “double sided CEASEFIRE.”
Trump added “The reason for doing so is that we have already met and exceeded all Military objectives, and are very far along with a definitive Agreement concerning Longterm PEACE with Iran, and PEACE in the Middle East. We received a 10 point proposal from Iran, and believe it is a workable basis on which to negotiate. Almost all of the various points of past contention have been agreed to between the United States and Iran, but a two week period will allow the Agreement to be finalized and consummated.”
On Wednesday morning, following Trump’s ceasefire announcement, the Dow Jones Industrial Average surged over 1,200 points while the S&P 500 and Nasdaq also posted significant gains and oil prices tumbled.
In another recent incident on March 23, Trump announced peace talks with Iran in a Truth Social post, sparking a a short-lived stock market rally of $1.7 trillion on that Monday morning, however, shortly after his post, Iran’s parliament speaker denied any negotiations, characterizing Trump’s postponement as a retreat.
The back and fourth is reminiscent of Trump’s negotiation tactics at the height of the tariff trade wars last summer and their impacts on the world markets, leading detractors to use the TACO nickname.
Here’s what to know about the TACO acronym and what it stands for.
What is TACO Trump? Why do people calling Trump a TACO?
The term TACO — Trump Always Chickens Out — was coined by Financial Times commentator Robert Armstrong to describe what he says is the presidents pattern of announcing heavy tariffs on countries causing economic shock, panic and stock market hits and then later reversing course with pauses or reductions that create a market rebound.
Trump has angrily rejected the TACO moniker, deriding a reporter last year who asked about it.
“Don’t ever say what you said because that’s a nasty question,” Trump said.
What is the Trump Collar?
As TACO Trump gained popularity, Nomura’s strategist Charlie McElligott came up with “Trump Collar” in the same vein. In finance, a collar is a risk management strategy for stock owners that protects from big losses but also limits gains — creating a range within which the stock’s price can fluctuate without significant profit or loss.
McElligott likened the collar term to how the stock market reacts to Trump. It may want to go up, but Trump’s random social media posts and trade-tariff remarks can make the market nervous and volatile.
“You all know ‘Art of the Deal’ Trump … and over the past month+, the ‘TACO’-kind … but what it all adds up to now is the de facto ‘Trump Collar,’ as the market retrains the reaction function in the ‘Human VVIX’ era,” said McElligott according to MarketWatch.
