An economist explains what trade deficits really mean

Believing the myth that trade deficits are bad, the Trump Administration imposed global reciprocal tariffs this week. The proposal threatens to derail economic prosperity and trigger a barn burner of a recession. 
The fallacy of this myth can be clearly seen in the U.S. economic data. Over the last half-century U.S. trade deficits shrunk during recessions and increased during economic expansions. This phenomenon could not have persisted for so long if trade deficits harmed economic growth.