"Steel was strong, but the truth is cold, He sold out the workers for a bar of gold."






This song, which was created by the Thom Hartmann Program, was inspired by Greg Palast's latest article for the Hartmann Report,The Great American Tariff Scam — read it here.
 
The Great American Tariff Scam Lyrics
 

[Verse 1]

He stood in a mill with his red tie tight

Told the boys in hard hats, “I’ll stand and fight”

But behind that grin and the photo flash

Was a deal with the devil and a payday stash

Steel was strong, but the truth is cold

He sold out the workers for a bar of gold

Laid off in Gary, gone in Duluth

While the billionaires laughed in their tailored suits

[Chorus]

🎶 It’s the Great American Tariff Scam

A fist full of promises, a smoke screen sham

Jobs fall down while the prices climb

And the ones who get rich are the friends of the crime

He said “I’m here to help,” then he took what he can—

That’s the Great American Tariff Scam 🎶

[Verse 2]

Steel rolls rustin’ by the railroad track

While Wall Street wolves keep slappin’ our backs

They killed the deal that could save the plant

Now the furnaces cool and the wages slant

Imports rise with a tariff tax

Domestic jobs? Ain’t comin’ back

From cars to cables, we all pay more

While they cheer from behind their private doors

[Chorus]

🎶 It’s the Great American Tariff Scam

Wrapped in a flag with a glory cam

He blocks the fix and blames the flame

Says “I’m the hero!”—but he lit the game

He’s the arsonist in a fireman’s van—

That’s the Great American Tariff Scam 🎶

[Bridge]

He said, “I’m here for the working man”

But he hands the loot to the richest hands

From Nippon Steel to the union hall

It’s always the worker that takes the fall

[Verse 3]

Now the ladle’s dry and the silence loud

As the union boys stand heads unbowed

They know the truth from the spin and smoke

From every empty promise that the huckster spoke

[Final Chorus]

🎶 It’s the Great American Tariff Scam

With a hard hat lie and a photo glam

The jobs went south, the truth went cold

But he sold you pride like it’s solid gold

Steel don’t bend, but a worker can—

In the Great American Tariff Scam 🎶

[Outro – spoken over a slow fade]

“Praise me,” he said, “I stopped the fire.”

But he was the one with the gasoline and the lighter.

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