Many people are focused on how Trump’s tariffs will affect the availability of gifts around Christmas. Based on Trump’s comments, we can infer that a shelf in a toy store that once featured 30 Barbie dolls may eventually be reduced to just two. That’s a Depression-era level decline for a toy. Maybe Mattel will respond with “Great Depression Barbie,” featuring a Hobo Ken tag-along. And the dolls? They’ll cost a lot more. This pain will arrive sooner for some than for others.
Every day in America, about 918,000 people celebrate their birthday, and around 200,000 of them are 18 or younger.The best way to understand gifts and tariffs is this: with each passing day, fewer Barbie dolls will be available in stores and online because of Trump’s trade policies. The ongoing decline in the number of Barbies nationwide could be dubbed the BDI—the Barbie Doll Index—a tongue-in-cheek economic indicator that, like many others under Trump, continues to fall.
Now, Trump claims that manufacturers will come flooding back into the U.S. Imagine Barbie being made in America. Except, Mattel CEO Ynon Kreiz has made it clear that the company has no plans to move production stateside. Barbie, in fact, has never been made in the U.S. She was manufactured in Japan from 1959 to 1972, then production moved toTaiwan and Hong Kong, and later to Mexico and China.
In response, Trump blustered: “We’ll put a 100 percent tariff on his toys, and he won’t sell one toy in the United States, and that’s their biggest market.” Now everyone’s confused: Will the100% tariff be in addition to China’s 145% tariff, totaling 245%? Or will it replace it, lowering the burden? Or is Trump planning a full Barbie blockade, complete with Ken dolls standing guard at every port of entry? Imagine an American president picking fights with dolls. More ominously, will he deport them to their country of origin?
Back to birthdays. Barbie was born on March 9, 1959. She has aged remarkably well. That same year, Alaska and Hawaii became states. Mattel marked those milestones with Tlingit Barbie from Alaska in 2000 and Miko, Barbie’s Hawaiian friend, in 1985. But I digress.
Trump’s birthday is June 14. Unfortunately, it’s also Flag Day. On June 14, 1777, the Continental Congress approved the design of the national flag. In 1949, Congress officially designated it a national holiday, and President Truman signed it into law. The irony is stark: Flag Day honors American ideals of freedom, justice, and unity—principles Trump neither values nor promotes.
Two years before approving the flag, on June 14, 1775, the Continental Congress established the U.S. Army. The shared date was coincidental. This year marks the Army’s 250th anniversary. Planning for the semi-quincentennial began two years ago, and until early April 2025, no military parade was included. Now, there will be one for Trump, a 4F draft dodger during the Vietnam War. It places him in familiar company among authoritarian leaders. Only 6,600 of Trump’s soldiers—his so-called “losers and suckers,” such a derogatory phrase—will reportedly march. How the event evolves remains to be seen. While a few U.S. Presidents had a military parade, they were never for the President’s ego.
Remember who Trump has become. In a recent interview with The Atlantic, when asked whether his second term felt different, he replied, “The first time, I had two things to do—run the country and survive; I had all these crooked guys. And the second time, I run the country and the world.” (Source: https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2025/06/trump-second-term-comeback/682573/)
The parade could cost as much as $45 million. Of the cost, Trump said, “Peanuts compared to the value of doing it.” (Source:https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/trump-administration/trump-defends-high-cost-military-parade-peanuts-rcna204581) Poor math, since a military parade for Trump is worth nothing.
The parade may cost up to $45 million.Trump dismissed concerns, saying it was “peanuts compared to the value of doing it.” (Source: https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/trump-administration/trump-defends-high-cost-military-parade-peanuts-rcna204581)
That’s poor math, because a militaryparade in Trump’s honor is worth nothing.
50501 and other organizations have planned a national protest for June 14. It was already shaping up to be significant, but now it becomes even more critical as a counterpoint to King Trump’s military parade. The protest, titled “No Kings,” will reprise the April 19 national protests that spanned 980 locations and drew an estimated 1.5 million people.
As Trump gears up for his birthday parade, complete with tanks and tariffs, it’s not just Barbie who should be worried. It’s every American who believes in democracy, dignity, and the quiet strength of shared ideals. June 14 was once a day for flags and freedom. Let’s make it that again—no kings, no parades, just the people, standing tall.
Day 112: days left to January 20, 2029: 1,350 days
