#TrumpTariffs The meaning of the word "reciprocity" is being strained by the Trump administration. Not only did the White House use a bizarre formula to determine the degree of its "reciprocal" tariffs on other countries, but it also refused to return the favor when Vietnam and the European Union offered to remove tariffs on U.S. imports.

White House trade advisor Peter Navarro said on CNBC's "Squawk Box" that it's Vietnam's "nontariff cheating that matters," citing examples such as how Chinese goods are often exported from Vietnam and intellectual property theft. This suggests that the Trump administration sees tariffs not just as a means to address U.S. trade imbalance (which, itself, is already not a good indicator of economic health), but also a way of fundamentally changing the way global trade and manufacturing are being conducted.

Business leaders, many of them steering companies that rely on — and have profited from — the current economic paradigm, are starting to voice their concerns and even vent their displeasure at Trump tariffs. Some are supporters and donors of the Republican Party. With the Trump administration's idiosyncratic understanding of "reciprocity," however, it seems unlikely it will repay their goodwill with its own.