I think there's a lot of hubris and ignorance involved as well. Again, we're not expecting the POTUS to be an economics major, though that wouldn't hurt.
But there should be knowledgeable advisors to explain the basics, on a super high level, of how things such as tariffs work. Or whatever the issue the POTUS is dealing with. And the fact that Trump either ignores such advisors, or hires advisors so stupid they don't understand these concepts themselves, is mind boggling.
Here's an
article on tariffs that helps hammer home how tariffs work and how they affect consumers.