My guess is putting a pretty thick tariff barrier between the US and the world probably would bring the US trade account toward balance rather than away or do nothing.

That doesn’t mean it’s remotely a good idea or wise. It would risk the US dollar’s popularity as a reserve currency (for better or for worse), it would lead at least over a short-term to sharp rises in tradable good prices in the US, it would exacerbate trade tensions with our allies as well as our rivals. 5/