White House Council of Economic Advisers Chair Stephen Miran is defending the formula used to impose reciprocal tariffs -- taking the trade deficit, dividing it by the amount of exports to a country, and dividing the result in two.
President Donald Trump declared that if China doesn't withdraw its 34% retaliatory tariff hike, "above their already long term trading abuses by tomorrow, April 8th, 2025, the United States will impose ADDITIONAL Tariffs on China of 50%, effective April 9th. Additionally, all talks with China concerning their requested meetings with us will be terminated! Negotiations with other countries, which have also requested meetings, will begin taking place immediately. Thank you for your attention to this matter!"
President Donald Trump posted on social media that "if China does not withdraw its 34% increase above their already long term trading abuses by tomorrow, April 8th, 2025, the United States will impose ADDITIONAL Tariffs on China of 50%, effective April 9th." Also, "all talks with China concerning their requested meetings with us will be terminated!" he said. "Negotiations with other countries, which have also requested meetings, will begin taking place immediately."
Ahead of a long night of amendment votes on budget instructions to renew President Donald Trump's tax cuts, Democratic senators highlighted amendments that will say that new tariffs should expire if they raise prices on groceries, new houses and other goods. Those amendments, even if they gain a majority, do not actually change the laws that allowed the tariffs to be levied.
Republicans are not exactly turning against the dramatic tariff actions President Donald Trump is taking, but some are expressing hope that the reciprocal tariffs will be temporary cudgels to liberalize trade, and Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Ted Cruz, R-Texas, acknowledged that the free trade advocates in the Republican Party may not be right about that being where this is heading.
Trade groups mostly reacted in alarm to the dramatic change in tariffs with every country that is coming this month, whether because of expected retaliation against their exports or, in the case of sectors that are largely supplied by imports, the increase in costs.
Members of Congress didn't split wholly along party lines in praising or panning the dramatic increase in global tariffs coming in the next week.
Sen. Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, and Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., introduced a bill that would have future sections 232, 301 and 338 or International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA) tariffs expire after 60 days unless Congress were to approve the tariffs imposed by the president.
Lawmakers in the House of Representatives have introduced a bill to prevent the sale and import of fraudulent honey. The bill requires the FDA to create a formal definition and standard for honey and mandates the destruction of adulterated honey.
A resolution that would eliminate the fentanyl smuggling and migration emergency for Canada, and thereby end 25% and 10% tariffs on Canadian goods, passed the Senate April 2, 51-48.