Despite warnings from fellow Republicans and business leaders, White House advisers believe President Donald Trump has plans to impose a 25 percent tariff on roughly $200 billion in foreign-made cars this year, the Washington Post reported Wednesday, citing three people briefed on discussions.
Business executives and GOP members have said such a move could lead to political chaos and damage the economy but President Trump has told advisers to “simply trust his business acumen,” the Post reported.
The president underlined his business-first message in a tweet Wednesday morning.
“Every time I see a weak politician asking to stop Trade talks or the use of Tariffs to counter unfair Tariffs, I wonder, what can they be thinking?” he said. “Are we just going to continue and let our farmers and country get ripped off? Lost $817 Billion on Trade last year. No weakness!”
The U.S. president is scheduled to meet with European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker Wednesday afternoon to negotiate trade. The EU has already imposed $3.3 billion worth of tariffs on U.S. goods in response to an decision by President Trump to impose a 25 and a 10 percent duty on steel and aluminium from Europe.
The White House did not immediately respond to CNBC’s request for comment.
Read the entire Washington Post piece here.
