Despite stock market volatility following his announcement of reciprocal tariffs, President Donald Trump is standing firm on his international trade plans.
“We’ve been ripped off and taken advantage of by many countries over the years, and can’t do it anymore,” Trump said during a press conference with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House on Monday. “We have many, many countries that are coming to negotiate deals with us, and they’re going to be fair deals.”
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The statement comes amid mounting pressure from economists, investors, and even some Congressional Republicans—seven have signed onto a bill that would limit the President’s ability to issue tariffs—to pause his actions. Last week, Trump imposed tariffs on some 90 countries on top of a 10% tariff that was issued across-the-board. The tariffs were part of what the President called “Liberation Day.”
JP Morgan & Chase Co. predicted a recession would impact the U.S. this year under the tariff policy.
“We have $36 trillion in debt. I want to get rid of it, and we can do it quickly with proper deals,” Trump said Monday. “Countries don’t allow us to sell our product, but we allow them to sell their product…They charge us massive amounts of money for the privilege of going into their country. Those days are over.”
The meeting marked the first with a foreign leader in-person following the new policy’s implementation.
Some countries have acquiesced with the President’s wishes. During Monday’s press meeting, Netanyahu claimed he would work hard to “quickly” eliminate the trade deficit with the U.S.—though President Trump did not reassure Israel’s prime minister that he would reduce tariffs on the country. “Don’t forget, we help Israel a lot,” Trump said in reference to the billions of aid the U.S. sends their closest Middle Eastern ally.
Others have responded more firmly. China retaliated with a 34% tariff against American imports, which the President criticized during the press conference and on his social media platform.
“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,” Trump threatened on Truth Social Monday morning.
The President said he wasn’t worried about driving trading partners to China, claiming that many countries have already approached him about negotiations.
To some extent, the President recognized that building up domestic manufacturing and bringing back jobs would take time.
“You got to build a thing called the factory. You have to build your energy. You have to do a lot of things,” he said. “I’m giving them energy. You know, we’re going to let them build their own power plants. They’ll be their own … We need massive amounts of electricity. We’re going to compete with China and others.”