The rhetoric over trade and tariffs was in overdrive last week. On the Sunday talk shows, the Trump Administration took a more moderate approach. Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin was on CBS’s ‘Face the Nation’ and said the Trump Administration simply wants free and fair reciprocal trade. “We’re just looking for our companies and workers to have a level playing field. I don’t expect there to be a trade war. It could be, but I don’t expect it at all. The president is willing to make sure we have free and fair trade.”
On NBC’s ‘Meet the Press,’ senior trade advisor Peter Navarro said agriculture would be protected. “When the president announced the additional $100 billion in tariffs, he also announced he was directing Sonny Perdue to immediately implement a plan to defend American farmers. It’s up to Sonny Perdue and the president to implement the plan. The details of the plan will be rolled out.” President Donald Trump went to Twitter over the weekend, saying his friendship with Chinese President Xi will continue no matter what happens with this trade dispute. Trump said China will take down its trade barriers “because it is the right thing to do.”
