Trump Says Reciprocal Tariffs Are Going Forward on Schedule
President Donald Trump, when asked about whether Canada and Mexico had done enough on the border to be spared 25% tariffs on their goods, went on a rant about how the U.S. has been taken advantage of by its trading partners, and said that reciprocal tariffs will go forward.
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"We're on time with the tariffs, and it seems like that's moving along very rapidly," he said at a White House press conference Feb. 24 with French President Emmanuel Macron. "We've been mistreated by many countries, not just Canada and Mexico. We were taken advantage of."
"The tariffs are going forward on time, on schedule. This is an abuse that took place for many, many years," he added at the press conference. "We'll make up a lot of territory. We want reciprocity. We want to have the same. So if somebody charges us, we charge them. It will be very good for our country. We will be liquid and rich again."
The reciprocal tariffs could apply to Canada and Mexico, even though nearly all trade between the countries is tariff free, because the administration says it is justified in applying tariffs to address other trade irritants, such as digital services taxes or tariff rate quota policies.