President-elect Donald Trump on Monday blasted a Washington Post report claiming he planned to scale back his proposed tariffs as “another example of Fake News.”
In an article published Monday morning, the newspaper, which is owned by Amazon billionaire Jeff Bezos, reported that the president-elect was considering scaling back his “universal” tariff plan to affect only certain goods — a reduction important for one of his most controversial. policies.
“The story in the Washington Post, citing so-called anonymous sources that do not exist, falsely states that my tariff policy will be undone. This is wrong,” Trump said in a post on his social media platform Truth Social.
“The Washington Post knows it’s wrong. It’s just another example of Fake News.”
The Washington Post article cited three anonymous sources familiar with the campaign. A Washington Post spokesperson confirmed that the publication stands by its reporting.
The paper reported that early talks have discussed limiting tariffs to key goods whose supply chains Trump’s team wants to bring back to the United States.
Under the new plan, the tariffs would target the defense industrial supply chain, specifically steel, iron, aluminum and copper; medical supplies, such as syringes, needles and vials; and energy production, such as batteries, rare earth minerals and solar panels, the report said.
While still broad, the reported tariff plan would pale in comparison to the 10% to 20% import tariff that Trump touted during his campaign.
It’s unclear how the newly reported plan will mesh with Trump’s previous plans to impose 25% tariffs on Mexico and China, and an additional 10% on China, unless they crack down on drug trafficking.
Domestic tariff plans are spearheaded by Vince Haley, a Trump campaign aide set to head the White House’s Domestic Policy Council; Scott Bessent, Trump’s Treasury pick; and Howard Lutnick, Trump’s commerce secretary, The Washington Post reported.
The president-elect has faced backlash over his proposed tariffs, with some economists fearing that protectionist policies could reignite inflation by raising input costs and ultimately raising prices for American consumers and producers.
On Monday, however, economists at the American Economic Association conference in San Francisco — including former Fed chairman Ben Bernanke — said Trump’s policies may not be as inflationary as early analysis had suggested.
“Trump’s policies, despite their merits for public finances, will probably be modest in terms of their effect on the rate of inflation,” Bernanke said. “Barring a very unusual situation, possibly including political risks, it does not appear that this will fundamentally change the path of inflation.”
Other economists in attendance agreed, saying the president-elect’s policies were unlikely to cause the kind of shock analysts had previously predicted.
“President Trump has promised tariff policies that protect American manufacturers and working men and women from unfair practices by foreign companies and foreign markets,” Brian Hughes, a spokesman for the Trump transition team, said in a statement to The Washington Post. .
“As he did in his first term, he will implement economic and trade policies to make life more affordable and prosperous for our nation.”
During his first term, Trump imposed tariffs on more than $360 billion worth of goods from China, particularly steel and aluminum, The Post reported.
Trump’s transition team declined to comment further.
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