Treasury Sec Has 3-Word Response To Countries After ‘Liberation Day’ Tariffs
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent had a straightforward three-word message for nations considering a response to the sweeping tariffs imposed by the United States: "Do not retaliate."
On what he termed "Liberation Day," President Donald Trump unveiled a new 10% tariff on all imported goods and additional retaliatory tariffs on certain key allies, accusing them of exploiting the U.S. economy.
Among the most significant tariffs are 34% on China, 20% on the European Union, 24% on Japan, and 32% on Taiwan. With an existing 20% tariff already in place, China's total tariff burden has now climbed to 54%.
"My advice to every country right now is do not retaliate. Sit back, take it in, let’s see how it goes. Because if you retaliate, there will be escalation. If you don’t retaliate, this is the high-water mark," Bessent stated during an interview on "Special Report" shortly after the announcement.
Interestingly, Mexico, Canada, Russia, and Belarus were not included among the nations facing new tariffs.
Bessent noted that the U.S. does not engage in trade with Russia or Belarus due to existing sanctions. However, data from the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative indicates that trade between the U.S. and Russia amounted to approximately $3.5 billion in 2024.
In 2024, the U.S. exported $526.1 million worth of goods to Russia, reflecting a 12.3% decline from 2023. Imports from Russia totaled $3.0 billion, representing a 34.2% drop from the previous year.
The White House confirmed that the base 10% tariff will take effect on Saturday, while the specific retaliatory tariffs will be implemented starting April 9.
"These tariffs will remain in effect until such a time as President Trump determines that the threat posed by the trade deficit and underlying nonreciprocal treatment is satisfied, resolved, or mitigated," a statement from the Trump administration declared.
During his conversation with anchor Bret Baier, Bessent emphasized that the tariffs aim to lay the groundwork for sustained economic expansion.
"We are putting ourselves back onto a sound trajectory," Bessent said, criticizing the Biden administration for what he called "gigantic" government expenditures.
"The sooner we can get certainty on tax, the sooner we can set the stage for the growth to resume," Bessent concluded.
Trump made the announcement on Wednesday evening in the Rose Garden at the White House.
“Any longer and we’re going to start being smart and with them start being very wealthy again, gonna be wealthy as a country because they’ve taken so much of our wealth away from us. What I could let that happen, we truly can be very wealthy. We can be so much wealthier than any countries, not even believable, but we’re getting smart,” Trump said.
“Nearly a century later, In the face of unrelenting economic, warfare, the United States can no longer continue with a policy of unilateral economic surrender. We that pay the deficits of Canada, Mexico and so many other countries were used to do it. We can’t do it anymore. We take care of countries all over the world. We pay for their military, we pay for everything they have to pay and then. When you want to cut back a little bit. They get upset that you’re not taking care of of many longer, but we have to take care of our people and were going to take care of our people. First said I’m sorry to say that,” Trump added.
“But it’s not too late any longer and we’re going to start being smart and we’re going to start being very wealthy again. We’re going to be wealthy as a country because they’ve taken so much of our wealth away from us. We’re not going to let that happen,” he continued.
Trump added, “We truly can be very wealthy. We can be so much wealthier than any country, it’s not even believable, but we’re getting smart. Nearly a century later, in the face of unrelenting economic warfare, the United States can no longer continue with a policy of unilateral economic surrender. We cannot pay the deficits of Canada, Mexico and so many other countries. We used to do it. We can’t do it anymore. We take care of countries all over the world. We pay for their military, we pay for everything they have to pay, and then when you want to cut back a little bit, they get upset that you’re not taking care of them any longer, but we have to take care of our people and we’re going to take care of our people first. And I’m sorry to say that.”