President-elect Donald Trump responded on Monday to a Washington Post report, calling it “just another example of Fake News” and denying claims that he is backing away from a major campaign promise.
The report, written by economics reporter Jeff Stein, alleged that instead of sticking to Trump’s campaign pledge to impose “universal tariffs” of up to 20% on all imported goods, his team is considering tariffs only on “certain sectors deemed critical to national or economic security.” Stein cited three anonymous sources and noted that plans are not yet finalized.
Trump fired back on TruthSocial, saying, “The story in the Washington Post, quoting so-called anonymous sources, which don’t exist, falsely claims my tariff policy is being scaled back. That is wrong. The Washington Post knows it’s wrong. This is just more Fake News.”
The Post article suggested that the “critical” sectors potentially targeted by Trump’s narrower tariff plan could include defense (steel, aluminum, copper), medical supplies (syringes, vials, pharmaceutical materials), and energy (batteries, rare earth minerals, solar panels). While some economists and Republican lawmakers have criticized Trump’s original tariff proposal as “disruptive” and harmful to American consumers, the scaled-back version still appears aggressive.
Trump has also threatened Mexico and Canada with 25% tariffs and proposed an additional 10% tariff on China if they fail to stop what he calls the influx of drugs and migrants into the U.S.
Even with these adjustments, Stein noted, the proposals are “strikingly aggressive” and would challenge the global trade system. While Trump’s team argues that these measures aim to bring manufacturing jobs back to the U.S., experts warn they could lead to higher costs for consumers and provoke retaliation from other nations.
