CBS’s Brennan Gets Completely Schooled After Laughable Trump Tariff Question [WATCH]

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick defended President Donald Trump’s new trade policy on Sunday during an appearance on Face the Nation, where host Margaret Brennan questioned the administration’s comprehensive tariff plan and accompanying data chart.

President Trump announced the implementation of a 10% baseline tariff on all imports during a Rose Garden address on Wednesday, April 2, 2025.

The measure, which takes effect April 5, includes stricter penalties for nations with the largest trade imbalances.

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The administration described the policy as a step toward securing economic independence and protecting American jobs.

“April 2 is now Liberation Day,” President Trump declared from the Rose Garden, emphasizing a renewed commitment to U.S. manufacturing and economic security.

“This is a new era of fair trade and national strength.”

As part of the announcement, the White House released a chart detailing the disparities in global tariffs, highlighting countries that impose high duties on American exports while benefitting from low or no tariffs on their own goods entering the U.S.

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The chart was used to illustrate why a uniform tariff was necessary to create a level playing field.

Brennan, the host of CBS’s Face the Nation, questioned Lutnick about the methodology behind the chart and suggested the data presented may have been confusing.

“When we saw the President in the Rose Garden holding up that chart you helped make, that wasn’t actually tariffs,” Brennan said.

“That was actually confusing to investors because it was some kind of formula, and the countries themselves seemed kind of random.”

Brennan specifically mentioned the Heard Island and McDonald Islands, remote territories with virtually no direct trade relationship with the U.S., asking, “Why are the Heard Island and McDonald Islands, which don’t export to the United States… Why do they face a 10% tariff? Did you use AI to generate this?”

Lutnick pushed back on the implication, explaining that the inclusion of all countries was intentional and strategically necessary.

“No!” Lutnick responded. “The idea is… If you leave anything off the list, the countries that try to basically arbitrage America go through those countries to us.”

He cited past trade practices as evidence of the loopholes the new tariff policy is designed to eliminate.

“The president put tariffs on China in 2018, and what China started doing is they started going through other countries to America,” he said.

“They just passed products through other countries to America.”

Lutnick said the updated approach aims to prevent third-party transshipment and close existing gaps that have allowed foreign producers to bypass previous tariffs.

“So, the president knows that; he’s tired of it, and so he’s going to fix that,” Lutnick added.

“He basically said, ‘Look, I can’t let any part of the world be a place where China and other countries can ship through them.’”

Lutnick concluded by underscoring the national security concerns tied to long-standing trade deficits and the need to bolster domestic production.

“So, he ended those ridiculous loopholes, and now what he’s trying to say is, ‘I’m going to fix the trade deficit of the USA. It’s a national security issue… We need the greatness of America to actually be built in America.’”

Margaret Brennan Accuses Trump of Using AI to Generate His Tariff Strategy & Immediately Gets Wrecked 😂

“If you leave anything off the list, the countries that try to arbitrage America go through those countries to us … the President knows that … so he ended those loopholes”… pic.twitter.com/vX2vRI4QGK

— Chief Nerd (@TheChiefNerd) April 6, 2025

The full tariff program went into effect April 5, with additional enforcement measures scheduled for April 9 targeting countries identified as taking advantage of existing trade disparities.

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