Catherine Rampell

If it is temporary, if they are negotiable, what is the end game? What is he trying to get out of it? And how do you negotiate with someone who does not know what they want? That is the fundamental problem right here. At one point, members of the administration had said, oh, the goal is to get other countries to lower their tariff rates.

If it is temporary, if they are negotiable, what is the end game? What is he trying to get out of it? And how do you negotiate with someone who does not know what they want? That is the fundamental problem right here. At one point, members of the administration had said, oh, the goal is to get other countries to lower their tariff rates.

So then, you know, they'll lower them and then we will lower them as well. And then we'll have freer trade. Right. That was one proposition for how this could go. Sounds nice. But the countries that have offered to have, in fact, 0% tariffs, I think Vietnam may have been one of them, they said, no, we don't want that. So it's like, what do you even give him?

So then, you know, they'll lower them and then we will lower them as well. And then we'll have freer trade. Right. That was one proposition for how this could go. Sounds nice. But the countries that have offered to have, in fact, 0% tariffs, I think Vietnam may have been one of them, they said, no, we don't want that. So it's like, what do you even give him?

So then, you know, they'll lower them and then we will lower them as well. And then we'll have freer trade. Right. That was one proposition for how this could go. Sounds nice. But the countries that have offered to have, in fact, 0% tariffs, I think Vietnam may have been one of them, they said, no, we don't want that. So it's like, what do you even give him?

And this comes back to what I was saying before, what we alluded to before, how do you find an off-ramp? When Trump announced what feels like years ago, but I guess was only a couple of months ago, tariffs on Canada and Mexico, he had some like fig leaf about how this was about immigration and fentanyl.

And this comes back to what I was saying before, what we alluded to before, how do you find an off-ramp? When Trump announced what feels like years ago, but I guess was only a couple of months ago, tariffs on Canada and Mexico, he had some like fig leaf about how this was about immigration and fentanyl.

And this comes back to what I was saying before, what we alluded to before, how do you find an off-ramp? When Trump announced what feels like years ago, but I guess was only a couple of months ago, tariffs on Canada and Mexico, he had some like fig leaf about how this was about immigration and fentanyl.

And it is true that with Mexico, at least, we do have a lot of people coming over the border without permission. We do have fentanyl coming over the border illegally. With Canada, neither of those things appears to be true. In fact, we send more fentanyl to Canada than they send to us, so it seems.

And it is true that with Mexico, at least, we do have a lot of people coming over the border without permission. We do have fentanyl coming over the border illegally. With Canada, neither of those things appears to be true. In fact, we send more fentanyl to Canada than they send to us, so it seems.

And it is true that with Mexico, at least, we do have a lot of people coming over the border without permission. We do have fentanyl coming over the border illegally. With Canada, neither of those things appears to be true. In fact, we send more fentanyl to Canada than they send to us, so it seems.

In any event, the solution, the Canada solution, I'm using air quotes for people who are only listening to this and not watching. The solution that Canada came up with was like, we're going to have a fentanyl czar. And also, even though there's not really a fentanyl problem.

In any event, the solution, the Canada solution, I'm using air quotes for people who are only listening to this and not watching. The solution that Canada came up with was like, we're going to have a fentanyl czar. And also, even though there's not really a fentanyl problem.

In any event, the solution, the Canada solution, I'm using air quotes for people who are only listening to this and not watching. The solution that Canada came up with was like, we're going to have a fentanyl czar. And also, even though there's not really a fentanyl problem.

Yes. I don't know.

Yes. I don't know.

Yes. I don't know.

The other concession, also in scare quotes, that Canada made was we're going to invest more money in border protection, except they had already announced the same amount of money back in, I want to say, December, December or November. Like before Trump took office, they had some plan to invest like a billion dollars.

The other concession, also in scare quotes, that Canada made was we're going to invest more money in border protection, except they had already announced the same amount of money back in, I want to say, December, December or November. Like before Trump took office, they had some plan to invest like a billion dollars.

The other concession, also in scare quotes, that Canada made was we're going to invest more money in border protection, except they had already announced the same amount of money back in, I want to say, December, December or November. Like before Trump took office, they had some plan to invest like a billion dollars.