In a confusing turn, President Donald Trump offered contradictory assessments of his China tariffs, first calling them “not sustainable” and then immediately suggesting “it could stand.”
“It’s not sustainable,” Trump said in an interview, a significant admission. But he quickly added: “But that’s what the number is, it’s probably not, you know, it could stand.”
This ambiguous message comes as he confirmed a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping in two weeks. He continues to blame China, claiming “they forced me to do that.”
The president’s mixed signals extend to his outlook. He said, “I think we’re going to be fine,” but also, “I don’t know what’s going to happen,” because “China is always looking for an edge.”
A 90-day truce in the trade war is set to expire on November 10, placing a hard deadline on the upcoming talks to find a “fair deal.”
