According to a White House insider who is deeply involved in talks with U.S. trading partners, Donald Trump’s tariff threats are not to be taken seriously because they are just a “theatrical show” being put on by the attention-obsessed president.
According to a report from Politico, as Trump’s 90-day window on getting trade deals done before onerous tariffs are put in place looms, there is no real urgency at the White House which has negotiators and even some White House staff taking a dim view of the proceedings.
Politico’s Daniel Desrochers and Megan Messerly are reporting, “Foreign officials, trade experts, lawmakers and even some White House allies have expressed a nihilistic view of the July deadline, questioning whether a deal with the Trump administration means anything at all given the president’s penchant for using tariffs as leverage to get his way.”
After noting Trump himself was wavering this past week when he told reporters, “We could extend it, we could make it shorter. I’d like to make it shorter,” one insider offered a candid assessment about what is really going on.
“Trump knows the most interesting part of his presidency is the tariff conversation,” they admitted. “I find it hard to believe he’s going to surrender it that easily. It’s all fake. There’s no deadline. It’s a self-imposed landmark in this theatrical show, and that’s where we are.”
The report notes that the president has delegated negotiations to three individuals, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, with Politico is reporting they have little actual authority and are often working at cross purposes.
“The result has been a convoluted process with little progress and no end in sight. Countries have sent representatives to the U.S. on repeated visits to negotiate, but some have failed to secure meetings. Those who have secured facetime with Trump officials have sometimes left confused about U.S. demands or have been later seen their countries chastised by Trump on social media,” the report states.
Another White House insider suggested Trump just likes the attention tariff threats bring him.
“You have wins. Take them,” they remarked. “You only have to assume he doesn’t want to take them because he likes the game too much.”
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