Trump’s First 100 Days: Trade war and Trump’s media critic
By the numbers:Trump Approval Rating: 36 percentCost of border wall: $12-15 billionProposed tax on Mexican goods: 20 percent
Trump raises fury from Mexico over how to pay for the wall
White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer told reporters Thursday that President Trump has proposed a 20 percent import tax on Mexican goods in order to pay for the wall. Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto quickly came out and cancelled the proposed meeting with Trump. Meanwhile Trump faced criticism from his own party over what they perceived as igniting a trade war.
Border security yes, tariffs no. Mexico is 3rd largest trading partner. Any tariff we can levy they can levy. Huge barrier to econ growth /1
— Lindsey Graham (@LindseyGrahamSC) January 26, 2017
Since then, White House Chief of Staff Reince Priebus walked back the proposal, saying the administration is considering many options to get Mexico to pay for the wall.
Senior trump advisor blasts media in interview with media
Stephen Bannon, senior white house advisor and former executive chairman of Breitbart news, lashed out at the media in an interview with the New York Times today. “The media should be embarrassed and humiliated and keep its mouth shut and just listen for a while,” Bannon told the Times. This is amidst an already contentious relationship between the press and the Trump administration, in which Trump refused to answer a question from Jim Acosta due to CNN’s reporting about an intelligence dossier.