Speaker of the House Paul Ryan, R-Wis., joined from left by, Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers, R-Wash., and House Majority Whip Steve Scalise, R-La., meets with reporters following a closed-door Republican strategy session on Capitol Hill as they face how to deal with President Donald Trump’s impending trade tariffs, in Washington, Tuesday, March 6, 2018. President Donald Trump isn’t budging on his international tariff stance so far despite remarkably public pleadings from Speaker Ryan and other Republican allies to back off his threat and avoid a possible trade war. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., flanked by Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., left, and Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn, R-Texas, speaks with reporters following weekly policy luncheons where they discussed school safety measures in response to the Parkland, Fla., assault that left 17 dead, at the Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 27, 2018. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)WASHINGTON (AP) – Warning of economic fallout, congressional Republicans and industry groups pressed President Donald Trump on Tuesday to narrow his plan for across-the-board tariffs on imports of steel and aluminum. Trump appeared unmoved, declaring: “Trade wars aren’t so bad.”
The president said he planned to move forward with special tariffs on imported steel and aluminum, contending the U.S. has long been “mistreated” in trade deals.
“We’re doing tariffs on steel. We cannot lose our steel industry. It’s a fraction of what it once was. And we can’t lose our aluminum industry,” Trump said during a joint news conference with Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Lofven.
Hours later, White House economic adviser Gary Cohn, who has opposed the tariffs, announced his plans to depart the White House, another signal that the president intends to go through with the penalties.
The president’s pledge for action, which would be in line with a one of his campaign promises, came after House Speaker Paul Ryan of Wisconsin called for a “more surgical approach” that would help avert a potentially dangerous trade war. Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky said there was concern Trump’s plan could lead to such disruptive turmoil.