Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-Mich.) gave credit to President Trump during a CNN interview Friday for “going after a country like China” with his massive tariff overhaul, but the communications chair for House Democrats panned the uncertainty Trump has created with his “chaotic” rollout.
“I don’t want people to think that I think the way that he’s doing this is OK,” she told CNN’s Pamela Brown. “I think we need a tariff strategy, but it needs to be appropriate — not chaotic.”
Trump has been locked in an escalating trade war with Beijing, announcing 145 percent tariffs on most Chinese imports last week. China responded by implementing 125 percent tariffs on American goods and limiting exports of rare earth minerals.
Dingell said she thinks increasing tariffs makes sense and agreed that 145 percent is appropriate.
“The Chinese communist government is subsidizing its manufacturing of many of these products; it’s manipulating their currency; it’s using slave labor,” she said. “Going after a country like China, where we don’t have a level playing field in the government subsidizing the product, it is appropriate.”
Dingell added that the administration should be aiming for a more comprehensive approach that avoids unexpected stock market and business disruptions.
“I am somebody who has said tariffs are a tool in the toolbox when used strategically,” she said. “That’s what has been missing on the tariff strategy. It’s been chaos.”