Donald Trump admits he 'can't guarantee' his tariffs won't raise prices
During a recent interview, President-elect Donald Trump discussed his proposal to implement widespread tariffs, saying he couldn't "guarantee" they wouldn't raise prices.
Trump shared his thoughts in an interview with "Meet the Press" which aired on Sunday. The president-elect was asked about warnings from economists that his tariffs would make goods more expensive for consumers, to which he said he didn't believe them.
"Can you guarantee American families won't pay more?" host Kristen Welker asked.
"I can't guarantee anything. I can't guarantee tomorrow. But I can say that if you look at my — just pre-COVID, we had the greatest economy in the history of our country," Trump responded.
In the first interview since he won reelection, Trump was asked about companies saying they would have to raise prices if tariffs were put in place. He countered they would only boost the economy.
"They also solve another problem," Trump said. "If we were going to have problems having to do with wars and having to do with other things, tariffs — I have stopped wars with tariffs by saying, 'You guys want to fight, it's great. But both of you are going to pay tariffs to the United States at 100 percent.'"
He continued, saying, "Tariffs are a — properly used, are a very powerful tool, not only economically, but also for getting other things outside of economics."
Trump recently threatened to impose 25% tariffs on goods from Canada and Mexico on day one of his administration if they didn't crack down on the flow of migrants and illegal drugs across the country.
Since that promise, Trump has spoken with Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
Trump has also threatened to implement massive tariffs against China, one of the U.S.'s largest importers.
