President Donald Trump assured Republicans that his “Liberation Day” tariffs will have a positive impact, teasing coming levies on pharmaceuticals as well.
Speaking at the National Republican Congressional Committee dinner in Washington, D.C., Trump sought to assure Republican critics that the chaos surrounding his tariffs is only temporary.
“Companies are pouring back into our country with plants. There’s a run on sites. There’s a run on old plants. Most of them are being ripped down for new plants. They’ve stopped building in Mexico, four or five plants, and… they’re all coming into the United States,” Trump said. “I know what the hell I’m doing. I know what I’m doing, and you know what I’m doing, too. That’s why you voted for me.”
Trump: I know what I’m doing pic.twitter.com/pa8v7bXksc
— Acyn (@Acyn) April 9, 2025
At another point of his speech, Trump said the U.S. was carrying out a war with the world, then quickly backtracked to say it wasn’t a war at all.
“I do think that the war with the world, which is not a war at all because they’re all coming here. Japan is coming here as we speak. They’re in a plane flying, lots of them. All tough negotiators,” he said.
The president bemoaned that the world had been ripping off the U.S. “left and right” for years, but “now it’s our turn to do the ripping.”
He also said he’d soon tariff pharmaceuticals so that pharmaceutical companies would leave China and other countries and “come rushing back into our country, because we’re the big market.”
“This is the largest transaction in the history of our country. And don’t let, some of these politicians go around saying … I’m telling you, these countries are calling us up, kissing my a**. They are. They are dying to make it here,” Trump said to laughter. “‘Please. Please make a deal. I’ll do anything. I’ll do anything, sir.’”
THE DEMOCRATS’ ‘BLACK MONDAY’ THAT NEVER HAPPENED
He also tread similar ground on China, denouncing Beijing for currency manipulation and other trade practices. The president instituted a 104% tariff on China after it instituted retaliatory tariffs.
Trump’s “Liberation Day” has sparked a worldwide panic as countries seek to avoid the new slew of tariffs, and the stock market has experienced a significant period of volatility.
