Republican Louisiana Senator John Kennedy expressed deep confusion Thursday regarding Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick’s position on tariffs and trade negotiations, suggesting the administration’s trade policy lacks clear direction. The senator’s remarks followed a puzzling exchange with Lutnick during a Senate Commerce Committee hearing on Wednesday.
During the hearing, Senator Kennedy pressed Secretary Lutnick on the administration’s trade strategy, particularly concerning the goal of lowering tariffs.
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To Kennedy’s apparent bewilderment, Lutnick stated that he would not accept a trade deal from a nation, even if it offered to eliminate all tariffs and trade barriers. Lutnick reportedly argued that such a “zero-for-zero” deal would “benefit China’s economy,” an explanation that left Kennedy visibly baffled.
Speaking on “Morning Joe” after the hearing, Senator Kennedy reiterated his struggle to “understand” the purpose of ongoing trade deals if not to achieve lower tariffs and promote free exchange of goods and services.
“I asked him point blank,” Kennedy recounted, “my vision of reciprocity, which I think is a good thing, is to lower tariffs if you can to zero on both sides, and let there be a free exchange of goods and services. May the best product, the best service win.”
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However, Kennedy continued, when he presented the hypothetical scenario of Vietnam removing all tariffs and trade barriers, and asked if the U.S. would reciprocate, Lutnick’s response was a resounding “no, that would be silly.”
“So the obvious question is, why are we having these trade talks?” Kennedy asked, adding, “I don’t understand based on his answers. I’m going to try to have a conversation with him.”
The senator highlighted that this uncertainty is not limited to Capitol Hill but is also clearly reflected in the markets.
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“Every businesswoman, every businessman, everybody who has money in the market, bonds or stocks, is just going, ‘We don’t know what to do right now, because we don’t know the impact of the tariffs.'”
Kennedy indicated he was attempting to “flesh out” the administration’s direction with Secretary Lutnick, but found the secretary’s answers evasive. He warned that this “uncertainty is hurting us” and could have severe economic repercussions, particularly if Congress fails to pass tax cut extensions.
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