Reporter Grills Trump Adviser on ‘Deals’ He Promised: ‘It’s Been Two Months’

The director of the National Economic Council did not offer much to a reporter who asked about the status of the trade deals President Donald Trump promised.

Director Kevin Hassett took questions from reporters at the White House on Monday amid the administration’s baseline 10% tariffs on most imports, though some goods are subject to higher rates. Businesses and investors have been grappling with all manner of tariffs Trump has rolled out early in his second term, particularly the sweeping tariffs he unveiled on “Liberation Day” on April 2.

One reporter asked Hassett how close Trump is to closing any trade deals.

“I’m sure the president has a lot on his desk, and he’s gonna decide what’s good enough and not good enough,” Hassett replied.

Another reporter asked, “You told us even before ‘Liberation Day’ that you had 15 countries that were on the brink of making a deal,” she said. “It’s been nearly two months, and you’ve had one deal.”

“There have been a whole bunch of deals,” Hassett responded.

“With what countries?” she asked.

“So, you don’t think that the deal with China counts as a deal?” Hassett asked. “And the deal with the U.K.? We’ve got like an agreement in principle with India.”

Though the U.S. and China have lowered tariffs on each other’s imports, the tariffs that remain are still higher than they were before “Liberation Day.” Regarding the U.K., the Trump administration lowered tariffs on the country’s goods and announced a framework for ongoing negotiations. As for U.S.-India talks, the countries are making contradictory claims about where matters stand.

“Everybody has seen awesome deals that are on the table,” Hassett continued. ”

Trump has previously insisted that tariffs are paid by the countries exporting the goods to the U.S., but in fact, they are paid by the importing businesses. The president appeared to admit as much when he railed against Walmart after the retailer warned of looming price hikes last week. On Saturday, Trump wrote on Truth Social, “Between Walmart and China they should, as is said, ‘EAT THE TARIFFS.'”

Watch above via C-SPAN.