Republican Senator Says ‘There’s No Question’ This Is Trump’s Economy Now: ‘He Will Be Held Responsible’

Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA) said President Donald Trump now owns the economy and will reap the consequences for better or worse.

On Wednesday, Trump levied sweeping tariffs on virtually every import, setting a baseline of 10%. But the president singled out dozens of countries and rolled even markedly higher tariffs on goods from those nations. The prospect of high prices on imported products has roiled markets, as the three major U.S. stock indexes have shed trillions in value since Thursday’s opening bell. JPMorgan has said there is a 60% chance of a recession this year.

To justify the massive tariffs, the Trump administration used a bizarre formula to falsely claim that many countries had imposed sky-high tariffs of their own on U.S. imports.

Kennedy appeared on Monday’s edition of The Arena on CNN, where host Kasie Hunt asked Kennedy if he’d prefer Trump “pause” the tariffs.

The senator responded by saying U.S. trade partners should lower tariffs on U.S. goods and added that while he understands Trump’s position, tariffs are ultimately “just interventions by government.”

“I’m not gonna feign understanding,” he said of the tariffs. “I have no idea what the impact is gonna be on the American economy or the world economy. I listen to all these economists confidently predict that it’s gonna do this or gonna do that. They’re very self-confident. Most of them act like they discovered gravity. But they don’t know what’s gonna happen. And they’re gonna have a record to prove it. So, we’ll just have to wait and see. It’s it’s been painful, but it may turn out well. It may not. If it doesn’t turn out well, I think the president will recalibrate.”

“To that point,” Hunt replied. “Do you think it’s Donald Trump’s economy now?”

“Oh, I think it is,” Kennedy said. “There’s no question. I think once he decided to add the tariffs, clearly, I mean, he will be held responsible – as he should – whether it turns out good or it turns out badly.”

Watch above via CNN.