Sen Chuck Schumer: US should be tough on China but smart about it

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer argued Monday that while the United States needs to be tough on China, it must approach the situation with intelligence and strategically.His comments followed President Trump’s latest threat to impose an additional 50% tariff on China if Beijing does not lift its 34% tariffs on American imports."As bad as it is, that would make it even worse," Sen. Schumer said during a meeting Monday in his New York City office, where he emphasized how New York City's economy would suffer from Trump’s tariff plan, putting hundreds of thousands of jobs tied to exports at risk.CONSERVATIVE LEGAL GROUP SUES TRUMP ADMINISTRATION OVER CHINESE IMPORT TARIFFS: ‘CONGRESS NEVER AUTHORIZED’"I do believe we have to be tough on China, but you got to be smart about it, and you should get the whole world to rally against China instead of attacking the whole world on tariffs," Schumer told FOX Business Digital.Fox Business reached out to the Trump administration for comment. China announced last week that it would impose 34% levies on the U.S., just days after Trump unveiled the same amount against Beijing under his reciprocal tariff plan.Trump posted on Truth Social that the U.S. tack on the additional tariff as soon as Wednesday, if China doesn't withdraw its tariff by Tuesday. The president also said "all talks with China concerning their requested meetings will be terminated." Trump views tariffs as a way to bring in tax revenue for proposed tax cuts while spurring a revitalization of domestic manufacturing, He recently touted his sweeping tariff plan at a "Make America Wealthy Again" event, arguing that it will restore the American dream and bolster jobs for U.S. workers.  "Now it's our turn to prosper, and in so doing, use trillions and trillions of dollars to reduce our taxes and pay down our national debt," he said. Several business leaders and lawmakers, including Schumer, have expressed concerns over the tariff plans. Even billionaire investor Bill Ackman, who backed the Republican presidential candidate in July 2024, posted on Monday that the "formula used by the administration to calculate tariffs made other nations’ tariffs appear four times larger than they actually are," adding that "the global economy is being taken down because of bad math."Schumer has raised alarm about the impact of tariffs on New York in particular. He recently called on the House to join the Senate in passing a resolution to protect the state from "disastrous price increases" and job losses resulting from tariffs on Canada, New York’s top trading partner.During the meeting on Monday, Schumer went as far as to say tariffs are "likely to drive New York right into a recession." While JPMorgan suggested that the chance of a recession is 60%, Schumer argued that the risk is even higher in New York, given the state’s dependence on exports and imports compared to other parts of the country.To illustrate this, he said New York trades over $200 billion in goods alone. Moreover, more than 260,000 New York jobs are tied to exports and imports, all of which are "at indirect peril" due to the president's plan, according to Schumer. Schumer further said that "many, many more jobs" in the secondary market would follow, describing it as a "huge loss of jobs." GET FOX BUSINESS ON THE GO BY CLICKING HERESchumer continued by saying New York's industries, from finance, to tech, tourism and fashion, "are targeted by foreign countries right now."Schumer said his office is also looking at "every legal avenue to stop these tariffs as well." However, he warned that "it will take a while, and the damage is going to be very, very large, very, very soon."Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei FOX Business Weiter zum vollständigen Artikel bei FOX Business