US President Donald Trump: I have the right to adjust tariffs

During a public meeting with Ireland's Prime Minister, or Taoiseach, Micheál Martin, United States (US) President Donald Trump took the opportunity to deliver another hodge-podge of comments addressing his usual variety of topics that White House watchers have become increasingly familiar with.

Without sharing any specific details, President Trump declared that the EU has been "tough" on the US in terms of trade, noting that Europeans tend to not buy very many US-produced food products or vehicles. Given the enormous costs of shipping both durable and non-durable goods between two high-income economic zones, as well as prolonged shipping times, the lack of movement of time-sensitive goods such as food and price-sensitive goods such as automobiles is hardly surprising. Donald Trump also reiterated his intent to put tariffs on cars imported into the US, a move which is unlikely to result in a change in manufacturing and instead simply raise the cost of transportation for US citizens.

President Donald also reiterated his stance that Canada is "one of the worst" on dairy tariffs. Donald Trump again failed to note that Canada's high tariffs on dairy are a cap-trade restriction allotted under Trump's own USMCA trade deal that he championed during his first deal, and only kick in after a certain amount of US dairy products are imported into Canada.

To date, the US has never successfully hit the import quotas to active Canada's dairy tariffs, as most US dairy products fail to meet Canadian health and safety standards. Canada also financially protects its own dairy market in order to prevent US-based economic dumping within its borders, a practice that the US itself has a history of vehemently opposing within its own economy.

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