Kudlow Doesn't Have Much To Show For Promised 'Trade Coalition Of The Willing'

By Matt Shuham | April 8, 2018 12:11 pm

President Donald Trump’s top economic adviser on Sunday had little to say about a so-called “trade coalition of the willing” he’d previously outlined amid heightened tensions over a potential trade war between the United States and China.

“You said on Friday that you were going to announce a ‘trade coalition of the willing’ today; other countries that were going to join us in taking on China,” Fox News’ Chris Wallace told Larry Kudlow, Trump’s newly-appointed director of the National Economic Council, during an interview on “Fox News Sunday.”

“Who are they?” Wallace asked.

Kudlow, an experienced TV commentator before his White House hiring, seemed to hesitate.

“I didn’t make this announcement,” he said. “I’m just observing.”

In fact, he had. When Fox News Fox Business’ Stuart Varney asked Kudlow Friday if he’d “heard from the Europeans or the Japanese that, yes, they’re on board with this escalation of the tariff threat” against China, Kudlow said he couldn’t speak for Europe, but that Japan was “supporting us on this.”

Kudlow added Friday: “Just give us another 24 to 48 hours, you’re going to see what I call a trade coalition of the willing to change and get China back into the world by abiding by the laws.” It echoed a comment he made on CNBC in mid-March. The phrase is seemingly a reference to the “coalition of the willing,” former President George W. Bush’s term for countries that supported the 2003 invasion of Iraq and subsequent occupation of the country.

Wallace pressed: “No, no, no, you said on Friday, between 24 and 48 hours I’m going to announce a trade coalition of the willing. Do you have them?”

“They are coming to us,” Kudlow said.

“Well who are they?” Wallace asked.

“Japan, Europe, Australia, Canada. They have come to us,” Kudlow said, vaguely.

“But they are not talking about tariffs,” Wallace said.

“Sure they are,” Kudlow shot back.

“No they’re not,” Wallace said.

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