The Dow suffered its worst decline since September after Trump’s tariff whiplash, as Politico reports a Cabinet secretary faces being “forced to take the fall” for contradicting the administration’s trade strategy.
The stock market and other financial markets are still trying to recover from the escalating tensions that emerged this week between President Trump and the United States’ most important trading partners over the imposition and subsequent withdrawal of new, devastating tariffs.
As of Tuesday’s end, the Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 1.1%, or 478 points. Yahoo Finance reports that today was the worst trading day since September, with the S&P 500 falling 0.7% and the Nasdaq Composite falling 0.2%.
Concerns that consumers would cut back on spending in reaction to the tariffs that President Trump indicated will be imposed on certain countries, namely Canada and Mexico, have sent the stock market down.
The tariffs have been temporarily lifted, but Trump has signaled that the 50% duty on Canadian steel and aluminum imports would still be enforced at midnight on Wednesday.
In an effort to assuage investor fears, Trump has recanted his earlier remarks to Fox Business’ Maria Bartiromo, in which he did not rule out the possibility of a recession occurring this year.
A prominent Cabinet secretary may be “forced to take the fall,” according to Politico’s Tuesday story, as he has few allies left in the government.
If the economic turmoil caused by Trump’s tariffs persists, the outlet reports that Howard Lutnick, secretary of commerce and former World Wrestling Entertainment executive Linda McMahon (now secretary of education under Trump), may lose his job. Lutnick and McMahon co-chaired Trump’s transition team.
According to Politico’s anonymous source in the administration, Lutnick has been attempting to mimic Trump’s style recently.
“I don’t think he got the memo that only Trump gets to be Trump,” the person revealed. “It just reinforces that he doesn’t really know how to do the job.”
Politico also said that administration aides are becoming increasingly upset with the commerce secretary, claiming that he frequently steps in front of Trump and has “contradicted his messaging.”
They go on to say that he doesn’t know the first thing about tariffs or the economy, The Raw Story shares.
Lutnick made news last week when he told CNBC that tariffs will drive up prices but that American manufacturing will help businesses dodge the levies.
Lutnick declared that “robots” would replace humans in manufacturing when the hosts brought up the fact that firms outsource production to countries with cheaper labor.
Luis Gochoco is a seasoned managing editor and writer with over a decade of experience covering politics, technology, gaming, and entertainment news. With a keen eye for breaking stories and in-depth analysis, he has established himself as a trusted voice in digital journalism. Luis is one of the key forces behind the success of GameNGuide, contributing to 12 million views through engaging and high-traffic content. He also played a pivotal role in generating 8 million views on International Business Times, shaping the platform’s technology and gaming coverage.
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