U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer on Sunday said none of the countries that had reached trade deals with the U.S. had indicated plans to withdraw following Friday’s Supreme Court decision striking down a large swath of President Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Greer told CBS News’ “Face the Nation” program that he had already spoken with his counterpart from the European Union and would be speaking with officials from other countries. “I haven’t heard anyone yet come to me and say the deal is off,” Greer said in the first of several media interviews about the Supreme Court ruling. “They want to see how this plays out.”
Trump on Friday imposed a 10% temporary tariff after the Supreme Court struck down his previous tariff program, which was based on an economic emergency law. On Saturday he lifted that level to 15% – the maximum allowed by the law.
Greer told CBS the president’s decision to hike the temporary tariff rate after less than 24 hours reflected the “urgency of the situation” and the need to reduce what he called huge trade imbalances with other countries.
Speaking on ABC News’ “This Week” program, Greer said the Trump administration would reconstruct its trade policy using other legal tools, including the Section 301 unfair practices statute and the Section 232 statute, both of which have withstood legal challenges.
