Politics

‘Come On, Jessica’: Fox Panelists Tear Into Dem Over Trump’s Tariffs, Say They’ll Benefit Americans

Panelists on "The Five" discussing Trump tariffs [Screenshot/Fox News/"The Five"]

“The Five” Fox panelists Jesse Watters and Judge Jeanine Pirro stopped Democratic strategist Jessica Tarlov Tuesday evening and said that President Donald Trump’s tariffs on Canada will benefit Americans after Tarlov said they are “destroying” America.

Trump took to Truth Social Tuesday to announce a new wave of tariffs against Canada, doubling the previously announced 25% Canadian tariff on steel and aluminum, set to take effect Wednesday. On “The Five,” Tarlov argued against the tariffs, saying the Republican spending bill will add “$7 trillion to the deficit.”

“Even the strongest allies of the president don’t like these tariffs. They might think it’s possible to use them, smaller levels, 5%, 10%, but the tariff whiplash is destroying us. You look at the market tanking. I thought Peter Doocy had a great point earlier on today, our very own Peter Doocy, where he said, ‘They want federal workers to take the buyout,'” Tarlov said. “They want them to retire, but they’re sinking their retirement accounts.”

On Wednesday, as Tarlov said, an Associated Press reporter asked White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt if she had “ever paid a tariff” before.

“Then she went Trumpian. She goes, ‘I think it’s insulting that you’re trying to test my knowledge on economics.’ I’ll test your knowledge on economics, Jesse [Watters]. Are tariffs a tax on the American consumer?” Tarlov asked.

“If you have a tariff on a product, Jessica, what that does is it makes American workers richer because then you buy American,” Watters said. “You bring American plants back to this country. That’s the point, and every president has done it. It’s usually resulted in bringing jobs back.”

Watters listed tariffs from former presidents. He said those tariffs helped Americans.

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“Did you know that Richard Nixon began the pickup truck industry in this country because of a tariff on the Europeans? Did you know that Reagan slapped tariffs on Japan and ended up triggering a semiconductor renaissance in this country?” Watters asked.

“He is protecting American industries,” Pirro jumped in. “Why do we rely on Canada for energy anyway? That’s part of the problem. We need to bring the manufacturing into this country, and countries are buckling. Big corporations are buckling. They’re talking about coming here because they don’t want to be taxed.”

Trump’s pushback against Canada began in February after he signed an executive order to implement a 25% additional tariff on imports from Canada and Mexico and a 10% additional tariff on imports from China, to hold them “accountable for their promises to halt illegal immigration and stop poisonous fentanyl and other drugs.” However, both Mexico’s and Canada’s leaders folded just days after saying they would help secure their borders, triggering a halt on their tariffs for a month.

On March 3 Trump said there was “no room left” for further negotiations or delays on tariffs against Mexico, Canada, or China, continuing to cite how they’ve handled immigration and fentanyl.

“This is going to benefit the American worker, American manufacturing and domestic production. It’s going to preserve jobs. So stop with the tariffs. It’s the leverage that we need to protect,” Pirro said.

Tarlov could be seen jumping in, saying Trump “needs to stop with the tariffs,” to which Pirro responded, “No, no, no, no. I’m glad he did what he did with Canada.” Tarlov continued to press the Fox panelists, saying the only reason she was OK with Trump’s pushback on Canada was because she has “enough money to survive it.”

“That’s not the point! Look, it’s going to float all boats. Come on, Jessica,” Pirro said. “The truth is that this is something that’s going to benefit all Americans when we’ve got more jobs here, and we’ve got all kinds of foreign money coming into this country. We saw it in the press conferences, a half a trillion dollars like one day. They can’t wait to come here.”

“You know, right now we’re trying to clean up Joe Biden’s mess. OK? Four years of a disaster that we’ve got to clean up. He could do what Joe Biden did and just float along or what other presidents do,” Pirro added. “He said, ‘I’m going to clean up this mess. It’s not an easy job. I’m going to take the hit, but I’m going to bring business back.’ And he will.”

(Featured Image Media Credit: Screenshot/Fox News/”The Five”)