As the week got underway, NBC News aired Donald Trump’s latest appearance on “Meet the Press,” during which the president shared some odd claims about trade policy. “We were losing hundreds of billions of dollars with China,” he said. “Now we’re essentially not doing business with China. Therefore, we’re saving hundreds of billions of dollars.”
Of course, by that reasoning, if I stopped doing business with my local grocery stores, I could boast about all of the money I’m saving, which would be great except for the related fact that I wouldn’t have any food.
A couple of days later, Trump again said that he didn’t care about the collapse of economic activity between the U.S. and China. “You know, we lost a trillion dollars to China on trade … and by not trading, we’re losing nothing,” the Republican claimed. “So, we’re saving a trillion dollars. That’s a lot.”
Roughly 24 hours later, Trump pushed the same line, arguing that the collapse in trade between the world’s two largest economies was a positive development. “We were losing a trillion dollars a year,” he said. “Now we’re not losing anything, you know? That’s the way I look at it.”
In case that weren’t quite enough, on Thursday, the president’s neo-mercantilist vision came into even sharper focus, when a reporter reminded Trump that economic activity at American ports has dramatically slowed. “That’s good,” the Republican replied.
Reporter: “The ports here in the U.S., the traffic has really slowed.”Trump: “That's good.”Reporter: “Now thousands of dock workers and truck drivers are worried about their jobs.”Trump: “…When you say it slowed down, that's a good thing, not a bad thing.”
— The Bulwark (@thebulwark.com) 2025-05-08T15:59:27.052Z
The same reporter noted that thousands of American dock workers and truck drivers are worried about their jobs. Trump effectively shrugged with indifference, adding, “That means we lose less money. … When you say it slowed down, that’s a good thing, not a bad thing.”
In terms of fact-checking, it’s relevant that Trump keeps dramatically exaggerating the size of the U.S.-China trade deficit. It’s also relevant the president continues to suggest he’s not altogether clear what a trade deficit is.








