Trump's New Tariffs Get Called Out as 'End-Run' by Democrats; Also, Pentagon's Iran War Death Toll Gets a Glitch
Trump's new tariffs on 85 countries get roasted as a sham by Democrats, while the Pentagon's Iran war death toll mysteriously 'glitches' to exclude recent casualties - because apparently, the war ended in April?
The Trump administration announced new tariffs on 85 countries for allegedly failing to crack down on forced labor, and the U.S. trade representative's office immediately turned its government social media account into a political battering ram - posting past statements from 15 lawmakers of both parties in a transparent attempt to preempt criticism. It didn't work.
Congresswoman Linda Sánchez (D-Calif.) called the pretext a sham, noting that the same tariff rate applies to China (a major forced labor abuser) and Australia (which doesn't manufacture Trump products). She pointed out the administration gutted funding to combat forced labor through cuts to the Bureau of International Labor Affairs and rolled back worker protections while encouraging companies to profit from forced labor via a proposed U.S.-China Board of Trade. "Slapping more tariffs on every country that upsets the president isn't the way to do it," she said.
Meanwhile, the Pentagon's official list of service members killed in the ongoing Iran war - Operation Epic Fury - appears to have a data problem. Despite a press release confirming four soldiers died over the weekend, the online list still shows 14 deaths, excluding the recent casualties. A New York Times report says the administration removed them because their deaths occurred after Trump declared a cease-fire in April. A Pentagon spokesman blamed "temporary data disruptions."
Trump, who traveled to Dover to salute the remains, posted a chart comparing the 18 deaths in his Iran war to previous conflicts, misstating the numbers and claiming the dead soldiers supported his war rationale. At a press event, he inflated Vietnam War deaths to "200,000" and argued his war is going great.
Other highlights: Australia's trade minister called the 12.5% tariffs "unjustified." Canada's PM Mark Carney said "everything's on the table." Ontario Premier Doug Ford likened dealing with Trump to handling a "rabid dog." And Mexico's President Claudia Sheinbaum posted nice photos from a meeting with the U.S. trade representative while carefully avoiding the tariff topic altogether.
Also, Trump suggested using frozen Iranian assets to pay for shipping damages caused by Iran - a move that would likely face legal challenges, much like Europe's struggles with Russian frozen assets.
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