In an embarrassing exchange on April 4, 2025, CNN anchor Pamela Brown tried and failed in epic fashion to argue that the Trump administration’s “Liberation Day” tariffs are going to be a net negative for Americans. In response, Brown’s guest — President Trump’s economic advisor Howard Lutnick — broke down Brown’s faulty logic and left the CNN host scrambling to recover from her humiliating lack of understanding.
For context, on April 2, 2025 — a date that President Trump called “Liberation Day,” the Trump administration announced a far-reaching tariff hike that includes a universal 10 percent tariff on all imported goods from countries besides Canada and Mexico. This polarizing move is part of President Trump’s plan to revitalize the US economy in the long run through what Mr. Lutnick called “a reordering of global trade.”
In response to the media frenzy surrounding the recent tariffs, Mr. Lutnick has been making multiple media appearances and speaking on behalf of the Trump administration regarding Liberation Day and its implications. While many reporters — including CNN’s Pamela Brown — have been belligerent and critical in their questioning of Mr. Lutnick, his responses have been patient, measured, and consistent.
While hosting Howard Lutnick on CNN on April 4, Pamela Brown made the case that the Trump administration’s previous tariffs caused prices to rise. The CNN host asserted that in the wake of past tariffs, “The manufacturing sector went into a mild recession in the fall of 2019. What gives you so much certainty…that this is going to work and that it isn’t going to hurt the average American?”
After being asked this question, Mr. Lutnick maintained patience and composure and gave a simple response: “The largest tariffed and trade-barriered (sic) country in the world is China, and they don’t have inflation. So these things don’t occur the way people suggest they do.”
Referencing Mr. Trump’s economic boldness, Lutnick said, “This is a president who is doubling down on his proven economic formula from his first term…it’s about time we have a president who actually does something about [this].” Lutnick, who holds the position of Commerce Secretary, has firsthand knowledge of the careful planning behind President Trump’s economic strategies and trusts the president wholeheartedly.
Continuing with a vivid illustration, Mr. Lutnick described the state of America’s economy under the influence of exploitative trade relationships. Seemingly referring to countries like China, Lutnick said, “These people have all been living in our house. They’ve been driving our car. They come by and visit, open our fridge, and eat our food whenever they want.”
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As Brown attempted to interrupt, Mr. Lutnick patiently continued, “Today was the day of the beginning of saying, ‘I’m sorry; you can’t just live for free off of us. You have to pay. And what’s going to happen is the United States of America will get stronger. Our economy will grow much faster than the rest of the world.” He confidently asserted that we should be “betting on Donald Trump and the United States market.”
Watch this humiliating interview via CNN:
Featured image from embedded video