On the same day the U.S. economy shrank for the first time in three years, President Donald Trump dismissed concerns that Americans would pay the price for his massive tariffs.
Speaking during a cabinet meeting at the White House on Wednesday, Trump responded to a question regarding his tariffs against China, admitting that it could lead to higher costs for parents and their kids.
“Somebody said, ‘Oh, the shelves are gonna be open,’” Trump told reporters. “Well, maybe the children will have two dolls instead of 30 dolls, and maybe the two dolls will cost a couple of bucks more.”
The president shifted the blame toward former President Joe Biden, claiming Biden put the U.S. under “fiscal risk” during his time in office. It was a strategy Trump used earlier on Wednesday to deflect criticism as the the Department of Commerce reported that the GDP fell 0.3 percent in the first quarter of 2025, marking the first time the economy has contracted since 2022. In response to the news, the Dow Jones dropped over 600 points, while the Nasdaq and S&P 500 each dropped over two percentage points.
“This is Biden’s Stock Market, not Trump’s,” the president wrote on Truth Social. “I didn’t take over until January 20th. Tariffs will soon start kicking in, and companies are starting to move into the USA in record numbers.” Trump insisted the stock market plunge had “NOTHING TO DO WITH TARIFFS” and assured Americans they just had to “BE PATIENT!!!”
Trump, who promised during his reelection campaign to bring down the price of eggs and other groceries on “day one,” delivered his remarks as inflation indicators are accelerating and wage growth is decreasing.
The president’s 145 percent China tariffs have caused costs for American companies to skyrocket, according to The New York Times, with the companies predicting product shortages and higher prices and some business owners already consulting bankruptcy lawyers.
Some Republican lawmakers have pushed back against the president’s attempts to evade blame. “By introducing tariffs to the extent that he has, this is President Trump’s economy now,” Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.) said earlier this month. “I don’t think it’s believable to say that President Biden or any former administration caused what’s happening.”
The first 100 days of Trump’s return to the White House have seen the president and his administration ravage and restructure the federal government in his crusade to exert executive power over the American people. On Wednesday, Trump gloated to reporters, “I really believe that the next 100 days are going to be even better than this.”
From Rolling Stone US
