WH: GOP lawmakers ‘haven’t been listening’ to Trump on trade

The White House on Monday scoffed at Republican lawmakers who expressed surprise at President Trump’s announcement last week of tariffs on steel and aluminum.

“If they were caught off guard they simply haven’t been listening to what he’s been saying and what he’s been talking about and how he’s promised to make good trade deals,” said White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders.

“I think they should have been well-aware. This is, again, something the president hasn’t been shy about.”

{mosads} 

Republicans in Congress are ramping up their efforts to stop Trump from following through on his promise to impose the tariffs. 

In a rare move, Speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) publicly rebuked the president’s decision to levy the tariffs against imported steel and aluminum.  

“We are extremely worried about the consequences of a trade war and are urging the White House to not advance with this plan,” Ryan spokeswoman AshLee Strong said in a statement on Monday.

Sanders responded that the White House has “a great relationship with Speaker Ryan, we’re going to continue to have one but we are not going to agree on everything.”