On Tuesday’s broadcast of CNN’s “The Lead,” House Intelligence Committee Ranking Member Rep. Jim Himes (D-CT) responded to President-Elect Donald Trump’s tariff threat by stating that he believes it’s a threat to force negotiations, but doing so is “dangerous” because “on the other side of a mass deportation is a country that is all of a sudden receiving thousands of people back. They could stop that if they wanted to.” And “Mexico, Central America, and Canada, they also have substantial leverage here, and it would be wise for the new administration to recognize that.”
Himes said, [relevant remarks begin around 12:55] “Well, the markets, the equity markets…are up today. So, … obviously, market players believe that this is the opening gambit of a negotiation. And we’ve seen this behavior from Donald Trump before. He uses these threats to, obviously, bring people to the table, to perhaps [be] more willing than they might otherwise be to negotiate. But, look, it’s a dangerous game. The President-Elect has also promised mass deportations on day one. We heard that just today from his border czar. Remember, on the other side of a mass deportation is a country that is all of a sudden receiving thousands of people back. They could stop that if they wanted to. So, the question of tariffs, Mexico, Central America, and Canada, they also have substantial leverage here, and it would be wise for the new administration to recognize that.”
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