What to know today
- U.S. stocks closed down after a day of wild swings and volatility due to President Donald Trump's aggressive and sweeping tariffs. He dug in on his approach by saying in the Oval Office that he is "not looking" to pause the tariffs.
- Trade tensions with China escalated further after Trump vowed to impose steeper tariffs on China if it doesn't back off the duties it plans to impose on U.S. goods. He made the threat after Chinese stocks dropped sharply and European indexes plunged as trade ministers met to ready their first response to the U.S. levies.
- The Supreme Court ruled tonight that the Trump administration can use the Alien Enemies Act for deportations, so long as potential deportees can challenge any evidence against them in court. The ruling stemmed from a federal judge who imposed a temporary nationwide ban on deportations under the rarely used wartime law.
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China vows to ‘fight to the end’ if Trump raises tariffs to 104%
China said Tuesday it will “fight to the end” if Trump imposes an additional 50% tariff on Chinese goods as many countries rush to negotiate trade with the United States.
If the plan is fully implemented, the total tariffs on goods imported into the United States from China would be as much as 104%. In response, the Chinese Commerce Ministry said China “firmly opposes” Trump’s tariff threats, calling its previous countermeasures “entirely justified.”
“If the U.S. insists in its own way, China will fight to the end,” the ministry said in a statement Tuesday, adding that Trump’s threat to escalate tariffs on China is a “mistake upon a mistake.”
What Trump and his administration have said about the tariffs policy roiling global markets
Trump has proposed sweeping tariffs targeting U.S. trading partners, including a 10% across-the-board baseline tariff that went into effect Saturday.
In response, investors have initiated a massive stock sell-off amid fears that the scale of what Trump has proposed threatens to remake the world economic order — and weaken overall global output, including growth in the United States.
But Trump and other White House officials have shown no sign they will back off from the proposal, which includes duties of more than 40% on some nations — and with 104% threatened on China.
Following are recent comments from senior administration officials making the case for the duties.
Trump holds firm on tariffs as the White House looks for ways to calm nervous allies
Trump sees an opportunity to “change the fabric” of the United States with his sprawling plan to institute new global tariffs — a policy that has had markets shaking for days while cracks form in his political coalition.
But even as Trump, administration officials and key allies say he will not back down from his tariff plan, they are looking for ways to ease the concerns of wary supporters. The measures include talking up the potential to cut deals with key trading partners, pointing to tax cuts as a way to balance out the economic hit and deploying officials to speak to jittery business groups.
“The feeling among Hill Republicans is we’ve got to get rolling on the tax cuts right now,” a senior Senate Republican aide said. “We have to offer some candy to the business community in terms of offering them certainty and helping with pro-growth policies.”
Two administration officials confirmed that members of the administration were taking calls from business groups and setting up private meetings to allay worries.
American Library Association sues Trump over dismantling of agency that funds libraries
The American Library Association sued the Trump administration over the gutting of the Institute of Museum and Library Services and requested that it be reinstated.
“Libraries play an important role in our democracy, from preserving history to providing access to government information, advancing literacy and civic engagement, and offering access to a variety of perspectives,” American Library Association President Cindy Hohl said in a statement.
“These values are worth defending. We will not allow extremists to threaten our democracy by eliminating programs at IMLS and harming the children and communities who rely on libraries and the services and opportunities they provide,” she added.
The Institute of Museum and Library Sciences is a small agency that provides funding grants to libraries and museums across the country. It underwent funding cuts and mass layoffs as a result of Trump’s executive order last month titled “Continuing the reduction of the federal bureaucracy.”
The lawsuit argues that the library institute was created by Congress and enjoyed bipartisan support throughout its history, adding that it is bound by law to report on important issues to Congress and conduct activities to support libraries.
The plaintiffs say that only Congress can dismantle the agency and that, therefore, the Trump administration broke the law by unilaterally taking that step.
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott sets November special election for deep-blue House seat
Republican Texas Gov. Greg Abbott today said he had selected Nov. 4 as the date for the special election to fill the House seat that had been occupied by Democrat Sylvester Turner, who died unexpectedly last month.
The decision means the deep-blue, Houston-based congressional seat will be vacant for roughly eight months.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.Y., and other Democrats had accused Abbott of deliberately delaying calling the special election to help pad the GOP’s tiny majority in the House. Republicans hold just a 220-213 advantage over Democrats in the House, meaning Speaker Mike Johnson, R-La., can afford only three GOP defections on any vote.
But in a statement today, Abbott pointed the finger at Harris County, saying officials there do a poor job conducting elections.
Supreme Court gives boost to Trump administration’s deportation plans under Alien Enemies Act
The Supreme Court tonight threw out the order of a federal judge who had blocked the removal of men alleged to be members of the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua to El Salvador without any legal process under the Alien Enemies Act.
The 5-4 ruling essentially clears the path for the Trump administration to resume deportations under the rarely used wartime law, so long as detainees are given due process. That means they must be given time to challenge their detentions and make the administration prove the legality of their confinements.
“AEA detainees must receive notice after the date of this order that they are subject to removal under the Act. The notice must be afforded within a reasonable time and in such a manner as will allow them to actually seek habeas relief in the proper venue before such removal occurs,” the court wrote in its majority opinion.
The decision lifts orders issued by Washington-based U.S. District Judge James Boasberg, who blocked the move on March 15, while litigation continues. The original lawsuit was filed by five Venezuelans, with Boasberg provisionally certifying it as a class action that applies to all Venezuelans in U.S. custody who are not U.S. citizens.
EPA to work with HHS on reviewing 'new scientific information' about fluoride in drinking water
The Environmental Protection Agency announced today that it will "review new scientific information" about what it called possible health risks tied to adding fluoride to drinking water.
The review will be conducted in coordination with the Department of Health and Human Services and its secretary, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the EPA said.
"Secretary Kennedy has long been at the forefront of this issue. His advocacy was instrumental in our decision to review fluoride exposure risks and we are committed to working alongside him, utilizing sound science as we advance our mission of protecting human health and the environment,” EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin said in a statement.
Kennedy told The Associated Press after a news conference in Salt Lake City this afternoon that he plans to tell the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention soon to stop recommending fluoride in drinking water across the country and that he is building a task force on the matter.
Kennedy said on the campaign trail last year that the Trump administration would recommend that fluoride be removed from public water, which he linked to a variety of illnesses, in spite of widespread backing from medical associations for its use to strengthen teeth and reduce cavities.
Trump says he'll have his annual physical exam this week
Trump said on Truth Social this evening that he will get his annual physical exam Friday.
"I have never felt better, but nevertheless, these things must be done!" he wrote.
The exam is scheduled to take place at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland.
Trump, 78, has been opaque in the past about his health, and he provided limited details about his physical fitness ahead of last year's election. Democrats drew attention to the issue and his public vow to release his medical records before the election, which didn't happen. He told NBC News in December that he had "no problem" with releasing his full medical reports.
Trump officials in 'early stages' of planning D.C. parade, mayor says
The Trump administration is in the "early stages" of planning a large-scale parade in Washington, D.C., Mayor Muriel Bowser told reporters today.
Bowser, a Democrat, was asked about a report in the Washington City Paper that said plans are underway for a military parade honoring the 250th anniversary of the Army on June 14 — which is both Flag Day and Trump's 79th birthday.
The report cited a single anonymous source for the information, which NBC News has not confirmed. The Army did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Bowser said the Trump administration had "reached out" about an event.
“I don’t know if it’s been characterized as a military parade, but maybe it has. I haven’t been directly involved in it yet," she said. "I think it was Homeland Security. Maybe the White House reached out to our Special Events Task Force, which is what most people wanting to do a parade do in the District. So I would say it’s at early stages.”
Trump had planned to hold a military parade during his first term in office, but the plan was eventually scuttled after he complained about the "ridiculously high" price the city said such a parade could cost.
Sen. Ted Cruz says Trump's tariffs could be 'really bad for America'
Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, ramped up his criticism of Trump's tariffs today, saying they could end up being bad for both his home state and the country as a whole.
“The last I checked, we still have the income tax, and we have these tariffs. That’s just a ton more taxes. If you want to get rid of the income tax, then we can talk, but I don’t see anyone proposing getting rid of the income tax,” Cruz said on his podcast, “Verdict.”
“If the outcome from these tariffs is really high tariffs from every country on Earth against American goods and really high tariffs from America against goods from every other country on Earth, that is going to be really bad for Texas and really bad for America,” he added.
Cruz has previously criticized the tariffs, and he became one of the first Trump-allied Republican voices to do so. He argued last week that they would hurt American consumers.
“So what I’m urging is for the president to come and make major deals and make them quickly. Look, to calm the stock market down, a few major deals quickly would really, really help,” Cruz said on his podcast today.