Louisiana Senator John Kennedy (R) is one of the many impressed with President Donald Trump's ability to make other countries cry "uncle" when it comes to trade.
When Trump went on a tariff tirade against the entire world, people fell into one of three camps. There was the "Trump knows what he's doing, so relax" group, the "this is going to crash the market and harm the U.S. economy" camp, and the "I have no idea what's going on, but I hope it all works out" folks. The majority of people fell into group three.
It appears that much of what Trump did has worked. As my colleague Teri Christoph reported on Wednesday, phones have been ringing off the hook at the White House from countries looking to find ways to make trade deals more fair. Now, Trump put a 90-day pause on his tariffs, ready to reward countries that didn't create reciprocal tariffs, but more than that, he's now focusing his deal-making strength on China.
Trump's decisions and moves have now caused the stock market to come back with gusto, turning it into the single largest day of gains for the DOW in history. The NASDAQ has also skyrocketed, having its best session since 2001.
Appearing on Fox News's "Hannity," Kennedy sang Trump's praises.
Kennedy noted that Trump, "guided by the principle that if you're going to be a bear, be a grizzly," hit countries with high tariffs against us so hard their heads spun.
This caused a "fresh hell" to break loose, according to Kennedy, which had the media declaring that civilization was coming to an end, and that we'd all be "living in a refrigerator box behind Outback Steakhouse.
"Then an astounding thing happened," said Kennedy. "I thought these countries were going to bow up and fight, but fully half of the countries in the entire world said 'no mas.'"
"They came to the president and said, 'We want to lower our trade barriers and make a deal,'" Kennedy continued.
Hannity noted that they had to because they need access to American markets, to which Kennedy noted they could have tried to fight back but didn't, and Trump seized the opportunity to make deals. He made it clear in no uncertain terms that these countries would've never come to the table if not for what Trump did.
"Deal-making is an art," said Kennedy. "President Trump has clearly mastered the art. It was an impressive couple of weeks."
Dealmaking is an art—and President Trump has clearly mastered it. pic.twitter.com/v7ni8NrcSM
— John Kennedy (@SenJohnKennedy) April 10, 2025
Trump's largest opponent will be China, but he seems more than confident that China will bend the knee like everyone else. He's placed a 125 percent tariff on Chinese goods.
Experts like Kevin O’Leary believe Trump should take it even further, as my colleague Chase Jennings noted on Thursday:
104% tariffs on China are not enough. I'm advocating 400%. I do business with China. They don't play by the rules. They've been in the WTO for decades. They have never abided by any of the rules they agreed to when they came in for decades. They cheat, they steal, they steal IP. I can't litigate in their courts. They take product, technology, they steal it, they manufacture it and sell it back here.
Time will tell if this trade war will benefit the U.S. and its people, but as it stands, it would appear Trump's plans are working out for the better. All things point to a better situation, and if China does cave, this will rewrite the Republican playbook on trade for decades to come.
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